Nina Shandler’s assignment, a class of 30 third and fourth graders — 4 girls and 26 boys — were good kids, really, just a lot of enthusiasm said the principal. Every teacher since kindergarten had resigned after teaching them. By January she understood the high turnover rate. She was exhausted, tired of hearing her own nagging, punishing, angry voice. Frustrated by her students’ behavior, she disliked even more her own behavior.
On a winter afternoon she decided to change. She refused to be negative, she would only pay attention to positive behavior and say only positive things. The next day she walked into her classroom and created her first positive discipline system. For the rest of the year, she did not speak another negative word to her students. She recorded negative behavior but complimented positive behavior. When Tim threw his books on the floor, she made note of it but looked away and complimented John on how well he was listening. She put names of every well-behaved student on the bulletin board in big red letters.
At the end of the first week she announced that those whose names were posted had shown respect for each other, and for themselves and for learning. They would get to choose a game to play for the rest of the day. But first, the class would plan next week’s special activity. After deciding, they negotiated criteria for participation. Only “red letter students,” she said. They argued: “But some of us are trying hard and getting better.” She agreed and decided to make everyone who gets fewer checks than in the past a red letter student.
By the end of 3 weeks she felt rejuvenated and had recovered her enthusiasm for teaching. She enjoyed her students and liked herself again. With basic civility in place, her students got on with the real work of school-listening, thinking, communicating, and understanding.