There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes of being a teacher. Lesson planning, keeping kids on task, communicating with parents and administration… the list goes on. Effective classroom management can help centralize information for students, parents, and administrators, can create routines for students, and help you avoid taking too much work home at the end of the day! 

With so many tools available, deciding which one to implement can be overwhelming. To make your decision a little bit easier, here are four of our top choices!

Stay on Track with a Learning Management System

Depending on what your school uses, you likely already have a subscription to a learning management system (LMS). Canvas, Schoology, and Google Classroom are popular choices that many school districts have adopted. If you don’t already use an LMS, you can easily get a Google Classroom subscription for free!

Using an LMS allows you to create, assign and grade assignments, and share information, materials, and resources with students virtually. It makes it easy to keep track of students’ progress and you’ll never have to worry about losing a paper assignment again! Certain platforms even have tools to communicate with parents and for students to interact socially within the platform – excellent for keeping parents in the loop and kids engaged!

Provide Differentiated Instruction with Formative Assessments

Research shows that using formative assessments in the classroom positively impacts student achievement – more so than almost any other educational intervention. Additionally, keeping track of students’ progress is critical to being able to provide differentiated instruction and additional support where needed.

If you’re not using formative assessment in your classroom – it’s not too late to start! Use tools like Pear Deck or Nearpod to infuse formative assessments seamlessly into each lesson. These tools also provide you with real-time insight into student understanding, allowing you to respond and adapt. Interested in integrating these formative assessment tools into your classroom? Check both options out for free to see which works best for your classroom!

Deeply Engage Students with Immersive Learning Games

Gone are the days of teachers standing at the front of the classroom and lecturing for an hour while students take copious notes. Interactive lessons that engage the whole child are the way to go! Check out Read to Lead learning games – the perfect fit for the ELA classroom.

Tap into the power of game-based learning and start building your students’ literacy, leadership, and life skills with Read to Lead. In this interactive platform, students take on the role of boss in a virtual workplace and have to navigate complex scenarios modeled after real-world situations. All content is aligned to Reading Standards and the CASEL framework so you can be sure students are mastering essential ELA skills as they work through each game. For the busy teacher, each game also comes with discussion questions and other ready-to-teach wrap-around materials!

As a bonus, Read to Lead integrates with Canvas, Schoology, and Google Classroom, making it a breeze to implement as a part of any ELA curriculum. The best part? Read to Lead is always free for educators! Find out more and sign up here!

Build Community with Collaborative Tools 

After two years of isolation and social distancing, students are craving community – something that is crucial to a healthy learning environment. Flip, previously known as FlipGrid is a unique classroom management tool educators can harness to build community. 

A video discussion app designed for small group connections, Flip offers students a creative outlet to express their ideas and learn from each other. Students can participate in class discussions via video clips on Flip and build deeper relationships with each other, even outside the classroom.

Classroom management is a fundamental aspect of a thriving classroom. With the right tools in place, you can cultivate a positive classroom environment that allows all students to reach their potential and excel. Why not get started today by introducing interactive lessons with Read to Lead into your ELA classroom? It’s easy – simply click here to sign up!