One sentence sums up “John” perfectly: He’s a class all by himself.

Possessing a great deal of energy, John is a bright, intense, young man with strong opinions, an off-beat humor, and obsessive interests. John can be polarizing, but he’s quick to stand up for others and what he believes is right. On a rare bad day, his silence puts a damper on the classroom atmosphere; usually, he is actively engaged and talkative. Though he frequently needs redirection, he usually leads class discussions. John is a powerful, positive presence in the class.

John is also one of the increasing number of students I have who have been diagnosed with ADHD.

Many students with ADHD have accommodations with 504 or IEP plans; others, like John, do not. That’s why it’s so important that teachers not only comply with 504/IEPs but also be aware of how to help students with ADHD be successful in a classroom setting.

Here are some suggestions for supporting students with ADHD.

1. Knowledge is Power: It’s important to educate ourselves about what ADHD is and how it affects each individual student. Understanding ADHD helps me remain patient when students exhibit some of the associated behaviors, such as blurting out comments, being distracted, forgetting important items, and being very defensive. I know that their behavior isn’t intentional (usually) and focus on helping them rather than correcting them. Some excellent resources for teachers who would like to learn more about ADHD include adhdaware, humansnotrobots, and Idonline.

2. Emphasize organization: I always pick up plastic file folders when I see them in the dollar section at Target. Most of my students, with ADHD in particular, love these folders for organizing work. I invite my students to attend tutorials and I help them periodically organize their notebooks, folders, and determine what they can throw away and what they can file. I also them time in the beginning of class to write down the work due for the week.

3. Redirect and channel that energy: Often students with ADHD have a great deal of energy, which we can help them channel into positive activities. One student, who frequently finishes his work early, becomes an adept peer tutor, assisting others with their work. Another student is an excellent helper, distributing handouts and running small errands. A third student likes to lead group work. Here are some excellent tips for how to redirect and channel excessive energy from intervention central.

4. Make accommodations: Though 504 and IEP plans dictate any modifications students are entitled to, there are many students who do not have these plans, but benefit from some simple accommodations. I encourage them to privately share with me any conditions they may have and what I can do to make them more comfortable and productive. For example, I provide copies of class notes to students with ADHD (as long as they are engaged and take their own notes as well). They appreciate having a printed copy, as many of them have poor handwriting and difficulty keeping up with taking notes. Also, I always seat students with ADHD in the front of the room so that it’s easier for them to stay on task. Here are some helpful suggestions regarding accommodations from attitude mag.

5. Embrace differences: On the first day of school, I tell my students that I have ADHD and explain how it affects me as a teacher. I may talk too quickly or jump from topic to topic. I ask for them to let me know and help me stay on track. But I also explain that people with ADHD often have gifts or a “superpower”, from speed reading to acting ability.

Encourage students to discover and cultivate their gifts! It’s amazing to see how confident students with ADHD become when they learn to embrace who they are and emphasize their positive attributes. Here is a great article about the benefits of ADHD from healthline.

At a parent/teacher conference, I met John’s mom. She thanked me, saying that her son had told her that he had finally accepted his ADHD and liked himself. She had tears in her eyes, and so did I.

Gone are the days of lectures and students sitting silently and listening, completing assignments individually in a room so quiet you could hear a pin drop. Over the years, the culture of the classroom has changed dramatically. Students are interacting with technology and each other to enhance learning. There is less direct instruction and more small group instruction. Educators are less and less the “sage on the stage,” and have moved more into a facilitator’s role – the “guide on the side.” Teachers are using unorthodox tools and strategies to encourage and sharpen student focus.

One such tool is the stability ball. “Out-of-the-box” teachers are choosing to replace student chairs in their classrooms for stability balls in order to increase focus during lessons and aid retention through movement. Movement and learning are indelibly connected. Children learn best when they are moving, and what better way for them to be focused, learning, and moving than sitting on a stability ball?

A 2011 University of Kentucky study demonstrated that the use of stability balls was effective for students who exhibited hyperactivity and problems paying attention. When the body is engaged, the brain is engaged. Students must engage the muscles and the parts of their brains needed to remain balanced on a large ball, resulting in a heightened focus during instruction, and an improvement in the ability to concentrate. This ultimately leads to improved academic performance for students who are “actively sitting.” Following are tips and tidbits of information for those interested in implementing this new and innovative learning strategy.

Give the stability balls in your classroom a catchy little name that correlates with learning. Continuously saying “stability ball” can be cumbersome, and naming them “focus” or “thinking” balls definitely sets the tone and places emphasis on learning in the classroom.

Compose a set of rules (no more than five) for the balls once students begin to use them, and enforce them. This will give them a sense of ownership and pride in the use and care of the stability balls. They will come up with some great ideas on their own, but encourage them to include appropriate rules for basic safety. For example, the rules below were brainstormed by a group of students on their first day using the stability balls.

