With a new year upon us, now is the perfect time to start a new routine in your classroom. I know most teachers are familiar with the work of Harry Wong, but how many of us apply those practices every day despite their incredible benefits? Let’s take a look at the reasons for implementing a “greeting” system into your class:
- We acknowledge and honor a student’s presence.
- We model proper social behavior in welcoming someone’s arrival.
- It establishes a positive classroom climate in which students feel a sense of connection and belonging.
- It establishes a positive relationship between teacher and student.
- Research* has shown it increases student engagement in class.
- Research* has shown it decreases disruptive behavior.
and if these reasons aren’t enough for you, let’s look at the benefits in a world language classroom who can go a step further and implement a “password” or “secret phrase” where students must respond with a special phrase of the week. The curriculum benefits are:
passport. There are many applications for using this: marking off I-Can-Statements, marking off completion of certain tasks or units of study. Personally, in my classroom, I use them as students finish reading novels about Hispanic culture. Recently, we re-designed some of our stamps and one of our customers and fellow Spanish teacher shared with us a template she uses with her stamp set.
SpanishPlans.org 