Being a Superhero in the Classroom

Being a Superhero in the
Classroom
Clarkette Kent….er- ahem…Laura A. Riffel, Ph.D.
Putting on YOUR cape
Connections
Affirmations
Positive Praise
Education
You do know what you’re going to get……
OHI-2.2%
Connections
1st Connection
Touch the students with a high five, fist
bump, or hand shake.
If a high five or an equivalent
can in fact enhance
performance, on the field or in
the classroom, that may be
because it reduces stress. A
warm touch seems to set off the
release of oxytocin, a hormone
that helps create a sensation of
trust, and to reduce levels of the
stress hormone cortisol (Carey,
2010).
nd
2
Connection
Glad to see
you today
Taylor.
Educators who stand at the
door and greet their students
have less disruptions
throughout the day.
Dale Carnegie said it best
in How to Win Friends
and Influence People- …
“a man’s name is to him the
sweetest and most
important sound in any
language”. Dr. Riffel says
pair it with a positive about
them.
rd
3 Connection
Make eye contact.
We have increased the use of
social media by 600% since
1950. In 1959, children spent
about 10.5 hours a week
watching television. In 2013,
children watch 73.5 hours of
television or screen watching
(technology) per week- They
multi-task and are on the
computer and watching
television at the same time.
th
4 Connection
Smile- The Power of a Smile
Kids vs. Adults
The average child smiles 400
times per day
The average adult smiles 20
times per day
Get a joke-a-day
calendar or sign up for a
joke a day in your inbox.
Give yourself more
reasons to smile. We
forget what we are doing
with our face. When we
are thinking of our to-do
list- we aren’t smiling.
TUMS
Touch
Use name
Make eye contact
Smile
Affirmations
Remember Stuart Smalley????
A fictional character on
SNL played by Al Franken.
He would look in the mirror
and say, “You’re good
enough. You’re strong
enough. And gosh darn it,
people like you.” We need
to teach kids to be less
down on themselves and
others.
Self-Esteem
When children are 6 years old
80% of them have high self-esteem
When children are 10 years old
20% of them have high self-esteem
When children are 17 years old
05% of them have high self-esteem
All kids are creative in different ways
Positive Praise
Bill or Walter?????
Love Notes
Every single day- every single kid
Every dayevery kid does
something you
can brag about.
Research on Jen Ratio
What’s your Jen Ratio?
Positives to Negatives
Here’s a scenario- Watching a news
broadcast on an ordinary weekday
night:
There are 13 stories of violence, death,
bad behavior
Ancient
Chinese
Philosophy
There are 2 stories of positive or happy
endings.
• That’s a Jen Ratio of 2/13 or 13%– not a very
good Jen Ratio
Here’s another scenario
Children playing on the playground:
Two kids are playing tag and laughing
Two kids are shooting basketballs and high
fiving their successes
Two kids are doing flips on the bars and giggling
Two kids are over in the corner whispering about
how clumsy the girls doing flips are.
The Jen Ratio is 6/2 or a Jen Ratio of 75%
Ambiance
Here’s another example
In a typical classroom in one hourstudents hear 45 corrections and
3 positives
That’s a Jen Ratio of 3/45 or 6%.
We should strive for an 80%
That means for every negative we giveWe need to give 4 positives
We can improve behavior by 80% just by
pointing out what one person is doing
correctly (Shores, Gunter, & Jack, 1993).
Education
Education Definition
The act or process of imparting or acquiring general knowledge,
developing the powers of reasoning and judgment, and generally
of preparing oneself or others intellectually for mature life.
The act or process of imparting or acquiring particular knowledge
or skills, as for a profession.
A degree, level, or kind of schooling: a university education.
The result produced by instruction, training, or study: to show
one's education.
The science or art of teaching; pedagogics.
www.dictionary.com
It’s so much more…
Communication
Ambiance
Pace
Expectations
Communication
Communication
Home to School
Send home a one page (front
and back) weekly newsletter
and include:
Your lesson plans for the week
Reminders for supplies,
permission slips etc.
