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Classroom Promise – Creating a Welcoming Classroom Climate

How do you establish a safe and welcoming classroom climate at the same time you teach your rules, procedures, and daily routines for your students? The beginning of the year is such a stressful time (I feel like I talk nonstop ALL DAY that first week) because we are modeling the behaviors we want students to follow for the entire year and also trying to reinforce the positive behaviors we are observing. Here is one of my favorite ways to engage students in creating a welcoming classroom climate at the beginning of the year:  we write a promise to each other!

In the past years I have called this a pledge, a mission statement, classroom rules, our motto…I am going with promise this year! All kids have schema about a promise! We begin by having a serious :) discussion about why we are at school and the responsibilities of the students and the teachers. While working in cooperative groups, I give students the opportunity to talk about what will make our classroom a fun place for all students to feel safe, smart, and special. Yes, I use the three “S” words when explaining it to them! What does a special group of students look like when they are walking in the hallway? What does a smart group of readers look like when it is independent reading time? How can each student feel safe every day as they come to school to learn and have fun? Each group shares their ideas about what a welcoming classroom climate looks and sounds like by role playing, presenting an illustration, or just talking about what they came up with as a group.

I then read several short stories with the same theme-demonstrate good character and follow through on your promises! One of my favorites, especially since I love Dr. Seuss, is Horton Hatches the Egg. In this heart-warming book, an elephant named Horton is tricked by Mayzie, a lazy bird, into sitting on her nest while she is resting on a sunny beach. But because Horton gave his word to Mayzie he faithfully sits on the precious egg through a thunderstorm, sleet, and snow! He remains faithful even when he is ridiculed by friends and when hunters aim their rifles at his heart. Horton faithfully repeats the mantra, “I meant what I said and I said what I meant. An elephant’s faithful one hundred percent!”

This story encourages children to always give 100 percent, follow through on their promises and aspirations, and face their fears (great for adults, too, huh?). We also discuss the importance of keeping promises and demonstrating good character even when the teacher is not watching, when there is a substitute, or when we are in another classroom. This book, along with so many other Dr. Seuss books, addresses so many “life lessons!” I love it!

After reading, discussing, and working together, I finally introduce the promise posters. As you can see, I made them much cuter over the summer! I would describe these as our “rules” to families at Curriculum Night.

Classroom Promise - Creating a Welcoming Classroom Climate
We promise to:
Have positive attitudes
Listen when others are talking and raise our hands when we have something to say
Love learning
Show respect
Make smart choices
((((((((((I had to take a picture of these in my kitchen because I could not get into my classroom yet!)))))))
Classroom Promise - Creating a Welcoming Classroom Climate
We hold a very special ceremony for the signing of our promise to each other. When I mean special, I am referring to music playing in the background and some cookies to munch on. :) Sugar and tunes make it pretty special for little ones- that is why we love ’em! We may or may not hold an official pinky promise as well.
One idea is to hang the promise posters with jazzed up clothespins (see below!). I got the idea to display them like so through a pinterest picture on this website: Children Inspired. I also noticed that Mrs. Lamb has her own version (and some printables!) with manners- check out her awesome post!
You can also place pictures of your students FOLLOWING THE PROMISE!! next to the promise posters. Talk about some positive reinforcement! Do you see a student smiling, happy, so excited to be reading a book or doing a math activity? CLICK! TAKE A PIC! POST IT!!! They will love it! You will love it!
You can change the student pictures throughout the school year to give each child a turn to be featured.
So, on to the cute clothespin idea!
I just found another way to display pictures and student work- using cute clothespins! Check out our inspiration:  Welcome to Room 36! Such a cute teaching blog! We love it!
All you need is Mod Podge, clothespins, glitter, and a brush!
Classroom Promise e
Glue and glitter, it’s that easy!
classroom promise
My puppy looks pretty cute if you ask me! Yes, it is Christmas and yes, he gets lots of presents to open.
If you are interested in purchasing this resource, please see the information below.
classroom promise
A sneak peak of a few of the pages in this 25+ page resource:
classroom promise classroom promise classroom promise
Click HERE to purchase this file on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Save 10% by purchasing this file directly from my website. 
purchase

Speaking of promises…

what promises did you make this summer (to yourself, to your family, or to anyone!!)
More specifically, what promise did you make and KEEP this summer?? :)
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15 Responses

  1. I love your promises idea! I think using that word will really help kids feel like they are a part of our classroom family!
    Promises are hard to keep in the summer. It is kind of a lazy time for me! I did promise myself to keep up on the house work better. My husband is really liking this!!!! Thank you for your time and effort in posting on your blog

    Katt Fornstrom
    kattstu@gmail.com

  2. Dang! Just missed this freebie! Oh well, one more for the shopping cart. I too said I was going to get my library leveled and in shape. I am getting there. School starts next Wednesday so I better get a move on!

  3. Love the glittery clothespins and the adorable dog in the picture. I bet he smiles in person! ;) My promise to myself this summer was I was going to remove all the landscaping rocks in my front yard without calling a landscaping company. Happy to report, my front yard is rock free! :)

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Welcome to Inspire Me ASAP. I am a National Board Certified 2nd Grade Teacher. This is my 18th year of teaching. I love inspiring other elementary teachers to implement new ideas, strategies, and lessons in their classroom.
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