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On this page, list the things you do to reward yourself for a “job well done.”

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Motivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 1 -

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When thinking about motivating students there are several areas to consider:

1. How do we motivate students to exhibit appropriate behaviors?2. How do we motivate students to put forth their best effort on assignments?3. How do we motivate the adults to encourage appropriate behaviors and

efforts?

Motivating Students to Exhibit Appropriate Behaviors

Frequently, adults say “Be Good” to students and expect the students to understand what being good means to that particular adult. In the realm of each child’s life there could be as many as 10 different adults who have molded what “being good” means (parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles, babysitters, daycare, church nursery workers, and/or neighbors). Depending on television viewing habits and movie theater habits, the student could have an even more varied definition of appropriate behavior. When the student enters school, it is assumed that all students know what the following words mean:

Pay attention Try harder Follow the rules Control yourself Cut it out Concentrate

When a student is on an individualized education plan (IEP), and their behavior impedes their learning or that of others the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA, 2004) states that a behavioral intervention plan (BIP) should be employed. Unfortunately, many of the adults writing the BIP have no idea what should be included in a BIP and fill out the district forms based on their opinion of the child’s behavior and their reaction to the perceived misconduct rather than looking at the function behind the behavior. It is very hard to motivate students to “be good” if we do not understand the reason the behavior is appearing.

As a behaviorist, many schools send copies of a BIP to this researcher and ask for advice. The information on the following page has been changed to redact any identifying information, but everything else is as it was sent. Read the BIP literally and then discuss with your neighbor what might need changing on the following BIP.


ABC PUBLIC SCHOOLS BEHAVIOR INTERVENTION PLAN- Non-exemplar

STUDENT NAME: TAYLOR B. GOODE DOB: 11/22/90 ABC PUBLIC HIGH SCHOOLSTUDENT ID NUMBER: 0000700007 GRADE: JUNIOR DISABILITY- TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURYTARGET BEHAVIOR: What behavior(s) adversely affect the student’s learning?DESIRED BEHAVIOR: Describe acceptable or appropriate behavior.REPLACEMENT BEHAVIORS: What will be taught to replace target behaviors? INTERVENTIONS: What will be done to prevent the target behavior from recurring?POSITIVE CONSEQUENCES: What will be done when the student uses correct replacement behaviors?NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES: What will be done with the student when the target behavior recurs?

IEP Start Date: 11/01/07IEP End Date: 10/31/08

TARGET BEHAVIOR DESIRED BEHAVIOR REPLACEMENT BEHAVIOR

INTERVENTIONS POSITIVE CONSEQUENCE

NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCE

Fails to make decisions or come to a conclusion regarding choices.

The student will make positive decisions without causing harm to herself or others.

The teacher/ para will help student to follow directions without causing harm to others.

The teacher/ para will reinforce student for making positive choices. Teacher will speak with student to explain what she has done wrong, allow her to go to lunch early.

Praise, classroom privileges, free time, note home.

Remove from situation, call home, loss of free time, parents should not reward negative behavior.

Becomes physically aggressive with teachers

The student will control anger to the extent of not requiring to be physically restrained

The teacher/ para will show student how to express feelings verbally rather than physically.

The teacher/para will remind student of coping skills, provide quiet place, remove from situation, deliver direction in a supportive manner, and intervene early.

Praise classroom privileges, free time, note home.

Remove from situation, call home, loss of free time, shortened schedule, Alternative placement.

Does not demonstrate ability to control temper

The student will demonstrate appropriate behavior when angry or upset

The teacher/para will remind student of coping skills and to use a voice that is controlled and quiet. The student will be reminded to refrain from arguing.

The teacher/para will provide positive feedback, provide quiet place, maintain consistent expectations.

Praise, classroom privileges, free time, note home.

Remove from situation, call home, loss of free time, shortened schedule, Alternative placement.

BIP Monitored by: ________________________________________________ Date IEP Team to Review Success of Plan: 10/31/08


This is not a BIP

As I have traveled around the United States, I have seen many “BIP’s”, some have been fabulous focusing on the function behind the behavior and some have been horrible focusing on excluding a student from learning.

