"Class Meetings" Marie, High School Teacher: Staten Island, NY

"Class meetings are a great way to help students identify any behavior problems and work on solutions that all can agree upon. Placing students in a circle helps to keep everyone on the same playing field. The teacher acts as a facilitator and encourages students to confront the problems and work out the solutions. The goal is have students take ownership of their problems and to be able to have the time to problem solve as a team. Meetings can be called for any reason and should last for only a few minutes. Stay focused and work toward achieving a goal that leads to action."

"Reinforce Positive Behavior" Jim, 4th Grade Teacher: Chicago, IL

"To reinforce positive behaviors in children, each month hang a poster on the wall with each child’s name printed on it. These can be seasonal, such as pumpkins, flowers, apples, etc. They can be bought or made by the teacher or the children. Each time a child displays a behavior that you are trying to reinforce, have them take a sticker and put it on the card. At the end of the month, the students take these home. They are proud to take them home and you have reinforced only the positive in your classroom."

"Building Decision Making Skills" Lisa Correia, 4th Grade Teacher: Croton-on Huduson, NY

"Developing the concept of "change" and getting students to accept what can be changed and what cannot be changed can sometimes be a challenge for teachers. This exercise gets students to use thinking and reasoning skills to make decisions on what they have control over and what they do not and to know the difference between the two. Start out with a list of various phrases describing situations such as: the temperature outside, how old you are, how you treat other people, how well you do in school, etc. Ask students to identify what can be changed and what cannot; ask them to tell why, and why not. This can be done in small groups or as a partner activity. As a follow-up, students can write their own list and share it with others. For younger students, the teacher can read the list and the children can indicate the differences with a raise of the hand."

"Focus and Direction" Lisa, 6th Grade Teacher: Austin, TX

"When you begin a lesson, post a schedule of the class. We need to let the students know what we have planned and where we are going. The students can focus on the lesson of the day and understand the expectations. Read through the schedule and put the responsibility of the lesson on the child. This is what is to be accomplished today. You have given the expectation, shared responsibility of the lesson with the students, and focused your students on what is to be accomplished. This is also a good guide for the teacher as well. When the students become accustomed to this outline, they will soon be keeping the teacher on task. This can be posted on a chart or simply written on the board."

"Room Helper" Anne, 6th Grade Teacher: Kingston, NY

"Every classroom, at some point, has a student that pushes the behavioral limits set. Select these particular students and delegate relative and meaningful responsibilities. Make them a helper in the room. Provide consistent praise and feedback of the assistance they have given. Discuss with the student the positive outcomes as a result of their actions. I have found that by doing this, the student begins to see for themselves the positive effects they are capable of."