HOW I ACT

A Behavior Management System  

Some of you may have been surprised to find that I use standards as a consequence to misbehaving in my classroom.  It does seem like an old fashioned thing, I can totally see that point of view, but I L O V E the other part of my behavior management system that goes hand-in-hand with the mean, old standards!  So that’s what the rest of this post will be about:

HOW I ACT

…is the title of the behavior management poster and prompts students use to judge their own behavior and take responsibility.  I used to have kids “clip down” after giving grace or change a card after 3 warnings, but all those misbehaviors got categorized the same and students went home to tell their parents that they didn’t have a great day, but couldn’t tell them exactly what they did wrong.

Enter HOW I ACT!

HOW I ACT is an acronym that stands for the following misbehaviors:

H - Havoc: Causing a disruption or distracting the class

O - Out of Order:  Not being prepared for the day or task; messy desk; dress code violation

W - Wasting Time: (pretty self explanatory)

I - Intentional Disobedience: Cheating or lying

A – Attitude: Not treating a classmate or teacher with respect.

C – Conduct: Breaking classroom rules

T – Talking: Talking while my teacher is talking or in line (I know! I’m like the meanest teacher in the world because don’t let my students talk in line)

I adopted this management plan from a former teacher at my school, who adopted it from a coworker at HER former school, so here is my disclaimer:  I did not invent this nor am I taking credit for it!  I may even be doing it differently that the creator ever intended, but it has worked so well for me the past 4 years at the 2^nd grade level and for that I am so grateful! 

(Parents seem to really like it, too!)

Now the nitty, gritty: How does it work?

Each of those letters in HOW I ACT has a corresponding colored tongue depressor.   

I display the standard pocket chart with students' numbers on them.  (See the little clothesline clips?  Those are part of my positive behavior recognition, and I’ll get to them later…)

When a student is misbehaving, I will correct and remind using a myriad of ways that we teachers have up our sleeves: the look, the shoulder squeeze, the desk tap, the side conversation, or the straight up call you out in front of the class technique.  It is then after the 3^rd time of correcting the same misbehavior that I have the student “pull a tally,” which they know means put the tongue depressor matching their misbehavior in his or her pocket.

At the beginning of the year, I spend a lot of time explaining what would qualify for each tally, and include the tally name in my warnings. I.e: “Ava (who would never be in trouble), if you shout out again, you will have to pull a green havoc tally.”  After a few weeks however, I expect students to examine their own behavior and decide between the tallies, which misbehavior most matches what they were doing or not doing.

Back to those cute clothesline clips!  More than the tally system, I LOVE acknowledging positive behavior in my classroom because it makes me feel better and it is a way to have students positively pressure their classmates to behave in a like manner.  SO! When I’ve said a student’s name a couple times in a day, I move his or her clip up, which means, I wear it on my lanyard for all to see, all day long. I.e: “Thank you Ava for putting your materials away without talking. I think I need to move your clip up!” Or “I love the way Joshua always walks correctly in line; he never talks, he faces forward…I need to move his clip up!” When we're really on roll and Mrs. Van Dyk is feeling wild, I'll wear it in my hair! (And forget and go to the grocery store like that...it's great)

And pretty soon, other students hop to attention and do those things because Mrs. Van Dyk is moving students’ clip up and I want that attention too!  I would so much rather say a student’s name in recognition of positive behavior that I want everyone to mimic, than send someone to the front of the room to pull a tally.  Students also record their behavior for the day on in their logs to keep their parents in the loop!

The following day, there is a reminder on each student’s desk of how he or she did the day before; maybe an extra ticket or standards to copy, but either way, I want students remembering how they acted the day before and trying to think before they act in order to get the result they desire...TICKETS duh! So really, the standards are not the main focus of my system.

HOW I ACT is my behavior management plan for students as individuals; if you’d like to read how else I promote positive behavior in small groups and in my class as a whole, leave me a comment and let me know or if you’d like to share how you manage your classroom, let me know that too!  I’d love to hear from you!