In two states, I have seen BIP’s that were honestly five steps for “getting yourself kicked out of school.”

1. Send a note home2. In School Suspension3. Call home4. Out of school suspension5. Kicked out of school for life

When I shared this information with a politician in Washington D.C., they told me that I was exaggerating. I wish I was. I have met parents who have been coerced by school officials to home school their children. Here are two examples: 1) The principal showed up at the parent’s home with the local student welfare officer and told the mother if she didn’t sign up to home school her children, the officer was going to take custody of her students and 2) the local law enforcement officers badgered parents with parking tickets, broken headlight tickets (lights that weren’t broken before), unleashed dogs (dogs that were tied up before) and speeding tickets for 1 mile over the speed limit. The reason for this barrage of harassment…the parents were refusing to home school their students with special needs. As soon as the mother agreed to home school her children, the tickets stopped. Amazing.

Lest you think these are isolated cases, I want to tell you they are not. I have heard almost similar stories in two states and less severe stories in many other states. I met the mother of a kindergarten student in one state who had been kicked out of school for life. “KICKED OUT for LIFE???” What happened to Free Appropriate Public Education (FAPE)? I keep meeting administrators who say things to me like, “Does this student really belong in school?”

Do I think these states are filled with mean and nasty people? Truthfully, I think the educators do not know how to do a real functional behavior assessment and they can only think of one thing to do… “get the student out”. Out of sight is out of mind. Unfortunately, it is not that easy, if a student does not receive a wonderful education, guess who will be paying for the living expenses of that student in the future?

I don’t usually soapbox in my books, but this is important to me. I believe that we need to start at the top and change how we educate teachers and administrators. I have met many educators who tell me they have completed an FBA and then they show me that they answered 16 questions about a student based on their opinion and called it an FBA.

I also know teachers who give me 10 pounds of anecdotal notes and ask me to “fix” the student based on the anecdotal notes. There is a time and place for


anecdotal notes, however, it is almost impossible to determine the function of a student’s behavior based solely on anecdotal notes. Anecdotal notes are based on the adult’s perception of what was going on and doesn’t necessarily look at the important components.

The next section is focused on teaching the appropriate components of an FBA.


What is Tertiary Positive Behavioral Support?

A new way of thinking about behavior (based in research) Broadens intervention from only one approach - reducing challenging behavior to Encompassing multiple approaches: changing systems, altering environments, teaching

skills, and appreciating positive behavior

PBIS Includes: A team process for goal setting Functional Behavioral Assessment (Using data to make decisions) Behavior intervention plan design, implementation, and evaluation

Goal SettingIdentify team members

most effective as collaborative processDevelop a profile to include:

student’s strengths student’s needs student’s target behaviors

Identify settings & situations that require intervention

Functional Behavioral Assessment (FBA)

FBA is a process for gathering information to understand the function (purpose) of behavior in order to write an effective intervention plan.

Assumptions Underlying FBA Behavior is learned and serves a specific purpose. Behavior is related to the context within which it occurs

Questions to Address: How often does the target behavior occur & how long does it last? Where does the behavior typically occur/never occur? Who is present for the occurrence/nonoccurrence of the behavior? What is going on during the occurrence/nonoccurrence of the behavior? When is the behavior most likely/least likely to occur? How does the student react to the usual consequences that follow the behavior?


Defining Target BehaviorsExample Non-Example

Hit others with fist Poor impulse control

Crying Angry, hostile, resentful

Laying on the floor and refusing to move Stubborn

Frequently, educators want to list every possible behavior and collect data on those behaviors. It is best to consider putting certain behaviors into classes. Most likely you would react the same way if a student hit you or kicked you; therefore these behaviors could be called physical aggression.

Another frequent dilemma is the student who throws tantrums. The team should list all the behaviors that have been associated with a tantrum and then use tantrum as one of the behaviors to measure with the following caveat:

Johnny frequently has the following behaviors:

Hitting Spitting Kicking Knocking everything off the table Screaming Head banging

A tantrum will be marked if two or more of the above behaviors happen within a two minute time frame.

This makes it easier to measure the behavior and everyone will understand what a tantrum consists of for this particular student.

