There are several rules needed to make this meeting work. These can be related to rules of the school or rules made by the students for their own class.

But this rule is the most important:
What is said during the meetings in the Class Council is kept in this room.
What ever we decide to talk about here, stays in the group. If someone gets angry about things that are said, this has to be settled in the group during the Class Council.

Other Council rules:

1. One person speaks at the time.
2. Don't laugh at others if it hurts them.
3. Keep to the subject.

It is very important to keep these rules during the first meetings. If, or perhaps more likely, when a violation occurs, stop the meeting and deal with the matter at once. Some teachers use an object which is passed around in the circle. The person holding the object is the only one allowed to speak.
If someone laughs at another and it hurts them, deal with it in order to prevent it from happening again. The person hurt can be asked to tell the group how it felt to be laughed at, if he/she wants to.

Continue: Starting up the Class Council | Back to the Practical tips page