This is a follow-up from a discussion about a school’s policy mandating the giving of rewards for expected standards of behavior. At a recent faculty meeting, it was announced that the “Positive Behavior Support” team met and decided what they need to do to reduce referrals to the office; bribe the kids! If there were no negative contacts (home phone call or note or trip to the office) for the rest of the week, then the following sorts of rewards would take place: kindergartners and first graders would get an ice cream sandwich at lunch, second graders would get to do a craft project, third graders would get to dance around in the cafeteria after lunch, etc. The next day,
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Happiness is the result of a myriad of little decisions made every day. To be happy in the New Year—and each and every day thereafter—REFLECT BEFORE you make those little decisions. Two questions to ask yourself are, “What’s my goal in doing this?” and “How will I feel if I achieve it?” For example, if our daughter did something that was irresponsible, I could ask myself, “Is my goal to punish her?” “And, if I do, how will I feel?” (And how would she feel?) Or, I could ask myself, “Is my goal is to help her make more responsible decisions?” “And if I achieve this goal, how will I feel?” (And how would she feel?) It’s decisions like these
READ MORE >>> →There is a story about an old and wise martial arts master who invited his new student to share tea and conversation and to begin the teacher-student relationship. The student—who already had much training from other teachers—looked eager and ready to learn and said, “Teach me, master, how to be a great fighter.” The wise master reached over with the teapot and began to pour the tea. He continued to pour even after the cup filled to the top. Tea began pouring down the sides. The student panicked, “It is already full. Why are you still pouring?” The master responded, “So too, is your mind. It is filled with previous knowledge and experiences. You must empty your mind of everything
READ MORE >>> →Never, never, never tell another person YOUR ASSESSMENT OF THAT PERSON. (This does not refer to a person’s behavior.) The fact of life is that one never truly knows enough about a person to do that. Recently, overhearing a couple who have been married for many years, I heard the wife say to her husband, “I didn’t expect you to think that way.” She was pleasantly surprised by her husband’s take on a situation. In this same vein of never completely knowing another person, a very successful teacher told me that her high school counselor told her that she was not smart enough to go to college. (Although college does require a minimum of academic skills, perseverance is a far
READ MORE >>> →In my October newsletter, I wrote, “Feeling is what you get for thinking the way you do.” Later that same month when I traveled to South Africa with a group of school administrators, I personally experienced the truth of this quotation. I was chosen as one of two among 35 delegates to make a presentation. Due to various stories of lost and poor handling of luggage, the group was discouraged from checking in any suitcases. It was suggested to travel only with carry-on luggage. This meant that I could bring a minimum of handouts. The one I chose was my teaching model. After my presentation, an administrator told me that it was unprofessional to attempt to sell my program. My
READ MORE >>> →Promoting Responsibility & Learning – Volume 7 Number 11
#3 Thumbs up vs. thumbs down behaviors
#5 Two questions all students ask
#6 How a policeman uses the levels
Although related, classroom management and discipline are very commonly interchanged, but they are distinctly different topics and should not be lumped together as if they were synonymous. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT deals with how things are done. DISCIPLINE deals with how people behave. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT has to do with procedures and routines to the point of becoming rituals. DISCIPLINE is about impulse management and self-control. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT is the teacher’s responsibility. DISCIPLINE is the student’s responsibility. CLASSROOM MANAGEMENT is enhanced when procedures are: 1. explained to students, 2. modeled for students, 3. practiced by students, 4. reinforced by practicing again, and periodically (when necessary) 5. practiced again. (Oftentimes practicing something one time does not put it into long-term memory.) When procedures are
READ MORE >>> →While waiting for my wife to shop after presenting in Adelaide, Australia (a lovely city we really enjoyed), I purchased a copy of Dale Carnegie’s “How to Win Friends and Influence People.” Originally published in 1936, the book went on to become one of the best-selling books of all time and making Carnegie an international celebrity and an American icon. The book was used as the text in my first college speech course, and since it had been years since I first read it, I decided to re-read it. The copy of the classic book I purchased was the 1981 revised edition. Carnegie had a gift for expressing profound truths in simple ways. A perfect example is his “Six Ways