There should be a thorough review of anything that might be connected to this student and his or her behaviors.

Record Review

• diagnostic & medical records

• psychological information


• educational assessments

• social histories

• developmental profiles

• previous behavior programs

• individual education plans

• anecdotal records/incident reports/discipline summaries

Methods for Conducting FBA

Indirect Methods:

• MAS - Motivational Assessment Scale• FAST- Functional Analysis Screening Tool• PBQ- Problem Behavior Questionnaire

Indirect Methods: Strengths and Limitations

• Strengths Easy to implement Minimal time and training

required Structured methods May use for initial assessment

• Limitations 30% reliability to determine

function Information can be subjective Non-specific functions identified

(ex: escape from work)

Descriptive/Observational Methods: Examples

• A-B-C Analysis• Scatter plot• Interval or time sampling

Descriptive Methods: Strengths and Weaknesses

• Strengths: Objective & quantitative data Behavior is sampled in relevant

settings Can ID environmental

relationships Sufficient for BIP development

Reliability (60-80%)

• Limitations: Analysis can be complex Time requirement Increased staff training &

experience may be necessary May not ID function of

infrequent behavior


Possible Functions

Positive Reinforcement:Negative Reinforcement:

Social attention or Access to materials Sensory Stimulation

Escape from activities or people Sensory Pain

“TO GET” “TO GET OUT OF”

Setting Events

• Medical concerns• Activity patterns• Relationships with others

Analyzing Patterns

• Under what circumstances or antecedent events is the target behavior most/least likely? WHEN? WHERE? WHAT? WHO? WHY?

• What consequences or results predictably follow the problem behavior? WHAT DO THEY GET? WHAT DO THEY AVOID?

• What broader issues are important influences on behavior?

Other Information:

•• Times, activities, and individuals when behavior is most or least likely to occurTimes, activities, and individuals when behavior is most or least likely to occur•• Conditions that are typically associated before or after the target behaviorConditions that are typically associated before or after the target behavior•• Common setting events associated with the behaviorCommon setting events associated with the behavior• Other behaviors that may occur before or with the target behavior


Summary Statement

1. When this occurs…(describe circumstances/antecedents)

2. the student does…(describe target behavior)

3. to get/to avoid…(describe consequences)

Example Statements:

When the teacher’s attention is withdrawn or focused on another student,

o Zoë makes noises;

o this results in the teacher scolding and moving closer to Zoë.

When unanticipated changes in the schedule occur,

o Terry throws materials;

o picking them up delays the transition to the next activity.

When Kim finishes work before the other students,o the desk gets scribbled on; o this alleviates Kim’s boredom.

When the teacher assigns work, o Taylor whines and cries about too much work to do;o The teacher then tells Taylor to just do what Taylor can.

Taylor does about half.


Summary Statement Model

Behavior Intervention Plan (BIP)

The summary statement is the foundation for a positive and supportive plan.

BIP Includes the Following:

• ProactiveWhat environmental adjustments will be used to make the student’s problem behavior unnecessary?

• EducativeWhat behaviors (skills) will be taught to replace or meet the same function as the student’s problem behavior and improve his or her ability to function more effectively?

• EffectiveHow will consequences be managed to insure the student receives reinforcers for positive behavior, not problem behavior?

Proactive

• Adjustments to the environment that reduce the likelihood of problem behavior occurring

• Allow the student to be independent and successful

• Examples: modifying the curriculum, reorganizing the physical setting, clarifying routines and expectations

Educative

• Teaching replacement skills• Building generalizable competencies• Allow students to meet objectives in more effective, efficient, and appropriate ways

(e.g., communication alternatives)• Enhance the student’s overall independence, integration, and quality of life


Setting Events

Antecedent Target Behavior

Function(Reinforcer)

Setting or Antecedent Events Target Behavior Reinforcing Consequence or

Function

Effective

• Managing consequences to reinforce desired behaviors and replacement skills• Withhold reinforcement following problem behavior• Use of natural, least intrusive consequences that address the identified function

We need to look at the antecedent. (What was happening before the behavior began?)

