December has officially arrived, and we’re sharing the December classroom behavior strategies that help keep things calm when student energy is sky-high. In this episode, we walk through the routines and mindset shifts that make the biggest impact, from daily expectation check-ins and protecting your mornings to using our “swiss cheese strategy” when the schedule is full of holes. We also highlight how simple festive breaks can add just the right amount of seasonal fun without sacrificing structure, and when a short-term reward system (like the reindeer system that saved one of Heidi’s wildest Decembers) can give your class the boost they need. With the right balance of consistency and intentional fun, you really can stay grounded and enjoy the magic of the season!

Prefer to read? Grab the episode transcript and resources in the show notes here: https://www.secondstorywindow.net/podcast/december-classroom-behavior-strategies/

Resources:

• December Teacher Survival Kit
• Festive Break Pack
• Reindeer Reward System [December Behavior Help Set]
• Podcast Playlist: Teaching in December
• Solar fairy lights
• Join the Teacher Approved Club!
• Connect with us on Instagram @2ndstorywindow.
• Shop our teacher-approved resources.
• Join our Facebook group, Teacher Approved
• Leave a review on Apple Podcasts.
• Leave a comment or rating on Spotify.

Related Episodes to Enjoy:

• Episode 105, Festive Fun in December: Engaging Holiday Activities to Do With Your Class
• Episode 106, The December Survival Kit: 3 Essential Tips to Help Teachers Thrive
• Episode 233, The Smooth December Framework Every Teacher Needs (And It Starts in November)
• Episode 234, How to Plan Teaching in December So January Feels Easy

Mentioned in this episode:

Set up back-to-school the right way, so the year doesn't come undone by October. Get your free ticket: https://secondstorywindow.net/summertalks

This is episode 235 of Teacher Approved.

You're listening to Teacher Approved, the podcast helping

educators elevate what matters and simplify the rest. I'm

Heidi.

And I'm Emily. We're the creators behind Second Story

Window, where we give research based and teacher approved

strategies that make teaching less stressful and more

effective. You can check out the show notes and resources from

each episode at secondstorywindow.net.

We're so glad you're tuning in today. Let's get to

the show.

Hey there. Thanks for joining us today. In today's

episode, we're discussing four strategies to help maintain the

calm despite all of December's chaos, and we have a teacher

approved tip for designing the perfect reward system for your

class.

Let's start with a try it tomorrow, where we share a quick

win that you can try in your classroom right away. Emily,

what is our suggestion for this week?

This is a fun one. It's called a procedure mystery

photo. So you just take photos of your classroom procedures,

maybe snap a picture of how books should look in the book

bin, or what a properly organized desk looks like, or

how students should line up at the door. Then you show these

photos to your class and have them guess which procedure is

being modeled. You can even turn it into a little game, like zoom

way in on the photo so it only shows part of the whole picture.

Take a screenshot, and then zoom out a bit and repeat the

process. Then you have a series of photos that get progressively

easier. So you start by showing the grainy, zoomed in photo, and

challenge students to guess it before you reveal the full

photo.

I feel like this is like a game show game like, you get

more points the more zoomed in the photo is.

For sure.

And this is kind of sneaky brilliant because you're

reviewing expectations, but it really does feel like

entertainment. And if you do this in November or December,

you are setting yourself up to hit the ground running in

January, because five minutes of reviewing procedures today can

save you 30 minutes of having to redirect everyone in January.

Oh, yeah. So grab your phone, take a few pictures and

try it out. Super simple.

If you like this idea or anything else we share here on

the podcast, would you take a second and give a five star

rating? Ratings and reviews are one way that new listeners find

us, so it really is a huge help to us.

If you're listening the day this episode comes out,

welcome to December. Can you believe it? We're here.

It doesn't feel possible. And you know how December goes.

Winter Break feels so close, and yet it is still so far away.

You're probably counting down the days while simultaneously

trying to keep your students from bouncing off the walls.

And you are not alone. So let's just acknowledge that at

some point this month, almost every teacher looks around the

room and thinks, I give up. My kids are off the rails.

Yeah, there comes a day where the normal management

strategies that carried you through September and October

and most of November are just not cutting it anymore.

But it really doesn't have to be like this. You can

keep the calm even in December.

Okay, but like, let's manage expectations up front. We

are not promising perfection. There's only so much you can do

when there's an assembly every other day and your students are

just zipping around the room like cartoon characters, but

with the right strategies, you can prevent total chaos.

Behavior management in December really comes down to

finding that balance between structure and spark. Of course,

in December, spark is basically pouring through the doorway, so

we gotta balance that flood, and our students need us to provide

structure, to keep the energy balanced.

