Ever since I made my Homework Accountability Form, I have been thinking of a way to use Google Drive for behavior management.   I am still not 100% sure about my new classroom management plan but figured I’d post it here to hopefully get some good feedback on it and then decide from there if I want to use it, tweak it, or go a completely different direction….

So here it is:

I am thinking of setting up a google sheet for each student I teach before school starts.  It will take a bit of time since I teach over 100 students, but once I set them up, any additional time on this will be minimal.  The sheet will list the most common behavior infractions I encounter and also an “other” category.  (Right now I am thinking of using “off task”, “disruptive”, “out of seat”, and “calling out” in addition to “other”.)  I plan to share the sheet with the student (set to “can view” so that they can see it but can’t edit it 🙂 ) and also share the link with their parents (probably include it in my introductory email).

I also made a weekly class behavior tracker form that I am going to print out each week for each class.  On it, I have codes for each of the behaviors that are included on the sheet.   I will keep the class behavior tracker handy on a clipboard along with some extra paper in case I need to write additional notes/reminders to myself.  My plan is to give students a warning the first time they commit an infraction.  When I warn them, I will make a diagonal mark on my clipboard tracker to indicate that they were warned.  (The warning might be in the form of a “look” or a simple reminder to get back on task).  If they commit the same infraction in the class period, I will then make a diagonal mark in the opposite direction to turn it into an “x”.  (If you would like to use a similar form, you can download it as an editable PowerPoint file here.)  I am planning to transfer the forms to a binder after each week so that I can refer back to them at a later date if necessary.

At the end of the day I will look back on my class behavior trackers for each class to see which students got an “x” (meaning that they did not heed the warning they were given).  I will then go into that student’s Google Sheet and write the date (and a description if it is in the “other” category).  That counts as one mark on their tracker sheet.  When they get to 5 marks or more on their sheet, they will need to serve a detention.

I will start over with a new sheet each marking period to give students the chance to start with a blank slate.

Like I said, I am still not 100% sold on this idea but here are my thoughts (positive and negative) about it:

• It’s a really easy way to keep parents informed.  Once I give them the link (and explain the process to them), they have the ability to check up on their children’s behavior anytime and get instant feedback on whether or not their child is doing what they are supposed to be doing in class
• After the initial setup it should be really easy to maintain.  It’s a matter of making a mark or 2 in class and then writing the date at the end of the day if anyone got an “x”.  Shouldn’t take more than 2 minutes.
• It would be really easy to use with a team, as well.  You can share it will all of the teachers in your team so that they can all edit it, and then just assign each teacher a different color or have them write their name in addition to the date any time they make a mark on a student’s tracker.
• I like that I first give students a warning, before their tracker gets a mark, to give them a chance to change their behavior.  I also like that they get multiple chances before getting a detention – although I don’t know if 5 is too many chances, not enough, or just right…
• I don’t know how I feel about the fact that technically this system would allow a student to be warned 5 times for 5 different behavior infractions without getting a mark on their sheet….is that fair?
• I also don’t currently have a plan for what to do if a student gets an “x” and then does the same thing again (a 3rd time) that class period.

Bottom line is: I am torn about this idea…in some ways I feel like it could be very effective and at the same time I still have some doubts and questions.  I would definitely welcome any thoughts or suggestions in the comments!

(Click here to make a copy of the Google Sheet if you want to modify it to work for you.)

Thanks for reading,

Christina