Are there patterns in the antecedents:o Day of the weeko Time of dayo Certain people being aroundo Certain subjects being taughto Certain sensory conditions

We need to look at the behaviors. (What exactly are we measuring?)o Define the behavior in measurable and observable termso Make sure everyone (bus driver, parents, paraprofessionals, admin

etc.) is on the same page with the labeling of behaviorsWe need to look at the consequences. (What happens in the environment directly after the behaviors occur?)

o Does the student get out of work by being sent to the office?o Does the student get adult attention?o Does the student get peer attention?o Do the adults give the student access to preferred materials?

Motivating Students as a Group:

Now that you are working on motivating the adults, we can begin to discuss ways to motivate large groups of students. Later in the book, we will discuss ways to motivate the most reluctant students. Motivating students has nothing to do with stickers, toys, or candy. As a presenter, I hear frequently that students should not be given rewards because their learning should be intrinsic.

Are Rewards Dangerous??? (Read for yourself) Mike Schmoker, author of Results: The Key to Continuous School

Improvement, believes educators "grossly underestimate the power of little acknowledgements.''

Shores, R.E., Gunter, P.L., & Jack, S.L. (1993). Classroom management strategies: Are they setting events for coercion? Behavioral Disorders, 18, 92-102.


“…our research team has conducted a series of reviews and analysis of (the reward) literature; our conclusion is that there is no inherent negative property of reward. Our analyses indicate that the argument against the use of rewards is an overgeneralization based on a narrow set of circumstances.” Judy Cameron, 2002

“…programs that show increased intrinsic motivation are those programs that incorporate the elements of good, comprehensive behavioral intervention…” Akin-Little, Little, Eckert, & Lovett, 2004

“The undermining effect of extrinsic reward on intrinsic motivation remains unproven” Steven Reiss, 2005

List below the items you believe would be motivating to students:

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Group Contingencies:

Alpha Student

Choose the alpha student and “on a good day”, wait until they raise their hand and ask a question, or volunteer for a duty, then announce to the class that “Susie or Johnny” just earned the class 5 free answers on homework. Ask the student which 5 answers they would like and give them to the whole class.

Many times the alpha student instigates undesired behaviors to save face during difficult assignments. This allows the student to “look good” to fellow students.

Homework Designate a certain criteria for number of completed homework assignments turned in for each hour…say 80% for example. If 80% of the class brings in their homework the next day, you start spelling out HOMEWORK or FREE. (You can give more than one letter). When the word is spelled out, the class earns a free homework night.

Encourage the students to call each other and remind to complete and bring homework to class.

This gives you a free night of grading homework.

Tests Determine a criteria for test scores. Set the bar high and then tell the students that if everyone attains a 70% or higher on the test, you will take them outside to play basketball or allow a “free day”.

Encourage the students to form study groups, make flash cards, record easy listening reviews to listen to as they nap etc. You will be giving them study skills for college.

Individual Contingency/Group Consequence

Secret Soldier or Secret Student Tell the class that every day you will put the name of one person in an envelope. You will be watching that one person and if they are: Respectful of Self, Respectful of Others, and Respectful of Property (or whatever expectations you choose to focus on) the class will earn a reward. There are two important things to note here: 1) if the secret student does not follow the rules it is important not to turn the class against them by stating who it was. Just say, —I‘m sorry the secret student didn‘t meet expectations today, we‘ll Motivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 15 -

try again tomorrow.“ 2) If the secret student had a great day then you can tell the class who the secret student was that day. This will help the class identify with the behavior of that student and boost the ego of that particular student on that day.

Want an idea about how to pick a student fairly? Put all the names of your students on separate popsicle sticks and then put them all in a can. Draw one out in the morning and you’ll know who to pick.


I’d like to give a Tootle to: __________________________________________

for :

Way to Go!!!!

Classroom Tootles:

Slips of paper are available in a convenient location where students can grab one and write up a “tootle” complimenting a classmate on something well done.

Marriage Counselors and Ministers who counsel couples know a secret weapon. Many times when couples go to marriage counseling they are at the point where each party can not even stand the way the other breathes, let alone cohabitate with them. The counselor asks the couples to go home and for the next two weeks write down 10 things they appreciate about each other. When they come back in two weeks the counselor makes a similar assignment for the next two weeks. Oddly enough, usually within a month or two the couple is focusing on the positive and not the negative and are on the road to a happier marriage.

