Want to change your child's behavior?

Here are the basic techniques:

1. Reinforcement is a consequence that causes a behavior to occur with greater frequency.
1. A behavior precedes a favorable stimulus (commonly seen as pleasant) that increases the frequency of that behavior.
2. A behavior precedes the removal of an aversive stimulus (commonly seen as unpleasant) thereby increasing that behavior's frequency. 
2. Punishment is a consequence that causes a behavior to occur with less frequency.
1. A behavior precedes an aversive stimulus, resulting in a decrease in that behavior.
2. A behavior precedes the removal of a favorable stimulus, resulting in a decrease in that behavior.
3. Avoidance learning is when a certain behavior results in the cessation of an aversive stimulus. 
4. Extinction is the lack of any consequence following a behavior that had previously been reinforced, resulting in a decrease in that behavior.
5. Non-contingent Reinforcement is a procedure that decreases the frequency of a behavior by both reinforcing alternative behaviors and extinguishing the undesired behavior.          [http://psychology.wikia.com/wiki/Operant_conditioning]

Let me break it down...

Children want our attention. So, we really have to consider how much of our energy or attention children get from our response to their behavior. A small reward like McDonalds or punishment such as a stern discussion can be quicker than #4 or #5 but can often lead to inconsistent messages. Our children, quite honestly, can get more attention for doing a undesirable action. How much time do we give someone that's hit a classmate compared to opening the door for a friend? 

Keep your eye on the prize. We want to build a child's natural curiosity for learning, empathy towards others, or foster independence towards their adult years. Please consider how to extinguish (#4 & #5) the undesirable behaviors while nurturing a child's sense of self worth (#5).

Consistency is the key. The more consistent you are with your technique, the more a child sees you as fair and will trust your reaction. Often, there's a trial period at the beginning so stick to your plan.
Posted by Cinnamin Rivers, CAS School Counselor

Anchor Activities

How can one teacher manage a differentiated classroom of learners, where 3 or more different activities may be taking place in 3 or more different groups of students? How can one possibly have time to give students the individual feedback that is so crucial to their growth?

Using Anchor Activities is one way to make this daunting task much less daunting.

Basically, an Anchor Activity is an activity that students can turn to independently if they are finished with the task you've given, or if they are stuck and waiting for your help. You may need to teach it once or twice, but it is something fairly routine that students should get the hang of quickly and be able to do with complete independence. Anchor activities can even be used as a routine to focus students at the beginning of a lesson, but they are really designed to keep everyone productively learning even while you are working with another group or individual. You may decide to keep a really great Anchor Activity throughout the school year, or change it up depending on the unit of study.

Some examples:
Daily journal prompt
Math problem of the Day
Vocabulary puzzle

One Anchor Activity that I've used was "Portfolio Paragraphs". This was a list of prompts in each student's writing folder. They knew that if they were done with something and awaiting further instruction, they could go to that list of prompts and start writing a paragraph response. I was going to assess them, but only at the end of the term. Students could go to that activity as they needed, independently, without asking my permission or interrupting anything else in the classroom.  

Anchor Activities are also really helpful for those last 5 minutes of a lesson where everyone is already done with the task you've given.

Much has been written about Anchor Activities, so if you're interested and looking for more examples or ideas of how they could be used in your classroom, check out this helpful PDF:
Anchor Activities

Or this teacher's blog: http://mrscathleen.blogspot.com/2013/06/anchor-activities.html
 
 

Word Wizard

Have you been teaching vocabulary, but you're not really seeing your students actually USING the words you've taught? Are you looking for an easy, fun way to get students excited about using new words? Try a "Word Wizard" contest in your classroom:

1. Put up a poster labeled "Word Wizard" in your classroom with spaces for stickers or stars to go on. It could be any layout or configuration. Check out this one from Mr. Blakely's class:

2. We've found that students get more excited about this when you DON'T explain it. Therefore, just let the poster sit there and let kids wonder about it and ask you about it until someone uses a vocabulary word during class. Then, you can slyly ask them to put a sticker on the Word Wizard chart. The students will feel that they have suddenly discovered an exciting world of actually using words they've been taught.:)

3. Use the poster as you wish. You may want it to be a competition between classes. You may want to offer some reward, like a 30-second dance party, when the chart is full. You may find that you need to impose a few rules, like "No repeat vocabulary words will earn stickers during the same lesson." You may also wish to reward students who use words in writing or find them in their reading. It will depend on your class.

4. Let your students impress you with how much vocabulary they really did learn!

On Task/Off Task Checklist

This is a strategy that can help kids with attention difficulties. Sometimes kids with ADHD, or just trouble concentrating, have a hard time realizing when they are on or off task. This checklist can help them to self-monitor their own behavior.

Basically, you need a very simple table taped to the child's desk. It could look like this:

For the first day, and perhaps subsequent days, you will need to help the student with prompts such as, "I see that you're on task. Give yourself a check for On Task." or "It looks like your off task. Give yourself a check for Off Task. What are you supposed to be doing now?" Remind the student of when they are doing the wrong thing, but be very conscious of trying to catch the child doing something right in order to give them positive reinforcement. Gradually release the specificity of prompts, "Check yourself right now," until the student can try monitoring themselves for a whole class period. Take a few moments of reflection after class to ask questions like, "Does this seem helpful?" and "How did you do?"

It's very important to remember that THIS IS NOT A PUNISHMENT, and should not be linked to punishments or discipline. To do so would be counter-productive. The goal is to get the student working with you to realize ON THEIR OWN when they are on or off task, promote some meta-cognition about what they are doing, and to be able to better redirect themselves someday, without having a checklist to remind them.