Articles

Sometimes a few little numbers can tell a great big story. That's the case with the changing numbers of disciplinary referrals at Palmyra-Macedon Primary School in Palmyra, NY. When the Responsive Classroom approach really began to take hold in this school, disciplinary referrals (overall numbers of referrals as well as…

When principal Susan Mele arrived four years ago at Stewartsville Elementary School, the discipline was in chaos. More time was being spent on discipline than instruction; teachers were exhausted from dealing with inappropriate behaviors that negatively impacted instruction; students were rude to each other and didn't seem to care. Susan…

Summer camp was a big part of my childhood. When I think back to my experiences at sleep-away camp, I remember a clear line between the camp with an atmosphere of safety and kindness and the camp with an atmosphere of recklessness and cruelty. At the first camp, the counselors…

Several years ago, teachers at Ironia Elementary, a suburban New Jersey school with 600 students in kindergarten through fifth grade, began working with their students each September to create classroom rules—simple but powerful guidelines for behavior that set the stage for a productive year of learning. Once all teachers were…

As members of the Bywood School community: We respect all people, we respect all property; We walk safely, we talk quietly; We never touch to hurt another person; We always keep our school a safe and clean place; So that we can learn and succeed. —Bywood Elementary School Behavior Pledge…

"Where should we start?" is a common question for schools that want to implement the Responsive Classroom approach schoolwide. There's not one right answer, although it's definitely helpful to invest early on in helping teachers master the core classroom practices. Besides that, a good way to start is to establish…

At the recent National Staff Development Council (NSDC) conference in St. Louis, I had an opportunity to view The Principal Story. This documentary, which aired on PBS earlier this fall, tells a poignant story about two elementary school leaders who turned around their under-performing urban schools. (Follow the link to…

Sheffield Elementary, a grade 3–6 school in Turners Falls, Massachusetts, faced a challenge familiar to many educators: how to develop a more consistent approach to discipline from classroom to classroom and in common school areas, such as the playground, lunchroom, and hallways. In the fall of 2003, our school community…