Designation of “A” week or “B”
week
Highlights or pictures from the
week previous
Include Information about:
Amount of sleep required for the age of children you teach
Research from JAMA on this:
Each hour of television a child watches is a 7% decrease in
classroom engagement
Homework Assignment
Check out this great Math Lesson from
www.mathalicious.com
http://www.mathalicious.com/lesson/jen-ratio/
Watch television including news for two hours
Tally positives to negatives and bring in results the next day to
share
Give students a handout on time watched and stations
watched
Talk to students then about JEN Ratio
Positive in- Positive out
Negative in- Negative out
Communication
It’s important to communicate to students
that it is okay to make a mistake.
x
Misteaks
Are Learning
Opportunities
Don’t accept zeroes
Have students redo it until it is
rightIf students feel they can get
away with turning in a zero
paper- they will take it as an
escape
Three Stars and a Wish
Writing papersIt’s not one and done
Students turn in assignment and teacher’s
choose three things they did well and circle
those and then write one wish they want
them to work on for revision.
This continues until it is a perfect paper.
Don’t let them continue to make the same
mistakes.
The spacing of your cursive handwriting made it very
easy for me to read.
The action words you chose in this sentence were
extremely vivid.
The way you used personification helped me
visualize the setting.
•
I wish you add some more detail describing the main
characters. Way to go! Can’t wait to read it again.
Ambiance
Ambiance
Colors chosen for the room are very importantIf your room is a “hot” color like red, orange, bright
white, or bright yellow ask if you can paint it. Many
times the district will pay for the paint if you supply the
labor.
Deeper shades of blue are the most calming
Think about too much color when you do your bulletin
boards
A different print fabric for each bulletin board is too much.
Solid colors are best
Fabric does work best because it will last all year without fadingwhere the cheap bulletin board paper will fade and need to be
replaced half-way through the year.
Businesses use the
science and art of
Feng Shui to increase
customer satisfaction,
health and well-being
of workers, and
increase sales.
Educational Seating
Everyone should be in the front row
Place the desks in a “U” shape with your
demonstration area in the middle
Push your desk out of the way and use it for
having all your “ducks in a row”
This helps the students
feel connected to you.
Students can easily
move into cooperative
groups by turning
every other desk
toward the next.
Nature
pictures
Water
feature
60 bpm
music
Blue bean
bag
Round
wooden
table with
pictures of
students
above it
White board
Social info
Demonstration table
Pictures of
heroes to
aspire
toward
Team
points
Team
divisions
if using
whole
brain
teaching
White
round
table
White
metal
clock
Extended
learning
games
Silver box
Wind
chime
Globe
door
Nature
pictures
Water
feature
60 bpm
music
Blue bean
bag
Round
wooden
table with
pictures of
students
above it
Pictures of
heroes to
aspire
toward
White board
Social info
Demonstration table
If your room is smaller
door
Team
points
Team
divisions
if using
whole
brain
teaching
White
round
table
White
metal
clock
Extended
learning
games
Silver box
Wind
chime
Globe
Under each desk
Place a piece of Velcro or bathtub
applique under each desk
Ask parents to provide cushions for seats
Proprioceptive movement is
very conducive to learning.
Sitting on a cushion allows for
more proprioceptive
movement.
Slide Show of Different Seating Ideas
Standing work Station
Old desk top on a rolling cart
Permission to take off shoes
Taking off shoes and
wiggling toes reduces
anxiety by 39%Students in Iceland
and parts of Australia
do not wear shoes in
class.
Jeanne Segal,
Ph.D., with
Melinda Smith,
M.A., and
Lawrence
Robinson.
Music Calms Us All
Our heart rates will
match the beat of the
music.
Aggressive students’
hearts rise on average
to 140 bpm.
We have the power to
override this.
Resting Heart rate is 60 bpm
Download this app for apple
http://www.potionfactory.com/tangerine/
Download this app for windows
http://www.beatunes.com/download-jre-win.html
Run it on your itunes account and see how many bpm
your own music is- you can set up a library of 60 bpm
music to play in the class
Or Google 60 bpm music
Think about lightFluorescent lights can cause
glare, headaches, and
exacerbate behavior.
The more you use other lights
the better.
www.huelight.netspecial panels
which block out
the flicker and
glare
60 Watt Bulb Lamp on Desk
As students transition into the room, have
fluorescent lights off and 60 watt bulb on.
