Eastern Washington University
Get to Know Dice are used for an icebreaker at the beginning of the school year. Students create their own dice with questions on each side related to what they want to learn about their classmates. It is a helpful way to begin creating a community of students that know and care about one another.
The Classroom Scavenger Hunt is an activity for the first days of school instruction, used for reviewing classroom expectations, procedures and the location of classroom materials. How this is an effective tool is because it reinforces classroom rules and procedures while making students feel confident and successful in their new classroom.
The Mesh and Marble Monkey Fidget tool is a great fidget toy for students of all ages. This toy helps students who have extra energy, students who constantly move around as well as students who battle high stress and anxiety levels. These toys help by promoting a sense of calmness, can reduce anxiety or stress and can increase focus in the classroom.
The contingency contract is an agreement between the student and teacher which states academic goals as well as behavioral goals for the student. Students are reinforced with rewards or praise when they have followed proper behaviors or are asked to revisit and review their contract when they are not representing appropriate behavior. Each person(s) involved in the contract will also sign their contract to show student involvement and understanding of their procedures.
If a student is being disruptive and misbehaving, this is an option to stop this behavior. You need to calmly and politely ask the student to stop the antisocial behavior they are performing. The key here is to be calm and polite.
During this strategy, students form two different circles: half of the group stands in a circle facing outward while the other half forms a circle around them facing inward, rotating whenever the teacher cues. Students in either circle have quick, one on one exchanges with different students in a short amount of time, which is good for trading tips, examples and information.
Restitution letters are when students write an apology letter to another peer after their misbehavior negatively affected them. This tool is helpful in teaching students responsibility for their actions and fostering prosocial skills including kindness and asking for forgiveness.
This tool is a sheet of paper with multiple questions on it about the misbehavior that occurred. Often students get disciplined and don’t know what they did wrong; this sheet allows them to reflect on what they did wrong and what they learned from their misbehavior.
When used carefully, humor can extinguish negative behaviors and help maintain an enjoyable classroom environment. The teacher must be able to make a joke in the moment that defuses the tension and depersonalizes the situation.
The Yacker Tracker looks like a stop light with green, yellow, and red lights to measure noise level in the classroom. This device is great for helping students maintain an appropriate level of noise during different tasks throughout the school day. When the classroom begins to get too loud, the tracker will flash red and begin buzzing to alert students that their noise level needs to be adjusted.
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