READ MORE >>> →I recently was sent an article about a study showing the effects of punishment as motivation on the brain. As I linked to the article about how the threat of punishment can deter bad behavior, a drawing of an adult immediately popped up. I thanked the sender of the article with the following comments: “The picture in the article shows an adult. I have absolutely no problem with incarcerating adults for retribution, fairness, justice, or protection of the public. “As I explain in my seminars, if you believe that an 8-year-old is a 28-year-old, then you will treat the 8-year-old as you would treat the 28-year-old. However, if you believe that an 8-year-old is not yet a 28-year-old and you
READ MORE >>> →The Thursday, October 25, 2007 edition of USA Today featured an article about Nancy Berry, a teacher in Walton Beach, Florida. The 64-year-old first grade teacher’s classroom was described as a place where children want to learn. What struck me more than creative learning stations and individualizing instruction was her carefully crafted teaching strategies that instill self-confidence, etiquette, and compassion—the foundation of character traits that last a lifetime. Here is an example of how she motivates youngsters to write. A topic is first discussed. Students write at least six lines about the discussion. The required six lines usually turns into 16. She avoids being critical of children’s mistakes. Instead she uses an empathetic approach when reviewing their work. Berry corrects
READ MORE >>> →All students have two questions when they enter any classroom: (1) Will I fit in? (2) Will I succeed? Two ways to empower students so that their responses will be in the affirmative are: (1) Start the class by having students share the name they would like to be called and have them share one personal thing about themselves. It can be a hobby, a special interest, how they enjoy spending their time, a favorite movie, a special song—anything that others in the class can relate to about each student. (2) Start any assignment or any test that is EASY so that the students’ self-talk becomes, “I can do this!”
READ MORE >>> →Promoting Responsibility & Learning – Volume 7 Number 10
#1 Teacher Preparation
#3 Acknowledging Level D
#6 Understanding Level D
I will be in Johannesburg and Cape Town South Africa with a delegation of California School Administrators sponsored by the People to People Ambassador Program until October 22, 2007. During my presentation, I will share my teaching model. My aim is to help implement their goal of “developing socially responsible citizens of South Africa.”
READ MORE >>> →In order for the brain to pay attention, the stimulus needs to be engaging. Any of the following approaches will keep young people’s attention: 1. The presentation or activity is creative. 2. The information is relevant, interesting, or fun. 3. The questions asked prompt curiosity. 4. Variety, the spice of learning, is employed. 5. Enthusiasm is displayed. It is also important to remember that the brain doesn’t remember what it doesn’t use. The aphorism definitely pertains to learning: Use it or lose it.
READ MORE >>> →Having a positive mindset is essential for efficient learning. There is a direct connection between the brain and the body. Think of the emotion that is prompted when the youngster’s self-talk is, “I HAVE to go to school today.” Now think of the emotion that is prompted when the youngster thinks, “I GET to go to school today.” Thinking in more positive terms (I get to vs. I have to) prompts desire. The most important ingredient to academic success is not native ability but rather staying on a task until successfully completed, and this requires self-talk of, “I can do this.” Positivity prompts optimism. Optimism prompts perseverance. Perseverance breeds achievement.
READ MORE >>> →Discipline without Stress focuses on motivation and procedures. This is in contrast to approaches that focus on finding the root cause of a problem or determining needs. Older programs emphasized that, in order to solve discipline problems, either the cause of the behavior needed to be known and/or the person’s “needs” had to be met. Alfred Adler and his disciple, Rudolf Dreikurs, were leaders in the school that understanding cause is essential for solution. Related to this was their belief that misbehavior is the result of not having needs met. William Glasser’s Reality Therapy and Choice Theory do not rely on the past “causes” but believe that “meeting needs” is essential. Albert Ellis’ Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy labels “needs” as
READ MORE >>> →The truth assumption simply assumes that I am right and that the other person is wrong. This simple assumption causes endless grief. This error in thinking, although perhaps natural, is profoundly counterproductive. Moving from certainty to curiosity can resolve difficult situations. Instead of asking yourself, “How can the person think that?!” ask yourself, “I wonder what information they have that I don’t?” or “I wonder what prompts that thinking?” Instead of asking, “How can they be so irrational?” ask, “How can I see the world so that their view makes sense?” Certainty locks us out of the other person’s perception; curiosity lets us in.
READ MORE >>> →My October 30 seminar in Omaha sponsored by the University of Nebraska is now online. Information can be downloaded from here. Look in the upper righthand corner under the “Upcoming Conferences” sidebar.
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