Play calming videos downloadable for free on
www.behaviordoctor.org/calmingvideos.html
7 minutes of pictures of nature has a calming
effect on anxiety
The light from the pictures will light up the room as
well as the 60 watt bulb on your desk
Special Ed Connection on
May 2, 2012, and in my
newsletter Today's School
Psychologist this past January
2013.
Recognize Alternatives To
Use Of Seclusion by Laura A.
Riffel, Ph.D.
Smell
The story of David
Think twice before wearing perfume
Food smells
Door barrier from pool noodle and pillowcase
Stuffy smells
Sprinkle baking soda on carpet and vacuum
once a week
Room fresheners and deodorizers can cause
headaches and asthma reactions
Pace
Downtime
Downtime is the death of classroom
management
Make sure your ducks are in a row and ready to
go
Games
Use games to keep the students engagedTons of free sample game templates:
http://behaviordoctor.org/games.html
Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?
Are YOU Smarter Than a Fifth Grader
Jeopardy
Reality is
Broken by
Jane
McGonigal
Try Whole Brain Teaching
Consider “Flipping Your Classroom”
When you “flip” your classroomThe teacher records themselves
teaching the core lesson without the
students present
This video is posted online
The students watch this video for “homework”
Class time is spent going over and
doing the actual tasks in the
classroom.
Example
Expectations
Expectations
What is the first word a baby learns after
“mama” and “dada”?
Is it because they hear it so much?
Tone deaf to these words:
Stop
Don’t
Quit
No
My brother
Tell kids what to do instead of what not to do
What is a current problem?
What would the opposite be?
Be Responsible
Be Respectful
Be Safe
www.pbis.org
Laura’s Rules
3-5
Positively Stated
MUST have an action word- you
can’t just say “Respect”
“Pride” “Safe”
The students have to be able to
visualize what it will look like
so put your action words with
it.
What will you choose?
You can’t just say “Be Good”
TIPP
Teach it
Imprint it by modeling it
Practice it
Praise it when you see it
Teach itThink
Head- What do you want them to think?
Heart- What do you want them to feel?
Hands- What do you want them to do
with their hands and feet?
Video Modeling
Video Self-Modeling
Practice with the students
Praise It When You See It
Behavior Specific Praise
Remember “Good Job” means
nothing.
You are praising to teach others
what good behavior looks like,
sounds like, and feels like.
We give out “gotcha” slips to
remind the adults to give out
behavior specific praise
Getting The Students Hooked
Contingency
Award
Point
Encourage
Contingency
Dependence on chance or on the fulfillment of a
conditionIt is an “if” “then” condition.
Examples:
• If the school earns 1000 gotchas this week,
then we will have a homework free night for
the whole school.
• If we have zero office discipline referrals,
then the principal will dress up like Zero the
Hero.
• If we have a table with the most tallies in the
lunchroom, then we will let them choose 4
teachers and a song for the teachers to
perform at the next day’s lunch session.
Award
There should be three levels of award for each
“gotcha”:
• Praise from care provider
• Possibility in a Principal drawing
• Point accumulation from homeroom
Award- continued
Award should be in these categories:
1) Quality time with adults and peers
2) Escape from a task or chore
3) Earning special privileges
4) Physical touch- like high fives or special
handshakes
5) Earning leadership roles
6) Social praise
7) Special assistance (help with a chore, task,
etc.)
8) Tangibles (school supplies)
Point
The contingency & award should point
the student in the right direction. The
message should be: “This is what gets
attention at our school.”
Encourage
Give booster shots to encourage
appropriate behavior
• Whatever was a problem the week
before- give double gotchas for
the appropriate display
• Do Tuesday “Tune-up” and review
the movie about the appropriate
behavior.
Use Contingencies and Rewards
Use three levels of contingencies and
rewards to get good behavior results:
Whole School
Class vs. Class
Whole school vs. Staff
Individual
Classroom Management
Whole group vs. Teacher
Group vs. Group
Individual
Whole School- whole school vs. faculty
Homework free night for every day with zero
office discipline referrals.
