Classroom Management

How I keep my class on task:

Here is a list of management tools I use within my classroom:

Make list of rules with my students on the first day that need to be followed throughout the year. Making the rules together makes it so my students cannot tell me they are unfair. (We made them together! Changes can be made throughout the year if needed.)
Have the schedule for the day visible to the class each day. Some students need to be very organized and need to know what's next. Especially when there is an assembly or change in the schedule, some students feel more comfortable knowing and don't like surprises. (I know I was always like this is school, and want to give the same to my students.)
Use strategic floor plan of desks and place students with peers they will cooperate with, help and be able to focus next to. (After getting to know them.)
Use "Noise Control Chart," to target those students who continuously interrupt the class. (There will be rewards and consequences.)
Students LOVE helping. Come up with a list of class jobs that the students think the classroom will need. Have applications where the students can fill out and apply for a class job and state why they think they will be the perfect student for that particular job. (Rotate every two weeks or monthly depending on class size.)
Use hand sign for "bathroom," rather then continuously have students interrupt to ask to go to the bathroom.
Encourage group work, and helping each other. Choosing to work with friends is a privilege. If they can't handle it, assign partners and groups before hand.
Completing homework is a biggie. Homework is checked each morning and a stamp is given for each day ALL homework is completed. When a student has been given 20 stamps, a coupon is given for "one homework to be handed in a day late" without getting penalized. (This is not a homework pass, because I feel that when students don't complete their homework, they miss the crucial practice they need to be doing on their own which helps me gauge if they are understanding the lesson in class. **Coupons CANNOT be used the day before a test or on reviews!**)
My class also has a reading chart. For every five books they complete throughout the year they get a prize. (Reading keeps the students improving in every aspect of school, and should be reinforced!)
Finally, set in place "The Secret Student of the Day." (On occasion, not everyday.) This is where I choose one student at the beginning of the day, without telling the class who I've chosen. I tell them that I have picked one person to be my "Secret Student," however they wont find out until the end of the day, if and only if, they have behaved throughout the ENTIRE day, stayed on task, completed all of their work, and helped a classmate. When the end of the day comes, if the chosen student has earned it, they will receive a reward. However, if the students behavior of the day does not warrant an reward, no prize will be given out. (I will not announce the Secret Student to the class if they do not get the prize, but I will pull the student over to the side and explain exactly why he or she didn't receive the reward and how he can improve upon his or her behavior.)