Focusing on the positive has a way of helping everyone to see the positive in everything. Pointing out what someone is doing right helps to ensure that the behavior that earned the compliment is repeated.

This same philosophy works in a classroom, a workplace, or even at home.

Try it….you’ll like it!


How Do You Compliment High School Students?Some students are not particularly fond of public displays toward their appropriate behavior. One way to circumvent this is to send private post cards to the students’ homes. The post card would just say something like, “Thank you for your respectful attitude toward others. I appreciate the way you held the door open for me when my hands were full. Best Regards, Mrs. Jones.”

A high school in a southeastern state wanted to implement this program. They asked the teachers to choose ten students each nine week period and send them a post card. The school said they would supply the post cards and pay for the postage. At Winter-Break they realized they had only sent out 20 post cards total. The principal and assistant principal sat down and wrote a post card to each teacher and told each one of them something specific that they appreciated about their contributions to the school. When the teachers returned after Winter-Break they were abuzz about the cards. The principal asked them how it made them feel to receive the post card. All responses were positive. The principal said, “Well, that’s how your students will fell when you send them one.” Post cards immediately started going out. The teachers reported noticing marked improvement in the attitudes of all the students who were hoping to garner enough attention to warrant their own post card.

How Do You Win Over Parents?Parents rarely get phone calls or correspondence about the good things their students do. For some parents, they actually cringe every time the caller ID shows the school number because they are thinking; “What did he do now?”

Start sending letters to parents telling them something like this:


March 31, 2005

Dear Mr. and Mrs. Jones,Your daughter Star was caught red handed exhibiting excellent behavior. We would like to compliment your daughter on her showing respect to herself and others by never being tardy for a nine week period.

We know that parents play an important role in instilling respect for school. We would like to thank you for sending your daughter to us every day ready to learn. Our friends at Pizza Hut would like to present your family with this coupon for $5 off a large family size pizza in recognition of Star’s great work.

Sincerely,Your fourth grade teacher

Many businesses are happy to provide schools with discount coupons for things like movie rentals, fast food, delivery food, oil changes, etc. It’s great public relations for them and a great way for you to reward parents. Imagine

the public rating score of a school that sends out letters like this.


Class Meetings:

This might sound juvenile, however, I have used this with college classes and adult trainings and everyone agrees how nice it is to receive a compliment from your peers.

Class meetings are a great way to end your week. Here’s what you need: A class Comfortable seating (chairs or no chairs- doesn’t matter) An item that you can toss (Koosh Balls work great) A problem box for students to turn in problems on slips of paper

All class meetings start out the same:

Rules: You can only talk if you are holding the Koosh Ball. You must try to toss the Koosh Ball so that the other person can catch it. All tossing of the Koosh Ball is underhand. Compliments: The teacher starts by modeling the incorrect and correct way to give a compliment. By being careful not to compliment things like Susie’s shoes, but choosing observable behaviors that are preferred the teacher can guide the kind of compliments that the students choose to give. Each person can only receive one compliment. The ball has to keep going until everyone has had a compliment. Students begin to be on the look-out all week for different people to compliment so they are ready when the Koosh ball comes to them.

Class Meeting: The teacher leads the class meeting after that and brings up things that will be happening the next week so the students have something to look forward to on Monday. You can discuss new units, field trips, visitors, and books you will be reading aloud. Whatever is of interest to the class and will keep them interested in upcoming events. It can be as simple or complex as you want. The students can ask questions by raising their hands and you toss the Koosh ball to them so they can talk. Problem Box: All week the students have either written or dictated to you a problem that they would like discussed at the class meeting. Anonymously, you will describe a problem and have the students come up with solutions to the problem. After discussing two or three possible solutions, the class votes on the solution they would like to try and then everyone agrees that this is how they are going to handle the problem the following week to give it a try and see if that will work for them. If not, it goes back into the problem box for further discussion.

