Classroom Rules
It’s usually better to decide what the classroom rules are with your group, but when the kids don’t speak English as their mother tongue or when they are very young (3-4 y.o.) it’s more effective to have a set of rules already established.
However, it is very important to discuss the rules with your kids, make sure they understand them. Visuals will help them remember, without you reminding them every ten minutes. Also, you can use the visuals to discuss about the classroom rules during Circle time or any other suitable time.
I use reward systems only to encourage kids' English, but not necessarily for behaviour. When kids get used to receive rewards (stickers, stamps, different surprises) for good behaviour, once these are taken away they might go back to their old habits. I only use stickers for behaviour when I try to encourage a more difficult transition or thing to achieve, such as potty training or getting dressed without any help.
You can download the classroom rules that I created here.
They are easy to understand, with images and they are expressed in a positive way. By saying “no running”, or “don’t push”, you actually stress the verb, so the kids hear it. By giving options or saying what they should do rather that what they aren’t allowed to do, you help kids understand what you, as a parent or teacher, expect from them.
These 5 rules are easy to understand and they can be used to explain a more desirable behaviours. For example, by “We play nicely with our friends”, kids are taught to share, to treat the others nicely (no biting, hitting, or pushing).
I hope you find these tips useful!
Ilinca