Don't Bother Me Hat!

Hi friends, 

I hope you are having a fabulous back to school and are starting to get into a routine with your students. As much as I love back to school, I do find the first few weeks difficult to manage and, I do look forward to when the students are clear on expectations and routines. 

One of the things I do to ensure a smooth running classroom is to take my time in September going over routines and structure. If you take your time establishing these important rules, then you'll have a much better year!

One of the many things I teach my students is that they cannot disturb me when I'm working one-on-one or in small groups. I have a visual reminder for them called my "Don't Bother Me Hat!"

This is one of my favorite tricks! I get the silliest hat I can find and explain to students that when I'm wearing it they are not allowed to interrupt me (except for emergencies of course). I usually put it on during small group or one-on-one instruction. 

What's great about it is that if a student forgets that they aren't allowed to come see me, all I have to do is point to my hat. This saves me from having to speak and say, "not now." I just point to the hat and carry on with my lesson without any interruptions. 

If you're not into wearing hats, you can always have another visual reminder. For example: a special object on your desk. When you place it on your desk or table, students can't interrupt you and just like with the hat, all you need to do is point at it to remind them. 

A "Do not disturb" sign also works well. 

I made one that you can grab and use for free.

Click HERE to get yours!

I'd love to hear from you! 

Let me know what you do to ensure you don't have interruptions during small group instruction. 

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Until next time...