Surprise announcement
Due to your outstanding performance in earning
8,000 gotchas this month- We interrupt this
previously scheduled programming to bring you an
announcement from the establishment----
See the Principal in a Tutu
See the Principal in a Zero the Hero Costume
See the Principal in a Cow Costume
Queen of BS “Bling & Sparkle”- visits and gives
out dragon tears for positive words spoken.
Tardies to class
Principal sets up a quick survey in the
computer lab for what type of music the
students like.
Principal plays 4 minutes of student
music between classes over the school
intercoms
Principal plays 1 minute of “polka”
music the last minute of class changing
time.
If tardies stay below 98% it stays this
ratio- otherwise it flips 4 minutes of
“polka” music.
Whole School – Group vs. Group
Guitar Hero- for class
with the best manners in
Music Class
Lunchroom
Classroom that is the
quietest gets to go
outside first- it’s a few
extra minutes of
recess.
Lunch staff add popsicle sticks to
library pockets as they catch
tables being quiet.
The table with the most popsicle
sticks gets to go outside to recess
first- or sit at a special table on the
stage the next day. (Secondary
level- they can listen to music on
the stage)
Name the teacher- Name the Dance
Wildcat Cafe
Size 14 shoe from Oklahoma Thunder- for best manners
in PE
Prize for class with best manners in
morning “round-up”
Best manners in Health Class
Newspaper Highlight
Do something neat and call the newspaper
Special Classes in Elementary
Give “Golden” or
“Platinum” awards for
best in the class.
Giving a “gotcha” to a whole class-
Golden Plunger AwardDifference Between Elementary
TRANSITIONAL
and Secondary
Bragging Rights- Homework Free Night
Class with the most “Gotchas”
Earns a prizeElementarySecondary- use homeroom
Bus with the most “gotchas” wins reward
Reward happens at
school- this gives the
message that bus and
school are working
together and one in the
same.
Whole School- individual
Random clip-on tie for CEO’s
(Chief Example for Others)
Girls with Pearls
(CEO)
Chief Example for
Others
Broadcast the morning news
Star Team- Usher guests around school
Guest DJ during lunch
Be a mentor for another class.
Private piano lessons at school
BBABG
Buy Back a Bad Grade- Chance to redo a test or
assignment
Get a visit from a special visitor
Get to play cards with a friend
Hot Chocolate with the Principal
Get your face painted with the principal
Get to design a bulletin board- even if you spell it wrong 
Pass idea- wear a hat
Stinky Foot Pass- No Shoes
Sunglass Pass
Special seating in the cafeteria
Get to sit in special area of class (secondary)
Get to read in a special
reading place for
D.E.A.R. time.
Get to help in PE Class
Cutting the principal’s tie off
Get to cut the principal’s tie off
Get to eat at the EndZone Café with a friend.
Get to sit on a special stool & have a fidget
(corn neck wrap)
Decorate a teacher’s hair for the day.
Get to design a teacher’s hair and she has to wear it that way all day.
Decorating a male teacher’s hair
Elementary students get to cook in the home economics Middle
school class
Get to take your shoes off
Get to make a special art project
Get a
special
cushion for
the chair.
Rent the
Principal’s
Chair
Classroom- whole class vs. teacher
Put Mr. Potato Head Together
Put the cootie together.
Don’t think this is just an elementary idea.
Even high school students will have good
behavior if the reward is right – They will just
want to make the cootie bug more bizarre
looking 
Stacking Ring
Barrel of Monkeys
Connect 4 Launchers
Draw a student each time you
notice the class working nicely.
They launch one circle. It either
lands on the top level or the
bottom level. The class gets a
reward when they get four in a
row of a color. There could be
two rewards- red reward and
yellow reward. Whichever color
makes four in row first is the
reward the class earns.
Jumping Monkeys
When all the monkeys are
flipped into the tree- the
class gets a prize- the
teacher can flip or you can
choose students to flip.
Pre-school- Kindergarten idea
Students get to turn the
handle as the class is
caught exhibiting
excellent behavior. When
the jack in the box pops
up- the class earns the
class prize.
