Ten Strategies for Behaviour Management in the Music Classroom

 The first thing you need to know about behaviour management in the music classroom is that it is not a one and done situation. There’s no tech, tool, or toy that will solve everything, but if there was I would buy it immediately because how I have longed for the ultimate system that would eliminate all blurting and squirming and screeching and bickering for good. But, alas, there is no such system. Every student is different, every class dynamic is different, and individual students will change year to year. Time of day will affect student behaviour (I had a Kindergarten class right after lunch last year and we lost a LOT of class time to bathroom and water breaks, not to mention the occasional carpet nap), time of year will affect student behaviour (students behave very different in June than they do in September!), and often there’s external factors that have nothing to do with your class (such as an intense class-wide argument about Pokemon cards that started at recess). 

It’s important to know that these behaviours won’t always be something you can address or control as the music teacher, but they will definitely affect your class time. You can’t hold yourself personally responsible for all student behaviour as sometimes it has nothing to do with you or the way that you run your class; however, there are many things you can do to set yourself and your students up for success. There are things you can do to keep yourself regulated, to create a safe and engaging learning environment that considers the diverse needs of all your students, and to proactively get in front of many issues before they happen.

So now that we’re on the same page (ie. There’s no one magic bullet and only you can discover what works best for you, your students, and your learning environment), here are my top ten classroom management strategies that will certainly help mitigate unhelpful student behaviours in any circumstance:

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1.  Be Predictable

Chances are, you only see your students for an hour every week (maybe two if they’re lucky), which means that there is lots of time between classes for your students to forget about your class rules and expectations, especially if it changes a bit every time. If you follow a predictable routine every week, students have a much better chance to learn what is expected of them and will be more successful in following the routines for starting class, transitioning between activities, setting up and putting instruments away, and lining up at the door at the end of class. If you’re a travelling teacher, establishing your own consistent routine for music class will help make the class time your own.

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2. Be Proactive and Be Specific

Consider the following: Are there activities or transitions in your classes that always dissolve into chaos? And is there a way to get in front of it through proactive training? Take time to teach and practice specific ‘classroom’ skills such as lining up, putting instruments away, etc. and don’t leave any small habit to chance. I recently started instructing my students to hold their ukulele with the strings facing their bodies while I’m coming around to tune, instead of just saying “please don’t play right now”. This one extra instruction creates a physical barrier and serves as a reminder to them to stay quiet so I can tune more quickly. In order to eliminate as much uncertainty as I can, I’ve become very specific with my class routines- sit in these exact spots, line up by this specific door, put your workbooks in this spot when you’re done. If there’s a potential pain point in your class routines, treat it like the rest of your course content and review and practice it until your students are competent with the skill. 

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3. Tighten Your Transitions

This goes right along with being predictable and preparing the space. Take every opportunity you can find to tighten up your transitions between activities. One way I do this in my classroom is by doing all our sheet music via the projector and big screen rather than passing out books, another way is by playing quick transition songs for circle time, movement activities, and table time, and by handing out workbooks during our Ear Rest so they’re ready to go when the students come to the tables. Even my full-year workbooks are designed for smoother transitions with a two-page spread for each week so that we're only looking for the right page one time during class. Messy transitions will suck up so much class time and student focus if you let them.

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4. Stay Light-Hearted

Giving lectures and consequences to your students is like taking a withdrawal from a relationship bank account and it requires a balance of trust between you and your students. As special-subject teachers, we have much less time in which to build that trust with our students. If you can bring correction with a smile, a laugh, even a joke, these learning moments can actually create an opportunity for connection and can keep a moment more “Oh right, I forgot so I’ll quickly course correct,” instead of “I’m embarrassed because I just got called out so I’ll cover it up by acting out.” Keep it breezy - it will be good for your own self-regulation as well.

