Classroom Expectations - Ballad of Mr.
and Mrs. Wright
Lesson Plan
Learning Objectives
1. Recall classroom rules and expectations. (Bloom's Level: Remembering)
2. Collaborate to create a list of classroom expectations and behavior goals. (Bloom's
Level: Collaborating)
3. Write a personal behavior contract for the year. (Bloom's Level: Creating)
4. Understand the importance of communication in collaborative settings.
5. Analyze the chaos created by miscommunication during the marker-passing activity.
6. Evaluate experiences to distinguish between effective and ineffective classroom norms.
Affective Objectives
1. Appreciate the value of establishing clear rules and norms in a classroom.
2. Demonstrate respect for peers during group discussions and contract formation.
Requisite Prior Knowledge
● Familiarity with basic classroom rules and expectations.
● Understanding of group work dynamics.
● Previous experience with team-based activities.
Cue Sets
1. Before the Activity: Explain the activity’s purpose and give minimal guidelines on the
rules of engagement, allowing the students to experience the dysfunction.
2. During the Activity: Use verbal cues (“right” and “left”) to manage the activity.
3. After the Activity: Facilitate the discussion by prompting with guiding questions.
4. Kinesthetic Cues: Group activities that involve movement and discussion.
Direct Instruction Strategies
1. Interactive Story Activity: Ballad of Mr. and Mrs. Wright and Passing Markers activity.
2. Demonstration: Model the activity with a few students to clarify expectations.
3. Guided Discussion: Lead a conversation about the significance of rules in classroom
settings after the activity.
Practice Assignments
1. Peer Discussion: In pairs, students will share their thoughts on what went well and
what didn’t.
2. Brainstorming Activity: In small groups, students will brainstorm additional classroom
expectations. Teacher will lead group discussion in which each group shares
expectations for behaviors in the context of student:student, student:teacher, and
teacher:student. Teacher writes these on the board.
3. Classroom Expectations Graphic Organizer: Students collaboratively use graphic
organizers to identify positive classroom expectations through drawing and labeling.
Have students identify expectations for behavior in the context of student:student,
student:teacher, and teacher:student.
4. Classroom Contract Drafting: Create a handwritten draft of the classroom contract.
Team-Based Activities
1. Group Brainstorming: Collaborate in teams to create a comprehensive list of
classroom expectations.
2. Expectation Presentation: Groups present their lists of expectations to the class from
their graphic organizers.
3. Peer Review: Exchange behavior contracts with another student for feedback (if time
permits).
Formative Assessment Measures
1. Exit Ticket: At least 1 handwritten classroom goal (minimum # adjusted for ability)
written in their journal.
2. Observation: Monitor student participation and engagement during the activity and
discussions.
3. Peer Feedback: Assess the clarity and relevance of group expectations.
4. Classroom Contract Review: Teacher checks the completeness and thoughtfulness of
each student's contract.
Deep Questions
1. What challenges did you face during the marker-passing activity?
2. How did miscommunication impact your experience?
3. In what ways can clear communication improve our classroom environment?
4. What are some rules or norms that you think are essential for a successful classroom?
5. How can we ensure that everyone’s voice is heard when creating our class contract?
Lesson Plan: Classroom Rules and
Expectations
Grade Level: Middle School (Grades 6-8)
Duration: 54 Minutes
Topic: Classroom Rules and Expectations
Learning Objectives
1. Recall classroom rules and expectations. (Bloom's Level: Remembering)
2. Collaborate to create a list of classroom expectations and behavior goals. (Bloom's
Level: Collaborating)
3. Write a personal behavior contract for the year. (Bloom's Level: Creating)
4. Understand the importance of communication in collaborative settings.
5. Analyze the chaos created by miscommunication during the marker-passing activity.
6. Evaluate experiences to distinguish between effective and ineffective classroom norms.
Lesson Flow
1. Gain Learners' Attention (6 minutes)
● Teacher asks every student if they have a pencil, if yes, they get a marker. If no, they go
get a pencil and come back.
● Students enter and line up around the classroom.
● Teacher facilitates call and response to start the class: Be Safe, Be Responsible, Be
Respectful
● Students go to their desks and one student from each row grabs student notebooks.
● Students answer attendance question (projected on board) in their notebooks: Please
use your marker to draw or write what you think chaos looks like.
2. Inform Students of the Learning Objective (2 minutes)
● Activity Options:
● Present the learning objectives on the board in student friendly language:
● "Remember our classroom rules, work together to make a list of good behavior goals,
write your own behavior contract, understand why communication is important, see what
happens when we don't communicate well, and figure out which classroom rules work
best."
3. Stimulate Recall of Prior Knowledge (4 minutes)
● Activity Options:
● In pairs, have students discuss previous experiences with classroom rules.
● Conduct a quick class poll on existing rules they remember.
4. Present To-Be-Learned Material (8 minutes)
● Have students briefly practice their lefts and rights before standing up.
● Have students stand up around the room with their markers.
● Explain that you are going to read a story about Mr. and Mrs. Wright. When they hear
the word “right”, they will pass the markers to the right. When they hear the word left,
they will pass the markers to their left. Repeat the directions once, and tell students that I
will not answer any questions.
● Read the "Ballad of Mr. and Mrs. Wright" interactive story.
● Students will likely struggle with the game and get frustrated.
● After the story, have students put all makers in a bin in the front and sit down.
5. Provide Learning Guidance (2 minutes)
● Briefly summarize how that activity went. Ask students if they thought that experience
felt chaotic.
● Tell students that we are going to discuss how that activity went, and that it relates to our
classroom norms.
6. Facilitate Student Practice (12 minutes)
● Think-Pair-Share: Students will split into pairs and talk about what they think did not go
well.
○ Teacher will walk around and listen to student comment.
○ Students will silently raise their hand when they have both shared.
● Brainstorming Activity:
○ Teacher will divide students into small groups using the existing pairs to discuss
what the pairs discussed.
○ Teacher will pass out a graphic organizer to each group with 3 sections:
Student:student, Student: teacher, Teacher:student.
● Graphic Organizer: Students collaboratively use graphic organizers to identify and label
positive classroom expectations.
● Class Discussion: Each group shares expectations, categorized as student:student,
student:teacher, and teacher:student. Teacher will write these on the board.
7. Provide Feedback to Students (5 minutes)
● Activity Options:
● Circulate during group work to provide feedback on their expectations.
● Facilitate a brief class discussion on common themes in expectations.
● Encourage students to reflect on the feedback given by peers during the sharing
session.
● Teacher will have students raise their hand for the norms that they think were related to
the story.
8. Assess Learning (7 minutes)
● Activity Options:
● Classroom Contract Drafting: Students create a handwritten draft of their personal
behavior contract, based on the goals written on the board during the class discussion.
○ Teacher tells students to write their votes in their journal. Each norm that is
written is a vote for that norm being in the final draft of the student contract.
● Exit Ticket: Each student writes at least one classroom norm for student:student,
teacher:student, and student:teacher in their journal.
● Conduct informal observations of student participation during activities.
9. Enhance Retention and Transfer (3 minutes)
● Activity Options:
● Summarize the key points from the lesson and their importance.
● Encourage students to share their contracts with a family member at home.
● Remind students that they can refer back to their contracts throughout the year.
Formative Assessment Measures
● Observation: Monitor student participation and engagement during activities and
discussions.
● Classroom Contract Review: Teacher checks the completeness of each student's
contract focusing on clarity and adherence to classroom norms.
Conclusion
This lesson plan utilizes Gagné's Nine Events of Instruction to create an engaging and
structured learning environment that encourages collaboration, creativity, and critical thinking
among middle school students.
