Rules and Routines Handbook

Room Use

A Teacher desk and storage
areas
Students may not access the teachers desk and storage
areas unless otherwise instructed. Storage areas will be
locked and/or covered to prevent students from freely
accessing the area.

B Student desk and storage
areas
Students are in charge of keeping their own area neat and
organized. They may not use other students materials
without first obtaining permission from that student. We
will do a mandatory cleaning of desks and student
storage areas once every other week.

C Storage for common materials Students will have full access to the common materials on
the designated shelves during the appropriate times.
Students will report to me whenever we run out of
supplies. Students are expected to return all borrowed
items.

D Drinking fountains, sink, pencil
sharpener
Students must raise their hand and ask before using the
drinking fountain, sink, or pencil sharpener. These areas
are not to be used during instruction time. During work
times, there is to be no more than one student at each of
these stations at a time. During transition times, students
may use these areas freely in an appropriate and timely
manner.

E Restrooms Students must ask before leaving the room to use the
restroom. During work times, there can be no more than
one boy and one girl student in the restroom at a time.
We will, as a class, use the restroom once in the morning,
once before lunch, and once in the afternoon as needed.
When I student is in the bathroom, they will move their
marker from the in class section to the restroom
section in the area by the door.

F Centers or equipment areas I will assign students to centers except on free days in
which students will get to choose a center. Free days
will happen once every other week.

G Computer stations Students must ask to use the computer during free time
or individual work time. During computer work time,
students will take turns and be assigned a computer to
use.

H Board Students may not erase the white board unless instructed
by the teacher. Students may write on the white board
during free time and structured time as long as they are
not writing over the information already posted.

Individual Work and Teacher-Led Activities

A Attention during
presentations
During presentations, students are to remain in their
seats quietly for the whole presentation. Students may
raise their hand and be called on if they have an
appropriate question regarding the presentation.

B Participation Students must be working on the appropriate material at
the appropriate times. Participation is indicated by
students working on the assigned material in the
appropriate area at the appropriate time.

C Talk among students When working in the classroom, students may talk to
each other during group work time and natural
transition time. Student voices must be low, using a 6
inch voice. Students may not talk to each other during
instruction time or individual work time unless otherwise
instructed by the teacher.

D Obtaining help To obtain help, the student must raise their hand and
wait for the teacher to come to them to help.

E When individual work has
been completed
When individual work has been completed, students may
take out other work they must finish. If they have no
other work, the students may find a book to read until
transition time.

Transitions into and out of the Room

A Beginning the school day Upon entering the classroom, students must put their
things in the appropriate area, check to make sure they
have all necessary materials, and be seated in their desk
to prepare for class.

B Leaving the room Students will form a line by the door when preparing to
leave the room. We will not exit the room until everyone
is in line and voices are turned off.
When leaving the room individually, students must first
obtain permission from the teacher and quietly exit the
room after getting permission.

C Returning to the room When returning to the room individually, students will
quietly walk back into the room and return to the work
they were working on.
When returning as a class, the teacher will give
instructions outside the door. Students are expected to
carry out those instructions upon entering the classroom.

D Ending the day At the end of the day, students must collect and organize
all materials. When they have their materials pack they
are to line up at the door and wait for dismissal.

Procedures for Small-Group Instruction
A Getting the class ready Students will wait quietly as I call out or organize
assigned groups and give instruction. This is the time for
students to ask any clarification questions of information
they are unsure of.
B Student movement Students will move on my cue to assigned areas in the
room. Movement will be quick and quiet, so we can
begin our small-group time as quickly as possible.
C Expected behavior in the
group
Students in the group will work with each other on the
problem. All group members are expected to participate
in discussion and work on the task. Any group member
not fulfilling his or her role will speak with the teacher.
D Expected behavior of students
outside the group
Students outside the group are not permitted to
interrupt other groups work unless otherwise asked by
the teacher.
E Materials and supplies One student is in charge of collect all materials unless
otherwise instructed by the teacher. The materials will
be organized and laid out ahead of time to avoid chaos.
Should students need additional materials, they must
first obtain the teachers permission and then get them if
allowed to do so.
F Using multiple groups Each group will be assigned a different area in the room
to work in. Groups may not interrupt or communicate
with other groups unless otherwise instructed by the
teacher. If a group needs assistance, a group member
will raise his or her hand and wait for assistance.