So today we're going to walk you through four ways to

increase the structure in your room, and these don't require

you to turn into the Grinch. We're talking about keeping your

expectations alive, maintaining your routines, using structured,

festive fun and adding short term rewards when you need a

boost.

Alright, so let's jump in with the most important thing

you can do to manage behavior in December, and that is to keep

your expectations alive. When those kids are extra chatty and

you're running on caffeine and Christmas cookies, this might

not seem like much of a solution, but it really is a

powerful way to keep structure strong despite all of that extra

spark.

Now, again, you know December's still going to

December. You're going to have to adjust to some extra

chattiness and some extra wiggles, but if in September,

you wouldn't accept students calling out during a lesson,

don't accept it now just because December's feeling crazy

already.

And this is so simple to implement, all you need is a

daily check in. Start by finding a spot for this in your day. You

can add it to your morning meeting if you have one, just

take a minute at the end to review an expectation for the

day. Today let's review our list of recess rules.

Or you could use transitions for this. Before you

head to the library, pause and say, Okay, let's talk about what

respectful hallway behavior looks like. What should we be

doing?

Now if things have gotten really off track, or if you've

skipped this in September, you might need to do some co

creating of expectations with your students. This works really

well for those times of day that are causing the biggest

headaches right now. So pick one of those trouble spots and you

gather everyone for a quick discussion.

And really, this can be quick. So let's say enrichment

rotations have become a disaster. Students are getting

loud in the hallway, touching stuff that isn't theirs, taking

forever to rotate the next bathroom. Ugh, I can feel it. So

you make a T chart, or you pull up a blank slide and title it

enrichment rotations, and then ask students, if everyone is

being respectful and responsible during rotations, what will it

look like?

So easy, the kids will just share their ideas and you

write them down, and then you ask what it should sound like,

probably silence or whisper voices in the hallway.

This type of T chart discussion works really well

with younger kids. If you teach the older ones, they might roll

their eyes a bit, but you can just make this more of a simple

discussion. Just ask what's working well during math centers

and what could be smoother, and then list their responses.

And then, once you've made your list of expectations,

keep reviewing them. Before you go to the library tomorrow, grab

that chart and spend 60 seconds going over it. Remember, in the

library we use walking feet and whisper voices. Look at our list

and pick one thing to focus on extra hard today.

Then you have your students turn and tell a

neighbor which expectation they're going to focus extra

hard on. Of course you want them to do all of them, but what are

they really going to focus on? That way, they've made a little

commitment to themselves, and their buddy can help remind

them.

In our December teacher survival kit, there are pages

you can edit to include your behavior expectations and blank

T charts to fill out with your students. If you use the

survival kit in the past, make sure to download the updated

version so that you get all these new pages.

Yeah, that's problem with us and digital products, because

we can just tweak them forever and ever, and we probably will.

Yep.

You can find a link to the survival kit in the show

notes, and that will help you get started with your December

behavior management plan. Keep those expectations alive through

quick daily check ins and visible posted guidelines.

And this whole process doesn't have to take a ton of

time, but doing it consistently will make a big difference in

your students' behavior.

Okay, now that you're keeping expectations alive,

let's talk about maintaining your regular routines. This is

such a powerful way to disperse all that excess spark, but it

does take extra work this time of year.

Yeah, that's because we're in those swiss cheese

weeks that we always talk about, and that's when the calendar is

full of holes. Maybe you've got an assembly on Monday, a concert

on Wednesday, early dismissal on Friday, and half your class is

out sick or traveling.

Oh, yeah, December is no joke. You technically have five

days of school, but it's more like a hodgepodge of lessons

between festive interruptions, and that's where the swiss

cheese strategy comes in. Instead of fighting the chaos,

we are going to work with it.

Right. So here's the framework we're going to use.

First, protect your mornings. Even if the rest of your day is

as mixed up as laundry tumbling in the dryer, do everything in

your power to keep your mornings as normal as possible. The more

disrupted your schedule, the more your students need the

predictability of your routines.

We really cannot overstate the importance of

this. Guard this time fiercely. If your morning is off balance,

the rest of the day is going to be much harder to manage, but if

you can maintain a calm, predictable morning, it's much

easier to keep everyone on track, even if there are

disruptions later on.

When kids start the day calm and grounded, that

foundation carries them through whatever weirdness is going to

come later.

Yeah, but you know when your morning is off balance?

Good luck.

So look at whatever disruption is coming and decide,

how can I protect my morning? If there's an afternoon assembly,

great, keep your morning routine exactly as it normally is.

