Let me share a short story with you. When I was in high school, I had a new Spanish teacher who had never taught before. He came in and did not provide the class with any ground rules. He didn't explain his expectations for the class. He didn't explain his rules. He didn't explain to us what he wanted us to get out of the class. The students had no idea. It's almost like if you were to go on a date, and you didn't know where you were going to take your date to eat, or if you wanted to go to see a movie or a play. If you haven't planned out your classes' direction, you're not going to know how to get there.
In this case, the teacher didn't plan for the future. I can tell you, the class was chaotic. People were throwing paper balls. Students were passing love notes. People were getting up walking in the hallway. Kids were telling jokes. It was crazy. One day, out of frustration, he yelled out, "Shut up!" Let's just say that was his last day teaching.
My goal is to empower you with the proper tools and a few tips and tricks that you can use in your classroom today, so you won't have an experience like my 10th grade Spanish teacher.
