Managing a classroom filled with energetic, curious, and sometimes challenging early learners requires more than patience—it requires skill, strategy, and reflection. In her powerful guide, McCrory’s Developmental Early Learning Setting Behavior Checklists Toolkit, Tammy McCrory, LLP, BCBA, provides educators with practical tools to foster environments where both children and adults thrive. Here are five essential classroom management techniques drawn from her toolkit that every early learning professional should know.
- Modeling Positive Behavior
Children learn best by example. McCrory emphasizes that educators must model the behaviors they wish to see, such as using polite language, resolving conflicts calmly, and demonstrating patience. When early learners see adults handling challenges with empathy and grace, they internalize these responses as acceptable ways to behave.
Try This: Greet each child warmly in the morning and narrate your own self-regulation strategies aloud (“I feel frustrated, so I’m going to take a deep breath”).
- Use of Structured Routines
Predictability provides a sense of safety for young children. McCrory’s toolkit explains that a structured and consistent routine helps minimize confusion, anxiety, and behavioral issues.
Tip: Create a visual daily schedule using pictures. Refer to it often to help children know what to expect next, reducing transitions-related disruptions.
- Behavior-Specific Praise and Reinforcement
General praise (“Good job”) is less effective than specific, targeted feedback. McCrory urges educators to use positive reinforcement techniques that reinforce the exact behavior you want to see repeated.
Example: Instead of saying “Nice work,” try “I love how you helped your friend clean up the blocks.”
She also suggests systems like token economies or sticker charts for added motivation—customized to the child’s interests and developmental stage.
- Redirection and Calm-Down Techniques
Rather than punishment, McCrory promotes the use of redirection—gently steering a child toward a more appropriate behavior—as well as calm-down strategies like breathing, sensory tools, or quiet corners.
These strategies help children build self-regulation skills rather than simply suppressing unwanted behavior.
Key Point: Redirect with empathy. Say, “I see you’re feeling upset. Let’s take a break and come back when you’re ready.”
- Reflective Practice and Self-Awareness
One of the most powerful elements of McCrory’s toolkit is her invitation for educators to look inward. Are we contributing to “classroom-induced behaviors”? Are we reacting rather than responding?
Regular self-reflection, awareness of personal biases, and a commitment to ethical practice help teachers create an environment where all children feel seen and supported.
Checklist Prompt: “Am I responding to this behavior out of frustration, or with understanding of its cause?”
A Toolkit for Transformation
Tammy McCrory’s Developmental Early Learning Setting Behavior Checklists Toolkit is more than a book—it’s a blueprint for meaningful, compassionate teaching. These five classroom management strategies are just the beginning. By applying her clear, actionable methods, educators can transform chaos into connection, and difficulty into development.
Invest in your classroom. Explore the full toolkit today at www.mccrorytoolkits.com and start building a learning environment where every child has the chance to succeed.