Now, on those days when there's a morning interruption,

it gets trickier. Keep things as normal as you can but remember,

you can always reset later. You can come back from an assembly

30 and do morning meeting then if that is what it takes to

channel that energy in your room.

The second part of the swiss cheese strategy is to keep

your routines consistent, even if the content changes. So you

still do math during math time. You still do writing during

writing time, but maybe instead of teaching a new concept,

you're doing review.

Or, you know, instead of your regular writing lesson,

everyone does a seasonal writing craft. The consistency of, we do

writing at 11:15, helps students feel safe and grounded. Even

though the activity might be different, the rhythm of the day

is staying the same.

So do your best to keep the when and how consistent,

even if the what changes. This consistency gives students the

support they need to make positive choices. It signals to

their nervous systems that today is still a normal day, even if

there's a lot going on.

Now, an important part of surviving December is having the

right mindset. Remind yourself that these swiss cheese weeks

are not going to be your most productive weeks.

Unfortunately, no, and that is okay. Go back to last

week's episode where we talked about must do's. Make sure you

know exactly what content you need to cover before winter

break, and prioritize getting those lessons in, even if you

have to get a little creative to make it work.

Now, outside of your must do's anything else you manage to

get done is a bonus. Your goal right now is not to power

through your curriculum. It's to keep everyone calm and engaged

through a busy, spark filled season.

And hopefully not get behind so you can start back in

January without having to play catch up.

Now, when the frustration starts to mount, and it will,

take a deep breath and remind yourself that this is normal.

Given all of the chaos, things are actually probably going

better than you think.

So to sum this up, when your week turns into swiss

cheese, structure is your stabilizer. Protect those

mornings, keep the rhythm of the day, even if the song changes.

Alright. Now, you know what might actually save

December? Adding more novelty to what's already going on.

And you may be thinking, we've lost our minds, but truly,

sometimes the best way to fight fire is with fire, and sometimes

the best way to manage classroom spark is with more spark.

Okay, but the key to all of this is to use the motivation

of novelty to increase structure, and that's where

festive breaks come in. We love these.

Festive breaks are short, low prep, seasonal activities

that you control. We're talking 5 to 10 minutes of fun that give

kids something to look forward to and gives you leverage.

So you might say something like, if everyone

works quietly on this assignment for 15 minutes, we will do a

festive break. But if talking starts, I will have to reset the

timer.

That one sentence gives instant structure. Kids know

exactly what's expected, and they're motivated to do it.

Plus, this takes all the emotion out of your management.

You aren't nagging, you're not reminding. The system is

managing the behavior for you.

And the great thing is, festive breaks can be so simple.

It can be flashlight reading, a short video, directed drawings,

a favorite game, or a quick craft. Honestly, anything quick

and seasonal feels like a festive break.

Now, you know we're looking out for you, so if you

want this already done for you, we have a whole system waiting

for you in our shop. It includes cute holiday themed cards that

you can display to increase interest, and on the back of

each card, you can just write down a fun activity.

Our festive break pack includes a bunch of Print and Go

no prep activities like Tic Tac Toe, unfoldable joke tellers,

things that are fun but they're not going to spike anyone's

adrenaline.

Yeah, we worked really hard to come up with chill fun.

Chill fun is kind of our zone, isn't it? Once kids have met

your goal, maybe they came back from library with a good report

from the librarian, then a student gets to choose one of

the cards. The surprise factor keeps kids interested in earning

the reward.

And then in the teacher's guide, we've included several

suggestions for how to display the cards. You can hang the

cards on a string, tape them to the board, or draw them out of a

hat, whatever fits your vibe.

And one thing we love is combining festive breaks with a

work packet. Remember last week when we talked about those?

They're just basically a stack of review worksheets organized

around a theme, with a few just for fun pages mixed in.

So you give your students the packet to work on, calm,

structured focus, and then you add the festive breaks as little

bursts of excitement, work, break, work, break. That rhythm

keeps engagement high and chaos low.

And bonus, when students are working on their packets,

you get a little pocket of prep time. You can tackle some

teacher tasks or start getting ready for January.

We talked a lot more about maximizing those pockets

of prep In last week's episode. So definitely check that out if

you haven't already.

Alright, so far you are working hard to keep your

expectations alive. You are protecting your calm mornings,

and you're sprinkling in fun with festive breaks. But what if

that is not enough?

This is where a reward system might be helpful. Now,

normally, we are not huge fans of reward systems, at least not

for day to day classroom management.

