Really Good U: Effective Time Management
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 12" Audible Time Timer Really Good U: Effective Time Management It is easy to get sidetracked when teaching. Guests entering the room, fire drills, and overhead announcements can all delay a perfectly smooth plan for the day. Since very few teaching days are uninterrupted, it is important to know how to effectively manage the time that you do have. Time management breaks down into a couple of areas. It can relate to how you keep your students on task and in the moment. It can also relate to how you effectively manage classroom procedures. Both aspects are equally important in any well-run classroom.
1, 2, 3, Eyes on Me! Keeping your students focused can eat up a lot of time during the day if you do not have an effective way to regain their attention. Sometimes, a simple sound or verbal cue can be all it takes. “[I use] my wind chimes!” says Marcia. “It’s such a different sound and it really gets their attention when I need it fast!” Getting everyone’s attention at once is important too. “The most effective trick is getting the attention of the entire class in 2 seconds,” explains Dawn R. “When I say, ‘Class’ all my students respond, ‘Yes’ and look directly at me. In previous years, I would stand in front of the class with my hand raised and a smile on my face. There were plenty of times I waited too long for the attention of the entire class.”  Photo by House of Sims (flickr.com) Using your foreign language skills can also help you. “Surprise them into listening,” suggests Kim S. “Sometimes I will speak in French, which makes them all stop and look. Most know English, and some know Spanish, but none speak French- which tricks them into stopping and listening.” Verbal clues are also good for encouraging students to complete a task. “The good old fashion counting down from 10 to 0 gets the kids going for me,” says Mary J. “I tell them they have 10 seconds to clean up their area and get in their seats then I start counting down loudly. This gets their juices going and they hurry to beat the time.” Daily Time Management The second aspect of time management relates to how you structure the flow of your class. Everything from job charts to timed instruction are important for keeping learning going throughout the day. Liz T. explains how she helps organize time in her classroom. “Besides being prepared as a teacher, I make sure that my students get all of their supplies needed for the day ready in the morning,” she says. “This way they can take their time getting ready for the day, sharpening pencils and what not while we are taking care of morning business. When it is time for instruction to take place we won’t have to worry about waiting on each other to get our supplies ready.” Managing time, much like creating a positive environment in the class, often begins with the teacher. “I think my favorite time management trick is one I developed for myself,” admits Tammy A. “I made a plan for what needs to be done every day, at the end of the day, as well as, what needs to be done by the end of the week. I then divided the weekly plan up with a little bit done every day, rather than having a ton of work left to do on Friday afternoons. It has definitely made me much more focused and organized as well as makes it easier for me to enjoy my weekend knowing I am ready to go on Monday morning!”
When you have the routine organized and your own time management issues resolved, how then do you help your students effectively manage their time? “I have sand timers in some of the centers as well as kitchen timers,” explains Amy B. “I also have a stopwatch that I use, but I allow a student to be in charge of it and when time gets close to being up, they are the one who goes from station to station making sure students are ready to move to the next task.”
Managing your classroom instruction and transition time is one of the most effective ways to become a great classroom manager. With so many state-mandated requirements, fitting in all of the year’s instruction can be difficult. When you begin by making a plan and using the resources at hand, you become a master of time and classroom management. Questions to Consider:
Additional Resources: Teacher’s Time Management Survival Kit by P. Susan Mamchak Taming the Time Stealers: Tricks of the Trade from Organized Teachers by Mildred C. Gore and John F. Dowd Time-Saving Tips for Teachers by Joanne Wachter Ghio and Clare Carhart
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Commented On July 29th, 2010 7:30 am
Thank you so much for all the tips to prepare us for the first day of school I am so much more prepared because I know where to look for help. Thank You once again! Kyla Turley
Commented On July 29th, 2010 7:34 am
I am going to try wind chimes this year thank you for the tip.
Commented On July 29th, 2010 8:40 am
I have “experts” in my classroom. During the school year we find out who, in the classroom, is an expert certain things/jobs. These things/jobs could be tying shoes, working the computer, remembering procedures, reading directions, following directions, etc… Then I make a class book with the students’ pictures and what they are an expert at doing. I have the procedure, “3 Before Me.” That means a student must ask three peers for help before they interrupt me and my small group. So the student can refer to the class book and find an expert that might be able to help them with their problem. If they’ve asked three experts/peers and still don’t know what to do, they clip their name and I will come help them when I am finished with my group. If their question keeps them from working they know to pull a book out of their basket and read while they wait. I find this to be a way to manage one less interruption during my small groups and I am able to complete my small group plans. By the end of the year, my first graders could run my class without me even there.
Commented On July 29th, 2010 9:38 am
I have baskets for each day of the week where I keep the papers in the order for the day! I can just move to the next pile and not search for papers! I also have the students do things like getting center baskets out and supplies! I play a song and they have to be cleaned up by the end or they miss out on something else! The more organized you are the smoother your day runs because you know exactly what you are doing next!
Commented On July 29th, 2010 10:23 am
I am very routine in my classroom which helps with class management. I also start at the same time every day. Every day announcements are at 9:05 which means before that my kids can go to the bathroom, eat breakfast, sharpen pencil and do morning work. The morning work is very simple and takes 5 minutes or less. So they have 25 minutes to do all of that. My kids get it done. Because once the day starts there are no more sharpening pencils or going to the bookbag.
I do like the idea of the what I can do when I am done poster. I feel like I do not give them enough when they are done.
My biggest hurdle is getting them to take their time in centers. Our reading series comes with flipbooks with activities that should take 15-20 minutes, but my students will finish quickly. I need to reevaluate centers so my kids can actually take the time and make them more meaningful.
Commented On July 29th, 2010 9:39 pm
I have used the signal “Clap if you can hear me,” with the students responding in three claps to get everyone back on the task or to get attention. We practice it throughout the first few weeks of school, and it works! This past year, I called out “Marco” and the students responded with “Polo” right away.
For my students, the biggest challenge is changing classes in a two minute passing period. I teach 5th grade Math and Science and getting everyone ready and out the door on time cam be a problem. We are in a new-to-our-school building this year and thankfully my partner is next door and not down the hall. Hopefully this will help to make transition time run more smoothly.
Commented On August 2nd, 2010 4:38 pm
I use a bell in my classroom to gain their attention. When I ring the bell, they know that they are to stop what they are doing and give me 5. It a nice sound that is loud, but not intruding!
Commented On March 6th, 2011 7:57 pm
I like to use the small countdown clocks for my students who need a visual reminder. I recently purchased a large sand timer for one student to manage as it is time for everyone to clean up. To get my students’ immediate attention I do a countdown from 5 to 1. If they are watching, but are not listening, then it is a visual countdown.
I will have to try speaking in a foreign language. Many of my students know Spanish or enough of it, so I will rely upon the little bit of Haitian Creole I learned for one of my students I had two years ago.
Commented On March 20th, 2011 12:00 pm
I like to use the “1, 2, 3, eyes on me” idea in younger classrooms. This doesn’t seem to have much affect on the older kids. However, the student jobs is something that I have seen successful in all grades from K-5. The students, as mentioned in the article, LOVE to do the jobs and help out. The article mentioned have students “apply” for the jobs, but I like to switch them out everyweek so each student gets to do all the jobs a bunch of times!