5 Effective Strategies for Managing Student Talking in the Classroom

Managing student talking in the classroom can be daunting for teachers, especially with an increasing number of students and diverse behavior. However, there are several effective ways to handle student talking in the classroom. This post will outline five strategies you can use to make managing a chatty class a little easier. 

1.     Establishing expectations early: Start every new school year or semester by setting clear ground rules about what speech is acceptable during class hours. Clarify your expectations to all students so they know what type of behavior is expected when talking in class.
2.     Setting up signposts: Visual cues or signposts can remind students when it's their turn to speak or let them know when it's time for quieter discussion or independent work. Traffic lights are a great example that can help ensure everyone knows what's expected from each other and stays within those boundaries accordingly.
3.     Creating collaborative tasks: Encouraging appropriate levels of talking amongst students can be achieved by creating collaborative tasks or activities that keep everyone engaged while providing an outlet for expressing ideas together and learning from one another in a meaningful way.

4.     Utilizing game-based learning: Game-based learning can also be very effective in addressing extreme levels of student talking. Games often provide incentives for players, which helps keep them more focused on developments within the game rather than deviating from it with unnecessary chatter! Math Mysteries and Reading Mysteries are great for this sort of thing. My kids want to be the first to solve the mystery, so they are much quieter when completing these type of activities.

5.     Praising good behavior: Positive feedback is powerful! Whenever you notice someone behaving appropriately during class discussions - whether that be respectful comments towards peers or simply following instructions without excessive noise etc., make sure you let them know how much you appreciate such actions! Even small compliments like this can go a long way in reinforcing positive behaviors over time.

In addition to these strategies, other approaches include using humor to defuse tense situations, using non-verbal cues (such as raising your hand) to signal that it's time for quiet, and giving individual attention to particularly talkative students outside of class time.
Overall, managing student talking levels isn't always easy, but with patience and proactive implementation of the above strategies – classroom life might be a little less stressful.