No, but that's not because rewards are bad. It's

because rewards don't work in the long term. Students get used

to them, the novelty wears off, and then you are stuck in the

cycle of having to constantly up the ante. And if your whole

management plan relies on rewards, you're going to be

burned out well before April.

Right. But in high energy times like December, a short

term, that's key here, a short term reward system can be

exactly what you need to boost structure and motivation. It

gives students a reason to push through all the distractions and

stay focused. And actually, Heidi, didn't you use a reward

system one December when things were really chaotic?

Oh yeah, this is one of my clearest teacher memories. It

was a Friday afternoon in mid December, and we had everything

go wrong that day—you know, an assembly, the snowstorm rolling

in, I'm pretty sure it was a full moon. I was standing in my

classroom feeling completely helpless, surrounded by Lord of

the Flies. But after school, instead of collapsing on my

couch like I wanted to, I dragged myself to the craft

store.

I'm impressed that you made it to the store after that

kind of day, especially because I know the craft store was not

that close in those days.

It was not. I was desperate, Emily. I grabbed a

cardboard reindeer banner, I disassembled it, and then I

stuck a red pom pom on one of the noses. And as I'm thinking

about it, I don't know if I went to the craft store with that in

mind, I think I was just like, I need something that's going to

get the kids engaged, something I could use to make a reward

system out of. And those reindeer fit the bill. So on

Monday, I introduced the new system. If my students made

helpful choices, they would earn one of those reindeer cutouts.

When we had all nine reindeer, including the one with the pom

pom nose, of course, we got to include Rudolph, they earned a

fun surprise.

And how did it work?

Oh, gosh, it was like magic. Suddenly, I had my

September class back. They were focused, making good choices,

and reminding each other to stay on track.

And the thing to keep in mind with that story is that it

wasn't the reindeer that made the difference. It was the

increased structure that the reindeer provided.

Yeah, exactly. The novelty of December was so high

that my students needed that boost of extra structure to

counteract the overflowing energy.

So if you're thinking about adding a reward system,

there are a few things to keep in mind. First, we recommend

making it class wide. When everyone is working toward the

same goal, students will help keep each other on track because

they want that reward.

That might not seem important, but it's the key to

all of this. It means that you don't have to be the enforcer.

You just calmly walk toward the reward board, and your students

will self correct immediately, and they will help each other

get back on track.

Oh yes, they will. Now an effective reward system also

needs to be visible. So maybe you are adding letters to spell

out movie day, or you're adding pieces to a puzzle or marbles to

a jar.

When kids can see their progress, that's what keeps them

motivated to keep working toward their goal.

And then, this might be controversial, but we think it

helps. The system needs to allow for progress to be lost as well

as earned. So if behavior goes off the rails, you can remove a

letter or take out a marble, because this is going to help

with that peer accountability.

So when you're choosing rewards, pick something that

will actually be motivating for your students. Since it's

December, you might need to go bigger than you would in

October—a glow in the dark party, hot chocolate and a

movie, extra recess, whatever your kids would work for, makes

a great reward.

And the nice thing about doing this before a break is

there's an automatic end date built into it. You don't have to

worry about how you're going to transition out of this reward

system. The kids will come back in January, and then you can

just start fresh. They probably won't even remember that you

ever did that.

That'll be old news by then.

Yep.

In our teacher approved tip in this episode, we're

diving deeper into how to choose the right kind of reward system

for your specific class, but for now, just know that rewards can

be a helpful tool when everything else feels chaotic

and you need extra structure.

And if you want the reindeer reward system for your

own class, you're in luck, because we have that available.

It includes pictures and prize cards and a complete Teacher's

Guide with all the important details to walk you through it.

You can find a link to that in the show notes.

And that reindeer reward system comes as part of a larger

December behavior help set. So we've got lots of different

systems if you want something for individual students or teams

or multiple whole class rewards. So you can change things up mid

month, because after you reindeer rewards for a little

bit, the motivation to keep going tanks. You know how it

goes.

Yeah, for sure, that's exactly what happens. So we gave

you all the options, and you can find a link to that in our show

notes.

Show notes are hopping today.

Okay, so let's recap our four strategies for keeping the calm

in December. First, keep your expectations alive with daily

check ins, visible posted guidelines and quick reviews

before tricky transitions.

Second, maintain your routines. Be sure to protect

your mornings and keep the when and how of your schedule

consistent, even if the what has to change.

Third, use structured fun. Festive breaks give you

leverage for behavior while channeling that December

excitement into focus,

And fourth, add rewards when you need a boost, a class

wide visible system can provide exactly the structure you need

to get through the chaos.

