Here are four useful strategies to help deal with the class that just won't settle:

1. Allow some cooling off time of a few minutes after transitions and breaks to allow them to settle.

Use this time to chat to individuals and small groups, settle them, deal with any problems and establish a calm, relaxed atmosphere.

2. Teach ROUTINES to the students

Routines are the perfect way to develop consistency in the classroom - they give your students a clear roadmap to follow and reduce confusion as well as excuses for misbehavior.

An example of a routine at the start of the lesson is the countdown technique. Mix this with with lots of proximity praise and there is a chance students will develop a habit of quietening down when you ask them... "5; OK it's time to stop and look this way. Excellent, very quick on that table. 4; pens should be down, books and mouths should be closed, very good you two, you're listening to me. 3; still too much noise over here, that side of the room are perfect. 2; Just waiting for the last few people now, all conversations should be stopped, hands on the desk in front of you. Well done, you've got it. 1; thank you.

3. Have a visual reminder of noise levels such as coloured cards/traffic lights or a 'noise level meter'.

When green is up the noise level in the room is fine. Orange - warning, level is too high and needs to drop immediately. If it doesn't drop after an agreed time, red card goes up. Red. Stop the activity, take a minute off break and insist on silent working for 5 minutes.

4. Take control at the door - don't let them in the room until they're quiet

The lesson actually starts outside the room - if students are uncontrollable outside the door there is no point in letting them in - the behavior standard has already been set.

Spend time speaking to students in the corridor in a friendly calm manner - set the tone for the lesson. Shouting and giving orders breeds a desire to retaliate. When you are ready, tell them to line up quietly, those that do so can go straight in the room and get on with a starter activity. The others either didn't hear you or are choosing not to. Either way, they need a little more calm persuasion. This is the time to iron out problems they may have, settle disagreements etc. - not inside the room.

Rob Plevin is the author of Magic Classroom Management and the originator of the Needs-Focused approach to behaviour management for parents and teachers. The Needs-Focused approach presents a step-by-step, easy to follow system for effectively preventing and dealing with behaviour problems. Rob provides training in schools, universities and youth centres all over the world and full details of his courses and speaking schedule are available at his website... http://www.behaviourneeds.com