Guest Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 Does anyone have some suggestions on keeping my noisy class of 6 year olds quiet? I have mostly boys in my class this year and they seem to shout at each other They get louder and louder. I clap to get their attention, and then talk softly to them. I have told them about our indoor voices, this doesn’t really help. Please help. thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 When I had this problem at prescool turning the light off provoked instant silence ( but obviousy can only do this to gain initial attention and not all the time) I know what you mean though about the voices rising in crescendo, as one child tries to 'speak over' another......... One tactic I used was to have a shouting time, ie: I gave the children permision to all shout at once, at each other, as they wained I said, no don't stop, keep shouting, then like an orchestra conductor I would wave my hands to indicate it was now time to stop shouting and talk quietly. Another tactic was to get the children to whisper, now this takes a lot of concentration but was fun as well. It's really about helping the children to recognise for themselves when they are using 'loud' voices or not, rather than relying on the teacher to point it out to them. All these tactics don't work overnight, they need lots of practice but when a child, or group of children can learn to 'control' their own volume they do get self satisfaction ( through praising quiet voices) and a real sense of achievement. Peggy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AnonyMouse_79 Posted January 19, 2008 Share Posted January 19, 2008 Perhaps you need to think about a visual clue, boys usually respond well to that, they may not be completely aware that they are making a noise as such? You could try the traffic light idea--I think sparklebox may have something or you may need to continually stop them when they are making too much noise. That may mean that for a while you get very little work done and you may need to think of other sanctions so that they make up the missed time rather than getting away without working. Good luck. The longer you leave this the harder it will be to get them quiet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest tinkerbell Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 I too have a class full of boys this year and they are sooo noisy As mentioned by others a signal eg I stand and start doing hand signals touching my shoulders,waving in the air...this has a ripple effect as the rest of the class see what I am doing and the noisy boys are the last to tune in,then an eye and they tune in and all is quiet for a moment! Send them outside to shout in the wind! Tinkerbellx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted January 20, 2008 Share Posted January 20, 2008 Hi, I know just what you mean!! I have a set of wind chimes which I "tinkle" in order to gain the attention of the whole class - this seems to work well. Also when the children are getting ready for PE I play quiet (usually classical) music - which seems to calm them and the difference is quite amazing. It is different of course, if you have 30 children in the classroom at any one time - music doesn't seem to work when chidlren are working in the classroom provision areas. The suggestions already given seem to be great, but it is difficult if you have a lot of boys. I agree strongly with the "outdoor" suggestions, but appreciate that this isn't always practical. Sorry if I am not much help, but be assured, this is a general problem, and something that cannot be solved overnight. Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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