December doesn't have to be survival mode. With the right

balance of structure and spark, you can keep your class focused

and maybe even enjoy this season.

We'd love to hear your tips for managing December

behavior. Come join the conversation in our teacher

approved Facebook group. Now for our Teacher Approved Tip of the

Week, where we share an actionable tip to help you

elevate what matters and simplify the rest. This week's

teacher approved tip is reflect on what you need before starting

a new reward system. Tell us more about it, Heidi.

Well, if you are thinking of launching a reward system

this month, just be aware that not all reward systems are

created equal. For a reward to be effective at shaping

behavior, it has to target the correct behaviors. So don't jump

in without at least a few minutes of reflection.

But we've got you covered, of course. The December

teacher survival kit has a journal page that walks you

through this decision making process. There are 12 questions

that help you figure out exactly what kind of system would make

sense for your students.

Now we don't have time to go through all 12 right now, but

we can hit the big ones. So first, you need to think about

what behaviors you're hoping your reward system will increase

and what behaviors you're hoping to decrease.

Once you're clear on your goals, then you can decide, will

a whole group system work best? A small group system, individual

or some combination?

We've mostly been talking about whole group rewards this

episode, where everyone is working toward one shared

reward. This works really well when you have a general on task

behavior goal that you're working toward.

And we prefer whole group rewards because they can help

build your classroom community. But small group rewards are a

great way to increase competition, and they may boost

student buy in.

Small group rewards could be something like table points

or team challenges. If a whole group reward system isn't

motivating enough, you can up the stakes by awarding table

points. That competition can get kids to buy in very quickly.

Individual reward systems are for when you need to target

very specific behaviors for specific students. Use them when

they're needed, but they probably won't help much with

general classroom behavior in December.

Once you've decided what reward system you need, then you

need to think about the format. Are you doing tickets, marbles

in a jar, puzzle pieces, or, you know, letters on the board?

Younger kids often do well with something very visual

and concrete, like puzzle pieces that they can see filling in a

picture. Older kids might prefer something quicker and less

babyish, like tally marks on the board.

And then, of course, you have to think through all of the

physical logistics that come with starting a new reward

system. How will you organize it? If you're doing tickets,

where are students going to keep them? If you're adding puzzle

pieces to a board, where's that board going to go?

And this might sound silly, but this is where your

systems fall apart. You introduce something that sounds

great in theory, but then you realize you don't have a good

place to store the materials, or it's too complicated to manage,

and if the system is complicated, you won't stick

with it.

Now, you got enough to do in December. Don't make this

harder than it has to be. So think through those big

questions, and in the December teacher survival kit, we have

that whole worksheet that will walk you through all of this,

plus a few more considerations. Because you know, the last thing

you need right now is to introduce a reward system that

adds more stress to your life, instead of making it easier.

To wrap up the show, we are sharing what we're giving extra

credit to this week. Emily, what gets your extra credit?

I'm giving extra credit to solar powered fairy lights. I

got some to add to my little free library, and it's so cute.

So now I'm wondering what else I can add fairy lights to outside.

I love that. And then you could put them in places where

stretching an extension cord is just not practical. Gosh, now I

You need some. I don't know where you what for, but I

want some.

think you need them. They're super cute.

I could put them on my porch railing. That's why I

haven't decorated my porch, really, because I don't have a

good place to plug things in out there. But maybe?

That could work. You could probably put them in your

trees too, because your trees aren't too tall.

That would be pretty.

Yeah. Do it.

Okay, good ideas.

What are you giving extra credit to, Heidi?

Well, I'm giving extra credit to season two of A Man on

the Inside, now that it is out on Netflix. So in season one,

Ted Danson's character goes undercover in a retirement home

to find a jewel thief. It's so sweet. This is from Mike Schur,

who, if you're not familiar with, he was a writer on The

yet.

Office and was a creator for Parks and Rec and The Good

Place. So if you like any of the shows, I am sure you would love

Man on the Inside too. It's got big heart, but it's not cheesy,

really, and it's not afraid to ask some big questions. It's,

it's very sweet. And my only sadness is he's not at the same

retirement home this year.

That is it for today's episode. December behavior does

not have to unravel. Remember to keep expectations alive,

maintain routines, use festive fun strategically, and add

rewards when you need them.

We hope you enjoyed this episode of Teacher Approved. I'm Heidi.

And I'm Emily. Thank you for listening. Be sure to follow

or subscribe in your podcast app so that you never miss an

episode.

You can connect with us and other teachers in the

Teacher Approved Facebook group. We'll see you here next week.

Bye, for now.

Bye.