Allow students to train newcomers on the use of the stability balls, then reinforce the rules as needed. This gives the students a sense of ownership and pride in the use and care of the balls.

Keep several chairs in your classroom for good measure. Sometimes students get tired, and prefer a chair. They must use core muscle strength and balance to successfully stay on the ball, and may not realize how tired they have become. Retaining several chairs helps the teacher to meet the varying needs of all students as well as the needs of any visitors that might come in.

Be aware that there will be an increased noise level in the classroom as a result of use of the balls. Whether the classroom is carpeted or tile floor, students moving on the stability balls altogether cause a low rumble and/or growl. The less students move on the balls, the quieter it is. Consequently, the more students move on the balls, the more audible the rumble.

Integrating stability balls in the classroom allows students to move throughout the day, and benefits a diverse spectrum of students. Teachers find that after a training period, students will sit with minimal movement, improved posture, and will more consistently attend to task. This innovative focusing strategy will create in the classroom a novel, high interest environment, ultimately promoting overall student and teacher satisfaction.

I use ClassDojo for both behavioral and academic monitoring. I have multiple teams of students within ClassDojo that I award points to. These teams include partnerships and table groups. Their partnerships originally stemmed from their reading partners, but quickly expanded to desk partners as well. If either partner was off-task, they would not earn the points. It became a way for the students to not only work in teams, but to work together to accomplish a common goal.

The benefit of using ClassDojo instead of other traditional methods, is that the teacher can be mobile. As you walk around the room you are able to award points, giving students both an auditory and visual stimulus. When awarding points to groups, students quickly sharpen up their behavior and display teamwork! They hold each other accountable to make sure their group is behaved and on task. This makes my life much easier.

To get students even more engaged with ClassDojo, I implemented a weekly incentive program. At the end of each week, I would view reports and reward the team that earned the most points with either a technology party (using computers during recess) or a popcorn party. Providing these sorts of rewards kept students excited about ClassDojo, looking forward to the next week and the opportunity to be the winning team. Very excited to continue to use ClassDojo this year! 🙂

The first day of school always seems to sneak up on me. Students, parents and teachers alike are focused on getting new school supplies, getting themselves more organized, and planning other details for the school year. Most of these components are controllable. However, there seem to be a number of components that are completely out of our control… or are they?

When school starts, students experience a shift in environment, from home to the classroom. There is a strict schedule, new faces to get used to, academic work that needs to be done, and much more. It can come as a shock to students and they often act out in ways that are outside of their normal behaviors. We cannot control the strong feelings that students have, but we can control how they deal with those feelings.

The first tool that we can give students is the ability to use their words. This looks like a student expressing what they are feeling, if they are calm enough to use their words. This is the first step in restorative practices. You might consider putting up a feelings chart somewhere in your classroom where students can reference how to express themselves.

A second component that can help students deal with strong feelings is a “Peace Center” or a “Peace Corner”. This space is somewhere in the classroom where a student can remove themselves from the trigger that is causing the issue. This trigger, especially in the beginning of the school year, could simply be their desk. The student might just need a different space to be. The “Peace Center” could have tactile “calm down” manipulatives, such as play dough, a fidget, a journal and pencil, an appreciation jar to get the student back to a positive space, and something soft and comforting like a pillow or a blanket. In the beginning of the year each student should have a time in the “Peace Center” to test out the space.

These practices are a great start to restorative practices in the classroom. The goal is for students to build relationships with other students in a classroom where they feel a sense of community and support. In turn, students should gain more independence to self-reflect and make decisions on how to manage themselves in the classroom and further in the world.

School is about to start up again! This is the opportune time to plan for the upcoming school year and think about the changes you might want to make in your classroom. Most tech-minded teachers already know about top education sites like Edudemic and Edutopia, but where else should you look on the web to find tips this summer? Here are some great blogs that will help as you plan for the fall.

Free Tech 4 Teachers: This excellent blog written by Richard Byrne covers all kinds of technology, from web-based tools to apps. Byrne updates regularly with reviews and descriptions of new tools.

The Innovative Educator: Public school educator Lisa Nielsen focuses her work on using everyday technology to inspire and motivate students. This blog will help you incorporate technology that students already use, such as cell phones and social media, into your classroom.

Cool Cat Teacher: Written by Vicki Davis, a full-time classroom teacher and IT Director of a small school in Georgia, this blog strives to help teachers use technology to innovate their teaching. Davis also hosts the Every Teacher Matters podcast, in which she interviews teachers about best practices for using technology in the classroom.

