[JohnVK]

Besides that, smack one or two of them and the rest will fall in line. Unless there are laws or regulations forbidding corporal punishment. Violate these, and, unfortunately, you'll end up in the soup very quickly. Isaiah, I don't know which state you live in, but here in South Australia, corporal punishment in state schools was outlawed close to forty years ago.

How can I approach this job? What can I do as a teacher to correct behaviours and dispositions that are products of upbringing? Prevention is better than cure, but in this business its all about curing and un-doing the work of the parents so it seems. This is from my time in high school, though I can't see it not being adaptable to primary school teaching, especially grade three and upwards:

A certain teacher was assigned to a class well-populated with boisterous lads who had ample capacity to disrupt the class. For the first few weeks of the year, Mr X kept everybody on a short leash. Even small infractions to class order were dealt with. You dropped your pen? A deep voice boomed out: "Leave it there!" Granted, he was 6'2" (1.88m) tall, and an Aussie Rules footballer still playing at league level at the time, but the point is that he stamped his authority on his class swiftly and without compromise, with firmness, not aggression. After a few weeks, he became more tolerant, and the kids realised he wasn't such a bad bloke after all. But, and it did happen, if someone crossed the line, he knew he could come down hard on them again. Sometimes all he needed to do to pull someone in line was give them "the look", and they would knuckle under.