Matching
You could make your own
matching cards or use commercial
matching cards. Put velcro or
magnets on the front side of the
cards so they stick to the white
board. This could be Pre-K
through high school level. When
you notice the class working
quietly choose a student to come
up and flip over two cards so the
class can see what they are.
When someone makes a match
the class gets a reward.
When the marbles fall- class prize
Angry Birds
I found this at Target. It’s cardboard and
plastic. As you notice the class working
quietly, you can choose three or four students
to come up take turns being different birds to
try to knock over all the pigs. If they knock
over all the pigs the class gets the reward.
Even adults are hooked on Angry Birds- so this
would be appropriate for all levels. On
Pinterest there are directions for making your
own Angry Birds games if you don’t want to
spend the money on this one.
Links to Pinterest:
http://pinterest.com/pin/65794844526127798/
http://pinterest.com/pin/108508672241479053/
http://pinterest.com/pin/22236591879621123/
http://pinterest.com/pin/174866398001635953/
Week Long Contingency
I’d velcro the
board and
pieces up on
the white
board so the
students can
see where
they are in
the game.
Besides a daily contingency- you could have a
weekly contingency going for things like bringing
back homework, everyone having a pencil,
everyone in their seat when the bell rings, things
like that – each one worth a few jumps on the
game board. (any game board- even high school
students would be nostalgic for Candy Land)When they reach the end of the game board they
earn a home work free night. Incidentally, this is
the number one thing secondary students tell me
would mean the world to them. One night
without home work means more to them than
any monetary or tangible object you could give
them.
Chutes and Ladders
Same concept as Candy
Land- All of the students
working together for a group
pay off.
Trouble Game
This one is different- the class will be divided
into four teams. As they work, you will
choose the team that is working the best and
allow them to play the popper. The team that
wins the game gets to choose the prize for
the class- (Have four different prizes
available for them to choose)- This could take
a week to play.
Compliment Board
1111 1111 1111 1111 1111
1111
Links on a chain
From the dollar store
Weaving good behavior in the classroom
Brownie Points
Make your own scratch-off prizes
Two parts model paint to one
part dishwashing detergent.
Here’s my suggestion- On tag
board make your bubble
letters and then write a prize
in each bubble letter.
Laminate the tag board.
Then paint over the laminated
letters. This way you can
reuse it year after year.
Otherwise, the student will
scratch too hard and you
won’t be able to use it again.
Label Noodles “A” and “B” – put prizes on board for “A” and “B” and then choose two
students to start marbles on command. Class gets prize of whichever marble makes
it first.
Mystery Motivator
Students flip over letters as they get caught exhibiting
excellent behavior- trying to figure out what they are
earning. Kind of like “Wheel of Fortune”
Disruptions
Minutes of free timeBreak the class period
into 10 minute
segments.
• Every 10 minutes that
there were no
disruptions- the class
earns one minute of free
time at the end of class.
• Group contingencyeveryone is working on
common goal.
Marbles in a Jar
I got this picture from the Internet- I thought it would be a cute idea to
surprise the kids- hide the lights in there when it got almost full-
Another option- like the wording
Piggy Banks
“I spy some students really paying attention- they have their eyes on me
and their listening ears on. They are leaning forward and I can tell they
are ready to work. They just earned the class some reward coins.”
Write prizes on a CD- choose student to spin.
Spin the wheel
Pot Holder Loops
As you catch students
exhibiting appropriate
behavior, take one of these
out of your pocket and say,
“thank you for being
respectful (or whatever the
behavior was)”. At the end
of class, count the total
number of loops given out. If
the predetermined number
of loops are reached the
class earns a whole class
reward.
Smarty Pants
Every “A” paper
earns a slip of
paper with the
student’s name
into the smarty
pants. When the
class earns a
reward, the
teacher draws a
name. That
students gets to
pick the prize for
the class.
Classroom- Individual
Bracelets
Using pot holder loops or silly bands
from Oriental Trading Company or
similar- work out a contract with the
individual student.
10 bracelets equals a break or 5
bracelets equals a break
Be specific- what behaviors will they
have to exhibit to earn a bracelet – tell
them in measurable and observable
terms, so they can visualize.
Never take away a bracelet once it’s
earned- just don’t give one when they
are exhibiting inappropriate behavior.