Teacher Tech: In this blog, self-described “technology missionary” Alice Keeler gives tutorials on how to do all sorts of technology-based tasks. Recent posts include instructions on how to use Tweetdeck to follow multiple hashtags at once and how to create and manage YouTube playlists.

Teacher Reboot Camp: Shelly Sanchez Terrell challenges teachers to transform their teaching. In addition to her 30 Goals Challenge, Terrell also runs a blog full of resources for teachers, including her “A to Z Guide of Technology and Trends,” a weekly webinar, and a series of “survival tips” for teachers.

Those are just five blogs to help you jumpstart your search. What other blogs do you use to inspire your teaching? Please comment below.

Remember the song “We Are Family” by the Pointer Sisters? That has become the mantra for my class as we journey through the school year together, building a learning community as we go. A learning community is a group of students with a common purpose and shared values and goals. Building a classroom community truly enriches the students’ learning experience, and helps them learn valuable life skills they will be able to use and benefit from for the rest of their lives. Here are four thoughts to consider as you build your own classroom community this year!

1. Research community building games, and help students get acquainted through these activities at the beginning of the year. As time permits, challenge students with various community building tasks related to the standards you are teaching throughout the school year. Learning to work together on a team successfully is a life skill that has many rewards.

2. Stress to students that we are a family, we are all in this together, and that learning never stops! Just like the armed forces – leave no man behind! Say to students weekly or even daily, “The most important things we do in this learning community are learn and help each other be successful. Any behavior that takes away from learning is unacceptable and has no place here.” Repeated reminders of this ideology will encourage students to take ownership of this belief statement.

3. Let your students know that their contributions to the lessons and the learning community are valuable and appreciated. Pull a student aside once a day, get on their level, and look them in the eye. Tell them sincerely that you are proud of them and what they have accomplished, how much they have improved, how much you appreciate the support he or she gives you and his or her classmates, and how glad you are that he or she is in your class. The return on this minute-long conversation is invaluable!

4. When you see that a student is upset, pull them to the side, and ask them how they are feeling on a scale of 1–10, 10 being the best. Ask them what you can do for them to help them get to a 10. Yes, this takes time, so don’t do this in the middle of a lesson… use your judgment about the best time to ask. Not only will you be addressing the students’ needs directly, which helps them feel an important and respected part of your community, but you are modeling valuable empathy and problem solving skills that they will undoubtedly need to utilize as they mature.

5. Encourage a culture of respect. Encourage students to be sympathetic and supportive. Reward positive behavior such as this through your behavior system, or with positive ClassDojo points! Better yet, customize these behaviors in ClassDojo for your classroom, and weight them heavier than other positive behaviors. You will be amazed at the culture change in your community! When students support and respect each other while learning together within a community, continuous improvement becomes an embedded value. Building a learning community in your classroom definitely takes more time and effort. The powerful qualities ingrained in its philosophy shape and enhance learning invaluably. Students will undoubtedly benefit from such a rich educational experience, and your love of educating children will grow stronger, guaranteed!

Summer is a time where a lot of teachers are relaxing and enjoying a break in the school year. Other teachers are switching schools and are scrambling to get their new classrooms together. The checklist of things to get accomplished before beginning at a new school is lengthy. It includes all of the HR requirements, tying loose ends at your old school, moving your things from one classroom to the other, learning any new curriculum for your grade or school, and most importantly, thinking about how to build your new classroom community.

Building a new classroom community isn’t just an item to check off a list. I remember moving from a 5th grade classroom at one school to a 3rd grade classroom in another school. I had everything in place, including my behavioral management systems, and started the school year. I did not consider that I had not built relationships with the students yet and I had no trust built between us. At my first encounter with a behavioral issue, I had little to no incentive for the students to follow through and meet my expectations.

After reflecting on the incident, I began to place certain routines in my day to get to know the students in a way that wasn’t through academic instruction. I started to eat lunch with several students a day. Now, I know this involves giving up my personal lunch time for a few weeks, but the effects were remarkable. I began to build individual relationships with the students. They began to see me as a person as well as their teacher. I even began to share personal stories that related to lessons, which allowed students to learn more about me and feel more comfortable with me as their teacher.

By using this strategy — both in and out of the classroom — I was able to connect with my students right away. There was much more accountability, trust, and understanding built between us. Trust can be hard to come by, especially if you work with at-risk youth in high-needs communities, so make sure to continue to foster this in any classroom you may transition into.

If you use ClassDojo with your students, you’ve probably noticed that most of the behaviors you want to encourage or discourage are already embedded in the program, but did you know you can add your own? How do you decide which behaviors to add? It helps to think about what kind of classroom culture you want to foster. I felt really strongly about encouraging risk-taking in my class, so I added “taking a risk” to the positive behavior options. If you decide to do something like this, make sure you have a discussion with your students about what each of these behaviors looks like and why they are important.

