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[quote=Anonymous]I never worked in a predominately low income school. My school was little low income, mostly middle and some high. But I still had disruptive students. Here are a few things I did.

1) Put the ball back into the Administrations court. I hated it when they would put disruptive students back into my classroom and tell me to deal with it. So I went to them and played the "I'm a dumb teacher and don't know what I'm doing. Can you with all your vast knowledge help me?" (eye roll) I asked a few admins to observe my class and give me some suggestions to help deal with these students. Sometimes they had decent ideas. Often, they would realize it wasn't me and I was doing my best with the disruptive kids. Didn't help with classroom management, but it did help me get the Admins on my side.

2) Ask the kid what they need from you. I often would pull the disruptive student aside and say, "Listen, I know you don't like getting in trouble. I don't like having to be the bad guy and punish you. But certain things have to be accomplished during class. And I want you to be successful in accomplishing those things. So what can I do to help you be more successful?"

They usually can't come up with any ideas at the moment. I might throw some things out like "what if we moved you away from your friends?" Or "Maybe we could have a secret signal that let you know you needed to calm down, take a deep breath, stop talking before you get in trouble." But I wouldn't do anything just yet. I would just say "Why don't you think about it and we'll talk again to come up with a plan that works for both of us"

I found that for many students feeling like they had a hand in solving the problem, got them on your side. You were a team mate not an authority figure.

3) If that didn't work, I would bribe them. But never, every praise them in front of their friends. I would tell them "If you can do X (or not do Y) for the whole class period, I'll give you a piece of candy." At the end of class, if they did what they were supposed to do, I would call them up to my desk with an angry tone. Then in whispers, with an angry look on my face, tell them how proud I was of them. Then under the desk, give them piece of candy. And very loudly and angrily say, "And I never want you to that again, do you understand?!" The disruptive kids LOVED IT! They got the praise they secretly desired while also keeping their reputation of being a 'bad' kid in front of their friends.

4) Remind them of the behavior expectations. "So today we are first going to do X, then Y. Remember, when we collect the papers from Activity X and I start to handout the supplies for Y, I expect you to remain in your seats." [/quote]

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