It makes sense that any classroom routine should have its expectations made clear and that children should know exactly what the procedures are and what the consequences for not meeting the expectations are. However, I have read numerous posts on the Internet where people describe their fear of children breaking the iPad or playing on games they shouldn’t. Of course, as children do, they will test your boundaries, but here are my top tips for managing iPads in your classroom:

– have clear expectations of how you want the iPads to be handled; including getting them out and putting them away.
– be explicit about what you want to see when you ask children to give you their attention (ie do you just want them to put the iPad down, close the cover or close down all open apps?).
– have clear consequences for when children don’t meet your expectations and try to link these to the behaviour (in my classroom the children get a personal reminder to put their iPad down, then a warning/choice then they must put their iPad away if they persist.).
– display a poster or other visual prompt to refer to if you need to. There’s a nice one here at Teachers Pet or you could use an app like Strip Designer or Pic Collage to make your own.

Does anyone else have any tips or resources they think I should include on my blog? Suggestions are always welcome!