A great teachers' resource, just in case you're unaware of it, is TeachingIdeas. There's a whole section on classroom management, with a variety of ideas and suggestions (from the tried-and-tested to the frankly utopian) from working teachers.
Choosing The Rules has this suggestion for starting the new school year with a (presumably fairly docile) primary class:
"On the first day of school sit all of the children down in a circle. Explain why rules are in place and why they are important to follow. Once you have explained this and answered any questions, ask the children what they think the rules should be.
Once all the children have made their suggestions write them down on the board and then discuss which of these should become the classroom rules. Then have all the children agree on a set of rules for the classroom and what should happen for those who don't follow them (e.g. time off of break, extra homework for the group etc). Obviously your school may have extra school rules, and as the adult you have to guide the class to choose suitable rules!
If handled well this will help the children feel they have contributed to their school and keep the children intuned to the rules."
Obviously, if you can even persuade your class to "sit in a circle", you're more than half-way there!