Problems: Follow up on problems that were discussed the week before are brought up the next week to see how the solutions worked. The class votes on whether they will continue to use the solutions they tried during the week or try something new. This gives them control over handling their own problems and they serve as reminders to each other about how to handle particular problems. Motivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 20 -

Learning from others’ misteaks mistakes

SKIPPING SCHOOL

I was called in one time as a consultant to help a school that had the highest out of school suspension rate in the state. I asked them to talk to me about what offenses could result in an out of school suspension. It seems the number one thing that was happening in the school was that when a student skipped school they got an automatic out of school suspension for two days. (Yes, you read that right.)

Being as tactful as possible, I asked them what they thought the function of skipping school might be for a student. They knew the right answer; the student wanted to escape school. However, the light bulb didn’t go on when they heard themselves say that. I had to say “…and you give them two more escape days when they skip?” “Why?” To which they replied, “That’s what we’ve always done.”

Mark Twain said it best when he said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Which always floors me when I hear “We’ve always done it this way” given as an excuse for anything.

It actually took me a year to convince them to change and assign Saturday school for students who skipped. Incredulously their out of school suspension rate dropped and so did their attendance problem. It seems students don’t like to come to school on Saturday.

There is a proverb which says, “If you’ve told a student 1000 times to do something and they don’t do it…it isn’t the student that is a slow learner.”

Dress Code Violations I have to confess that I was once expelled from school for a day for dress code violation. I wore pants to school. This gives you an idea about how old I am, in that this was a mortal sin. I walked about a mile to school. This was my choice because I didn’t like the noise on the bus and I was way too cool to ride the bus anyway. I wore pants in the winter time because it was cold in Kansas. I carried my skirt in a bag. When I got to school I went to the restroom and changed. One day when I arrived at school the bag was missing. I lost it somewhere between home and school. I had to decide, did I want to face my mother and tell her I lost a brand new skirt or did I want to take a chance getting caught with pants on in school?


I decided I could sneak around the halls and no one would notice that I had pants on. I didn’t make it more than 15 minutes before Mrs. Sedorwitcz caught me and sent me to the office. I was sent home for the day. Now when you hear this story you are thinking that’s a silly thing to have cost me losing a day of education. However, it’s still happening. students are getting sent home for bagging pants, piercings, jell-o hair, and shirts with beer slogans. It’s not worth missing a day of education for these things. The best defense is a good offense.

If you find these things offensive then keep items in the building that would make the student never want to do that again. Here are some ideas:

Baggy pants sagging to the knees

Those ties that slide through and lock – sort of like temporary handcuffs going through the loops of the pants until they are waist high. Not very comfortable and definitely not cool looking. Explaining to the students where this tradition came from. It’s from the prison system and if you don’t know the symbolism; ask someone. Having them come in every day after the first violation to check in with someone who will praise when they start wearing appropriate pants. Alterations on site-Give the home-economics class a chance to learn alterations and take in the pants so they are the right size around the waist.

Piercings Well, they did it for attention and they definitely get it when they get sent to the office for it. If you give them attention then there will be six more that do it to get the attention. The best bet is to ignore it- it’s really not that disruptive. Their parents are probably giving them more grief than you ever could, so let them take the heat.

Jell-O Hair If you don’t know what this is, students dye their hair with Jell-O making it bright red, blue, orange, purple. It is distracting. Keep shampoo at school. Have them wash it out and send them on their way. Once again, they did it for attention and they got it. Your best bet is not being negative about it. Talk to them like an adult. Ask them to save it for the football game on Friday night. Tell them you can understand how they thought it would be cool but appeal to their sense of decency and how disruptive it would be to smell Jell-O when you’re hungry.

T-Shirts that Take the shirt and trade them. Tell them you’ll trade Motivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 23 -

are inappropriate

them back at the end of the day. Keep some regular T-shirts on hand. Nothing too cool or they won’t bring them back, but nothing too horrible. I was in one school one time where they had lab coats painted with big red words “DRESS CODE VIOLATION” on them. I couldn’t believe they thought that was a good idea. The kid wore a shirt like that to get attention and they gave them a bigger bang for their buck.

