Author: Debra E. Woods

Dealing with Attention Seekers (Pt. 2)

Positive Interventions for Dealing with Attention Seekers
Focus on their gifts. All students have gifts – humor, art, music, athletics, etc. If little Johnny struggles to be the class clown allow him 5 minutes at the end of the week to tell jokes.
Hug or Handshake. Greet students at the door and ask, “Would you like a hug or handshake?”
Follow the Bouncing Ball. While teaching keep a soft ball or animal in your hand toss it to students to allow them to answer or simply toss it to random students during instruction this will keep not only the attentions seeker engaged but others as well.
Utilize visual cues. Let the attention seeker know you care with an occasional wink, nod, thumbs up and/or smile.
Have a “Word of the Day”. At the start of the day tell your attention seeker your choice “word”. Whenever they hear you say it they are to raise their hand. This will encourage the attention seeker to focus more on you and instruction. Each time the student raises their hand they may earns points or themselves or the class.
Note: You may alter these to fit in your classroom. Some are not feasible to engage in everyday but their occasional use may be that extra attention those students need and head off any potentially serious disruptions. Appointing class experts for various topics they are knowledgeable in is also another simple but effective suggestion. When questions arise relating to that topic direct students to ask the expert.

Positive Behavioral Support Newsletter

Tift county schools

Volume 1, Issue 7

March 2014

In this issue:

Special points of interest:
How to handle attention seeking behaviors.
Children of all cognitive abilities can benefit from PBS.
Praise as a motivator or reward.

Dealing with Attention Seekers (Pt. 2)	1
Prevent Problem Behaviors	1
Increasing Motivation	2
Praise : What the research Says	2

Prevent Problem Behaviors

What is Positive
Behavior Support?
The goal of PBS is to improve quality of life, not only for the child, but for all the individuals within a child’s social network.
Who Benefits from
Positive Behavior
Support?
PBS is used in a variety of
situations and contexts, with different types of problem behavior, such as aggression, property destruction, and
self-injury. Both, children
with and without disabilities, can benefit from PBS across home, school, and community settings.

Increasing Academic Motivation

Tift county schools

Debra E. Woods
65 Tifton-Eldorado Rd
Tifton, GA 31794

Tel: 229-387-2430
Fax: 229-386-1040
E-mail: dewoods@tiftschools.com

Here are some alternative ideas for promoting student motivation
1. Build in rewarding opportunities for social interaction. A student may find an otherwise tedious or frustrating task to be more motivating if it provides an opportunity for social interaction.
2. Provide audiences for student work. One social context that can be extremely motivating is to have an audience that will eventually evaluate one's creative work.
3. Reduce the 'effort' needed to complete an academic assignment. Research indicates that the amount of effort needed to undertake an activity (effort threshold) will play an important role in how motivated a person is to attempt the activity in the first place.
4. Connect academic requirements to real-world situations. The media are full of true stories that demonstrate the application of knowledge from various academic areas to real-world problems.
5. Offer students meaningful choice wherever possible. One intriguing element that teachers can explore to increase student motivation is that of choice. It appears to be a general principal that, when students are offered some degree of autonomy and choice in selecting or carrying out an activity, they are more motivated to take part in that activity.
6. Make learning fun! Teachers have always used game-like formats to liven up academic material and engage student interest.
* Adapted from Intervention Central

PRAISE: WHAT THE RESEARCH SAYS

If you would like me to research and address any specific areas of need/concern to be included in this monthly newsletter please e-mail your ideas.

The power of praise in changing student behavior is that it both indicates teacher approval and informs the student about how the praised academic performance or behavior conforms to teacher expectations (Burnett, 2001). As with any potential classroom reinforcer, praise has the ability to improve student academic or behavioral performance—but only if the student finds it reinforcing (Akin-Little et al., 2004). Here are several suggestions for shaping praise to increase its effectiveness:
To see this article in its entirety:
http://www.interventioncentral.org/behavioral-interventions/motivation/teacher-praise-efficient-tool-motivate-students
Describe Noteworthy Student Behavior—Praise statements that lack a specific account of student behavior in observable terms are compromised—as they fail to give students performance feedback to guide their learning.
Praise Effort and Accomplishment, Not Ability—There is some evidence that praise statements about general ability can actually reduce student appetite for risk-taking (Burnett, 2001).
Match the Method of Praise Delivery to Student Preferences—keep students comfort in mind (don’t embarrass)