Mid-Season Check-In: What Your Class Is Telling You

By late October, the newness has worn off. The first-week energy is gone, routines that worked in September are slipping, and a class that once lined up eagerly now takes three reminders. Maybe a few students have gone quiet. Others are racing through every challenge and looking for more.

If that sounds familiar, nothing is broken. Your class is telling you something. The middle of a season is the best time to stop, read the room, and adjust before small patterns become big ones.

October is a known turning point

You’re not imagining the shift. Ellen Moir, founder of the New Teacher Center, described a “disillusionment phase” that hits new teachers in October and November: “the realization that things are probably not going as smoothly as they want.” In her words, new teachers “begin questioning both their commitment and their competence.”

Many of our coaches are in their first season, and plenty of classroom teachers feel this too, whatever their experience. Students feel it from the other side. Routines aren’t new anymore, the excitement has faded, and the real work of building habits begins. 

Read BOTH the pattern and the behavior.

When a class  goes sideways, it’s natural to focus on the moment: the student who wouldn’t line up, the drill that fell flat. But one hard day is a data point, so don’t read it as a verdict. The real insight comes from stepping back and asking what keeps showing up. Is the restlessness always at the start? Does anything seem to trigger the same “I can’t”? Looking for patterns across several sessions turns frustration into information, and information is something you can act on. Here are four trends coaches and teachers often see this time of year, and what each may be saying:

What you’re seeing	What it may mean	Try this
Rules slipping, limits being tested	Routines faded once they stopped being new	Reteach one routine calmly, as a fresh start
Restless bodies, trouble waiting	Self-control is being asked for longer than kids can manage	Shorten the wait time for sharing or starting an activity
More “I can’t,” quiet withdrawal	The challenge is too steep, or confidence has dipped	Scale back one step to encourage “a win” and praise the effort
Breezing through, bored	Students are ready for more intensity	Add another, more difficult challenge or leadership role

Reset without punishing

Although our instinct is to tighten up when routines slip, a calmer approach works better. Writing for Responsive Classroom, fifth-grade teacher Gretta Smith described restarting her school year in November with a class that wasn’t responding. She went back to first-day procedures, simplified the class rules with her students, and practiced routines again.

Two things made it work. She framed the reset in a tone that was “calm and optimistic, rather than angry,” so students saw a chance to grow, not a punishment. She also kept it going with quick, frequent prompts such as “Who can remind us how that works?” Her conclusion: “consistency was crucial.”

For coaches, that might sound like this: “We’re going to have a fresh start today. Who remembers how we warm up for a challenge?” Then practice it, praise it, and prompt it again next session.

Let the game build the skill

Restlessness and impulsivity are often signs that kids are still developing executive function, the skills behind waiting, focusing and switching gears. The Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University puts it simply: “we aren’t born with these skills, we are born with the potential to develop them through interactions and practice.”

The good news for anyone leading movement-based programs: the center notes that games requiring attention and quick responses, like Red Light, Green Light or Simon Says, help children practice attention and inhibition. For older children, physical activity that requires coordination “can improve all aspects of executive function.” A class that can’t wait its turn doesn’t need less movement. It needs movement designed to practice waiting.

We saw this in one of our junior pre-K classes this fall. A student who was frustrated with waiting started running in circles, and soon the whole class followed. Instead of stopping it, the coach joined in, let the laughter run its course, and then asked, “Ready to try again?” He lined back up, tried the challenge, missed, laughed, and tried again. By the third round, he was helping the next student in line. The energy is normal and needed a direction instead of being shut down.

The 10-minute mid-season check-in

Set aside ten minutes after a session this week and answer five questions:

1. What’s one pattern I’ve seen in the last three sessions?

2. When does it show up? At the start, during transitions, or near the end?

3. What kind of problem is it? A routine that faded, a challenge that’s too hard or too easy, or a skill the students have not yet mastered? 

4. Which student surprised me, and what made the difference?

5. What’s one change I’ll try for the next two sessions?

Then share your ideas with your peers. A second set of eyes often spots what you can’t, and saying a plan out loud makes it more likely to happen.

Ask your students, too

Sometimes your students will offer solutions if you ask. Try a quick circle question at the end of a session: “What’s your favorite part of our class right now? What feels hard?” A thumbs up, sideways or down works for younger students. You’ll often hear the answer to your pattern in their words. One student may say that “waiting is boring” which might help you in an instant rather than a week or so of guessing. Even better, involving your students to come up with solutions can be impactful for adherence as well.

Flip your own mindset

Growth mindset can help everyone get through the unique challenges that can show up in the middle of a season. For adults and students, many opportunities to flip our mindset present themselves.  If you catch yourself thinking “this isn’t working,” try the same flip we teach our students: “This isn’t working yet.” Then pick one change, try it for two sessions, and see what your class tells you next.

Sources

1. Moir, E. Phases of First-Year Teaching. New Teacher Center. Quoted in “Motivating E-mails Help First-Year Teachers Get Through Difficult Months: October and November,” Education World. educationworld.com

2. Smith, G. (2008). A Fresh Start Leads to Learning. Responsive Classroom. responsiveclassroom.org

3. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University (2014). Enhancing and Practicing Executive Function Skills with Children from Infancy to Adolescence. developingchild.harvard.edu