UPDATE: We have found a cure that has worked in three different states:

Have the teachers stand out in the hallway during passing period passing out slips of paper that say, “Thanks for dressing for success”. Have the teachers tell the students to hang on to them till the end of the week. Let the excitement build. On Friday, announce that any student who has 10 slips for dressing for success will be able to have free entrance to the school game or school dance that night. Tell the students to keep watching you will be doing this again. The schools that have done this can’t believe the difference it has made. Boys actually have started wearing ties and button down shirts in one school because the girls complimented them on looking nice. You just have to change the prize from time to time.

Token Economy

I love token economies because you can use them to point out what a student is doing correctly. My nieces came to visit me last spring and I set up a token economy for them while they visited me for a week. I took them to Disney World and Islands of Adventure. I knew the rules would be different at my house than they were at their home so I set the ground rules, told them what would earn rewards, and caught them doing the “Aunt Laura” way by giving them a token. We had a wonderful time and I didn’t have to nag them to do the things I wanted. If you think token economies are not for older students, let me ask you this: “Would you come to work happily and on time every day if you were only paid once a year?”

Setting up: Motivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 24 -

Decide what one behavior would make the biggest difference for this student. This is the behavior you are going to reward.

State the desired behavior in positive, measurable, observable terms. For instance: Don’t say “Don’t do this.” Because if I tell you not to think of a pink elephant; what do you think of when I say that? You think of a pink elephant. So instead say, “Raise your hand before speaking.”

Know that in the beginning, the reinforcement of this behavior will have to be much more frequent. There are a lot of ways to do this. You can set a timer to beep every 5 minutes and if when the timer goes off you look up the student is doing this they get a token. However, intermittent is just as successful as long as it isn’t an hour between rewards.

You can decide that tokens can only be earned in certain environments. For example, it doesn’t have to be in every class.

Select the reinforcer (these can change over time). You need to decide what would set off the bells and whistles for this particular student. It also depends on whether the function of this child’s behavior is for attention or escape. See the page on function for more definition on this.

Develop a token system that you are going to use. Folders work well. Students can earn poker chips, pennies, playing cards, jelly bracelets, plastic dinosaurs etc. Whatever works for the student based on their age, likes, and dislikes. A really inexpensive token is carnival tickets. The student can Velcro the token to the folder, put it in a zip lock baggie, keep it in a billfold, put it in a special place etc. However, the token should be visible or tangible to the student.

Economics- Come up with the price of the reinforcer. 10 tokens = 15 minutes of free time. 15 tokens = 10 minutes of computer time.

Develop a monitoring sheet for yourself so you can monitor the success of this program.

Explain the program to the student and ask them if this is something that will work for them.

From time to time evaluate how things are going. You can either fade the amount of tokens you give the student or you can raise the price of the reinforcer.

Token Ideas: Lance Armstrong type bracelets. Poker chips are available at discount stores and sometimes dollar stores.


Academic Interventions:

(Sometimes behaviors occur because students would rather be sent to the office than be asked to perform in front of their peers. They would rather be known as the class clown or bully than the kid in class who doesn’t know how to read or do math. For this reason, I am including just a few great academic interventions that I was taught to use with students that worked great for me.)


When you take a student to the “Student Support Team” for behavioral or academic concerns, brainstorm with your neighbors those interventions suggested from the team for assisting students to improve:

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Categories (Teaching Classification Skills) I used this at the junior high level-

Even students with lower cognitive abilities can look for similarities and differences. I had students with severe intellectual disabilities who could put things in the proper place in a Venn diagram. Here’s how I taught the concept of a Venn diagram: Hula Hoops:

I would start with something simple like dark socks and white socks. Then I would move the hula hoops closer together so it looked like this:

And we would sort them again. Then I would add socks with light and dark patterns on them into the pile of socks. I would then move the hula hoops so they looked like this:

I would model that the patterned socks went in the middle because they were white and dark both. Once the students understood this concept I moved on to more complex differences and similarities.