For older students
Points- work fine
The Boystown® Model works well with
students with emotional behavior issues.
Based on 100 points per day
For more information:
http://www.boystown.org/education
Play on Interests
Legos- 10 Lego blocks put
together equals a break or a prize
The Lego can be kept on the
teacher’s desk so they are not a
distraction use a special color at
the top so the student knows
when they have reached the goal.
You might even put glitter on the
top Lego.
Simple is Best
Now/Then or First/Then
Simple- earning computer time
Best One
The next one works with 4
year olds to 18 year olds
It’s research based
Student-Teacher Rating Form
Date:
Student
Hour One
Hour Two
Hour Three
Hour Four
Hour Five
Hour Six
Respect
Self
Respect
Others
Respect
Property
Total
Points
3= Great Hour- No or very few behavioral learning opportunities occurred
2= Pretty Good Hour- few behavioral learning opportunities occurred
1= This Hour could have been better- more than a few behavioral learning opportunities
occurred
Student Signature: _________________________________________________
Teacher Signature: _________________________________________________
Parents' Signature: _________________________________________________
For younger students use smiling faces:
John Hattie
Visible Learning: A Synthesis
of Over 800 Meta-Analyses
Relating to AchievementAvailable at
www.amazon.com
Found that students
recording their own success
had the highest impact.
When paired with a relationship building activity it becomes an even stronger intervention.
Dr. Ann Corvin says these 3 things are essential
to building a relationship:
Eye contact
Touching
Talking
Bhaerman, R.D. & Kopp, K.A. (1988) says:
A student is less likely to drop out of school if
one adult other than their teacher knows and
uses their name.
By tying in Dr. Leanne Hawken’s Behavior Education
Program (Check-in/Check-out a school can use both
components of monitoring their own progress and
tying in Dr. Ann Corvin’s research and Drs. Bhaerman
and Kopp’s research with her unique way of checking
in on a student on an hourly and daily basis.
To read more about the Behavior Education Program
check out this article:
http://www.calstat.org/textAlt/SpEDge_eng/fall05
edge.html
Check inCheck out
Earned
reward
Home
checkin
Morning
check-in with
preferred
adult
Graph
points
End of day
check-out
with
preferred
adult
Hourly
teacher
evaluation
Review points
Graph
points
Hourly
teacher
evaluation
Mid-day
check in with
preferred
adult
Adapted from
Hawken 2008
Family and School Partnerships are Important
Christenson, S. L. (1995). Families and schools: What is the role of the school psychologist? School
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Clark, R.M. (1990). Why disadvantaged students succeed: What happens outside school is critical. Public
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Epstein, J.L. (1991). Paths to partnership: What can we learn from federal, state, district, and school
initiatives. Phi Delta Kappa, 72 (5).
Henderson, A. & Mapp, K. (2002). A new wave of evidence: The impact of school, family, and
community connections on achievement. Austin, TX: National Center for Family & Community
Connections with Schools.
Hoover-Dempsey, K.V., Whitaker, M.C., & Ice, C.L. (2010). Motivation and
commitment to family-school partnerships. In S.L. Christenson & A.L. Reschly (Eds.), Handbook of schoolfamily partnerships (pp. 30-60). New York: Routledge.
Jeynes, W. H. (2005). A meta-analysis of the relation of parental involvement to urban elementary school
student academic achievement. Urban Education, 40, 237-269.
Jeynes, W. H. (2007). The relationship between parental involvement and urban secondary school student
achievement: A meta-analysis. Urban Education, 42, 82-110.
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Psychology Quarterly, 12, 119-133.
I tie my student/teacher rating sheet into the
home
The parents reward the students at home for good behavior at school.
This does several things:
Connects home and school in a positive way instead of an adversarial way.
Sends message to student that home and school are working together.
Student gets rewarded and recognized for good behavior which encourages good
behavior
Parents are happy to comply with something so simple
Rewards are attention and recognition- not prizes.
This is how an intervention
works- research based not
punishment based.
1. Student measuring
progress
2. Teaching
expectations
3. Monitoring
expectations
4. Relationship building
(teacher/student)
5. Keeping a student in
school
6. Building connections
between home and
school