General Procedures
A Distributing materials The teacher will ask the classroom helpers to assist in
distributing materials. All students that are not
classroom helpers will wait quietly until all materials are
distributed. If this is during a transition time, students
are permitted to sharpen pencils, get drinks, and use the
bathroom while classroom helpers are handing out
materials.
B Classroom helpers The classroom helpers will be randomly selected by the
teacher and will change every day. We will have a line
leader, a calendar helper, and a materials helper in the
classroom.
C Interruptions or delays During interruptions or delays, students are expected to
continue working on material. If the delay is a long
delay, students may take out a book to read or
homework to work on. If it is a short delay, students may
talk quietly to their neighbor until the interruption is
completed.
E Library, resource room, school
office
Students are to use these areas during designated times
in the schedule. Students may visit these areas during
free time or transition time as determined by the teacher
and school policies. The school office is to visited before
school unless otherwise determined by the teacher.
F Cafeteria We will walk to the cafeteria as a class and follow the
school rules as far as lunch. Students are to respect the
cafeteria monitors and obey the appropriate manners
and practices of eating a meal.
G Playground Students are to follow the school rules of the playground
and listen to the playground monitors.
H Fire and disaster drills Students are to remain calm during drills and
immediately form a line by the door. Students may not
touch each other while completely the drills and must
move quickly and cautiously. We will complete the drills
in accordance with the school policy and procedures.


Cooperative Work Handbook

Beginning Cooperative Group Work

A How will student seating be
arranged?
Students desks or tables will be arranged in pods, with
students sitting in a circle around the tables to provide for
optimum work space.

B How will individual and group
materials and supplies be
stored?
There will be a cubby station located in the classroom. At
the beginning of each group assignment, groups will be
assigned a cubby to store materials in throughout the
course of the activity.

C What are your expectation for
student movement to, from,
and during group work?
When I instruct, students will move into their groups and
remain with their group until the end of work time unless
otherwise instructed by me. I will give the students an
amount of time to work and then give further instructions
for movement from the groups as necessary.

D What expectations about talk
will you communication to
students?
Students will use their 6 inch voices to communicate with
only the members of their group unless I instruct
otherwise.

E How will you form groups? Group formation will vary depending on the situation and
activity. Normally, I will assign groups based on work style
and understanding. I will allow students to choose their
own groups when it suits the situation.

F How will you build group
interdependence?
Each group member will be given a role or area of
expertise and use those roles together to complete the
activity. Roles will vary in each situation or activity.

G What initial tasks will groups
do?
The initial task of each group will be to divide up roles and
learn the information associated with their role.

H Do any group work skills have
to be discussed modeled, or
practiced?
The initial task of deciding roles must be discussed and
practiced many times to become fluent in the exercise.
Students will also have to discuss and practice storing
materials in the appropriate places and getting into
groups quickly and quietly.

Monitoring Student Work and Behavior

A Will group work have
individual projects, group
projects, or both?
In each group activity, each group member will have at
least one project to complete. Likewise, there will be at
least one group project portion of the activity the
students will have to complete together.

B How will individual or group
work be assessed?
I will formatively assess the group by asking each group
questions and setting up benchmarks for them to
complete at certain times to ensure they are on the
correct time line. At the end of the activity, the students
will write a reflection of their experience and take a test
on what they learned.

C How will you monitor student
behavior and work during
group activities?
Students will be responsible for assessing each others
behavior by filling out a questionnaire about each other
member in the group, measuring their work applied to
the project and ability to work well with others. I will
also assess student work by observing their behavior
within the groups.

D How will students receive
feedback on their individual
and group performance?
Students will receive grade rubrics for each activity
completed in at most one week from the completion
date. Students will also receive an overview spreadsheet
and comments group members assessed them on at the
same time as the graded rubrics. I will provide my
additional comments on the graded rubrics.

E How will students receive
feedback about their behavior
in groups?
Students will receive the comments and ratings on the
questionnaire that the other group members filled out
about them. All comments and ratings will be
anonymous. I will also provide comments about the
students behavior on the same form.


Interventions for Groups

A How will you encourage good
group work skills?
At the end of each activity, I will provide a reward for the
students that I observed working best together. To be
considered, all students must be assisting in solving the
answer or completing the activity as well as showing
excellent work on their individual work. Students will
practice group and teamwork at the beginning of the
year to demonstrate what effective group work looks
like.

B How will you redirect
struggling groups?
I will join struggling groups and observe where the
struggle is coming from. After I have discovered the
source of the struggle, I will remediate that portion. If
there is a conflict amongst groupmates, I will meet with
the group during a free period to work together to find a
solution to the problem.

C How will you redirect
individual students?
I will take individual students into the hallway with me
and discuss the problem. If I have this done once and the
behavior continues, I will remove that student from the
group and they will complete the activity by themselves.
They will be able to rejoin group work when the next
activity starts.