It’s easy to say you want students to exhibit grit and perseverance, but what exactly do those look like? The first criteria for adding a behavior to ClassDojo is measurability. When I decided to add “risk taking” to my list, we had several discussions about what this would look like with my class. The general consensus was that students should receive a point for risk taking if they stuck their neck out, and stepped out of their comfort zone for the sake of learning. This means if someone was called on and was unsure of what to say, if they said something in an attempt to participate rather than exercising their right to pass, they earned a point. This approach opened up a larger dialogue about the importance of taking a risk and not being afraid to fail. It became a part of our classroom culture and we talked about it every day. These are the types of things you should add to your behaviors list to help develop these traits in your students.

You may be tempted to add every desirable human quality imaginable, but I recommend starting slow. Keep it simple. Add one at a time and use it consistently. If you notice you are never using a particular behavior, remove it. The great thing about this feature is that you can adapt it to each individual class. Last year I had a particularly disruptive class, so I put interrupting on my negative point list. In general, I like to use positive encouragement whenever possible, but in moderation, correctional type of feedback is also very useful.

One of the best parts about having a mobile tool to encourage positive behaviors (or a behavioral management system as many teachers call it!) is that I don’t have to carry post-it notes around 24/7. I can use my phone or iPad to use ClassDojo at recess or in the hallways on the way to PE or in the library. To track behavior during these different activities I have created a variety of “classes”, which include reading, writing, math, science, PE, library, music, recess, and hallway.

Each of these classes have a unique set of behaviors. For example, positive PE behaviors include working hard, helping a teammate, playing safely, listening to directions, and trying your best. Positive music behaviors include trying your best, following along in the song, listening to instructions, and working together. Hallway behaviors include keeping your hands to yourself, walking quietly, and staying in line. Behaviors vary for each class, however, behavioral norms stay consistent.

Students will quickly learn what is expected of them during each activity. Although you will need to take time to go over the different expectations for each activity at the beginning of the year, you will save so much time in the long run. Time spent typically correcting behaviors is now spent learning curriculum! The better your students understand what is expected of them during each activity, the more likely they are to develop positive behaviors.

Isn’t it funny how some days you feel like your students are perfect angels and then all of the sudden everything seems to fall apart? A million factors contribute to the classroom atmosphere — from a full moon to spring break starting the following day. It is one of the most important elements of a successful learning environment.

I have found that combining motivation, constant monitoring, and time for movement breaks can result in a managed classroom that can stand up to pretty much anything… even the last week of school! ClassDojo has been my motivational and monitoring savior for the past several years. Several elements of ClassDojo worked wonders to motivate and monitor my students:

1. Motivation: Motivating students can be frustrating, but somehow ClassDojo found the perfect way to instantly encourage students with both impactful feedback and points. Engaging students with ClassDojo was largely due to these factors:

• SOUND EFFECTS: My students squeal with excitement every time they hear the delightful “ding”, resulting when someone receives a positive behavior point. I love that something so simple has such an effect on my students.

• AVATARS: Could the ClassDojo monsters get any cuter? Students love choosing their avatars. You can also create your own for a customized effect. My colleague sets point goals for her students (10, 20, 50, etc) and when they reach their goal they get to change their avatars. You should see the excitement over such a simple reward.

• CLASSROOM ECONOMY: In our class, we use ClassDojo as a component of our larger classroom economy system. Students earn (or lose) Dojo points, which are equivalent to “dollars”. They receive paychecks for total points/dollars monthly or bimonthly. Students can cash them in and use them to purchase items at our classroom store.

2. Manage and monitor: When I began teaching, tracking and communicating student behavior was laborious, time consuming, and often far from accurate. Then came ClassDojo! ClassDojo has such an amazing, built-in data management and monitoring system. In my opinion, this is perhaps the best aspect of ClassDojo.

• PARENT PORTAL: With easy parent sign-up, ClassDojo becomes an automatic and effortless parent portal into student behavior within the classroom. Parents can see in real-time how their students are doing, so that nothing is a surprise at parent-teacher night! Also, teachers can instantly message them exciting moments from school or to just clarify a Dojo point that was given.

• TEACHER TRACKING: Best of all, I have instant and accurate access to student behavior data for any period of time I wish to choose. Thanks to ClassDojo this extremely important portion of our job is made so simple!

• STUDENT SUCCESS: It is quite powerful to see students check their points and view their reports. The ownership they feel over monitoring their own personal progress and achieving personal behavior goals is empowering, impressive, and effective.

3. Make Time for Movement: No matter how great your classroom management system is, students need time to give their brains a break and get in some movement. Try some yoga or dance moves in your classroom!

I hope these tips come in handy for you this school year!