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5. Prepare Your Space

Take time before your class arrives to physically prepare, removing any possible distraction or problems (especially for the littlest students!). I’ve discovered that children of all ages will notice and be drawn to any new thing in an environment- it’s almost like they NEED to touch it. So if you have something new and interesting to introduce to your students but don’t want to right away, hide it until the right moment. If you don’t want your Kindergarteners to play the piano, keep the lid closed. If you don’t want your students to shove themselves into any available corner the minute they have freedom to move around the room, shift the furniture to block the hiding spots. Taking a few moments to remove potential distraction will greatly benefit your student’s ability to focus in class.

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6. Use Visual Cues

Young students don’t get Google calendar alerts, and they probably can’t read an analog clock either. They don’t have the same sense of time that adults do- five minutes can feel like an hour to them and even your most neurotypical students will have limited impulse control and need reminders of expectations. Including visual cues in your classroom can provide those reminders and give your students a sense of certainty, which in turn helps to eliminate restlessness and create calm in your classroom. Some examples of visual cues in the music room are as follows: A visual schedule of class activities; a count-down timer (you can find YouTube videos for most time values) for activities or work-time; using short educational videos for informational class content (such as this one minute composer profile video about Edvard Grieg from my YouTube channel; physical cues- I use hand symbols for Instruction Mode (ie. I’m giving instructions for an activity so it’s important to pay attention), and Quiet Mode (ie. Don’t play your instruments yet) to remind them of expectations. 

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7. Stay Open to Trying New Things

If you have a certain behaviour management system that leads to the same student getting in trouble every week, then you have to accept that your system is not set up for that student’s success (even if it’s working for everyone else). We all know that one disruptive student can dramatically alter the experience for everyone, so while we need to consider the needs of all the students, it is always worthwhile to re-explore what could help that one struggling student. Stay open to trying new things to support your students, while keeping your expectations realistic. Like I said before, there might not be much you can do to solve certain behaviours in your short class time, but there’s always things that you can try. 

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8. Vary Your Activities and Maintain Momentum

 It is unique to music class that almost the entire class time is group participation activities that involve no small amount of physical self-control. This requires a certain type of focused engagement that can be very challenging for some students to maintain. Some students will either need a moment to zone out, or they’ll be desperate to leave their seat and move around. Over the years, I’ve tried to hone my class routines to address all these needs. I alternate seated group-activities with movement activities, with independent work, and we even include a quiet zone-out time (We call it our Ear Rest and it is strategically placed after our instrument time, I’m sure you can imagine why). Most of our activities take around 5-10 minutes and while it can take a few weeks, my goal with my classes is that they always know what’s coming next so we don’t waste time in transitions. Maintaining momentum in your class routines can eliminate the opportunity for unwanted behaviours.

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9. Find Opportunities for Positive Interaction

   
   

Say “Hello” in the hallways, give big smiles and warm greetings to all and especially your most challenging students, allow the occasional interruption if it can lead to connection, and if possible, give students a chance to restore after negative behaviour. For example, just the other day I kept some boys back to stack the chairs as a consequence for disrupting the class multiple times- as it turns out, they were really happy to help and took care to do a good job! As a result, I was able to thank them, praise them for a job well done, and end our interaction on a positive note- a deposit into the trust balance of our relationship bank account!

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10. Keep Yourself Regulated. 

Use a regular speaking voice if you can remember, resist the temptation to shout over the noise. Even if you’re not angry, using a loud speaking voice can be draining. See the humour where you can and laugh with your students- they can be pretty entertaining! If necessary, laugh at your own jokes. Some days I find having a cup of tea or coffee in hand keeps me just a little bit detached and that alone can be enough to keep me chill and happy for my students, regardless of their behaviour. I’ve learned to evaluate each day’s success not based on whether or not there were behavioural issues, but rather on how I felt by the end of it. Am I totally dysregulated or calm and collected? Did we make it through the lesson plan or at least most of it? Did we practice our musical skills today? Did I take opportunities to connect with my students? Did I respond to the needs in front of me? Was I the adult in the room? If I can answer yes to all those, it was a successful day regardless of any student behavioural issues I might have faced.

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Finally (a bonus strategy), be yourself! Lean into your own teaching style. Your talents and unique perspective are a gift to your students. If you manage your classroom a bit differently than the class or blog next door, but it’s working for your teaching environment, then that’s your magic bullet.