Categories (Teaching Classification Skills) continued:

Here are some examples of things you can put into categories with hula hoops apart: 1. Plastic animals

a. Animals with two legs - Animals with four legs b. Animals that fly - Animals that walk c. Animals that walk - Animals that swing through trees

2. Vehicles a. Vehicles with two wheels - Vehicles with four wheels b. Water vehicles – land vehicles c. Vehicles that fly - vehicles that go on the road

3. Dollhouse people a. Men - Women b. Girls - Boys c. Adults- students

Red and white socks Red, white, and blue socks

Blue and white socks

Brown animals Brown and white animals

White animals

Animals in the circus Animals in circus and Animals in a farm (both)

Farm Animals

Food from McDonalds Food that you find at both McDonalds and Dairy Queen

Food you find at Dairy Queen

Gatekeeper- For Higher Functioning Students

Take sentence strips and write animals on them with a coordinating picture. Give each student a card. Stand with your arms straight out to the sides. The students line up and approach you- you either tell them to pass or

tell them to go sit down. You only let students with certain characteristics through: (example:

only animals with four legs) The students have to look at who got through the gatekeeper and see

what the classification was that you were looking for in your entry criteria.


This is a game that could be played with inclusion buddies who pair up one on one with the students. This game could be modified and used for any secondary level course based on the subject.


Criterion Reference Competency Test (CRCT and High School Students) Most students with special needs are required to take the criterion reference tests developed by each state. The rote drill and memorization required for these tests are difficult for them. Although, they need to practice taking the tests in the same format that they will be taking them (i.e. bubble sheets) for the memorization practice it is good to put large motor skills paired with the memorization. Here are ideas for how to put large motor movement paired with the questions:

Have a Ball Write the questions on 9 inch diameter balls with a Sharpie pen and toss the ball around the room having the students answer the question that their right thumb lands on. Caution: You have to set up rules about how to throw the ball prior to beginning. Once that is done it is not usually a problem.

Ladies and Gentlemen…”In this corner” Label the four corners of the room with cards hanging from the ceiling marked “A”, “B”, “C”, and “D”. Then read a question and have the students go to the corner corresponding to the answer they think is the correct answer. This helps them first learn to listen to all the possible answers before they choose. It helps them think about associating the answer with letter choices. Caution: It’s important to set this up so that if one person goes to the wrong corner it’s okay because there is more than one way to think about answers to questions. Then you can have discussions about why one answer is better than another. Start with some really easy questions first.

Then…. (shape the learning toward the test)

Flash Cards Teach the students a good study skill. Have them make flash cards for questions like they will see on the test. Then have them pair up and ask each other the questions. Peer mentors work really well in this situation. Practice, Practice, Practice Turn everything into a bubble test. Have them bubble in their name, address, what they want for lunch etc. Have them write their own tests.

Practice TestsAs much as possible, give the student practice tests in the format they will be using during the CRCT. You can start with fun pages like dot to dot pictures, replacing the dots with bubbles to be filled in before connecting the dots. Give them their spelling tests in a multiple choice format with fill in the bubble format and so on. This will make it less anxiety ridden when they take the real

test because it will look like all the things they have been doing in the classroom.


Math Ball This actually works for any subject. Take a rubber ball- the 8 or 9 inch diameter kind that you find at discount stores and a sharpie pen. Write math facts all over the ball by dividing it into 2 inch grids. The game is played by tossing the ball back and forth. The receiver must recite the math fact and the answer based on where their right thumb is touching. I always put in a few “free” spaces for fun. Students like this because it adds a total body movement for those kinesthetic learners and it makes rote drill fun. When I taught middle school grades I had balls with practice questions for every end of chapter test that we had. The balls can be geared towards any level from very easy to very difficult.

Michenbaum’s 5-Step Cognitive Learning Theory and Spelling

When I taught an inclusion class every single student made an “A” on their Friday spelling test because I applied Michenbaum’s Learning Theory to learning their spelling words. The first thing I did was brainstorm which words they might have trouble with and made up a mnemonic to help them. Here are just a couple of those mnemonics: muscles M-U-S-C-L-E-S, muscles make the very

best….biceps (sung to the tune of Nestlé’s Chocolate)

there We go here and there. It’s a place. their Prince Charles is their heir to the throne. It

belongs to him. friend I have a friend to the end. sheriff She is riff and she is the sheriff (playing on my last

name)

If this sounds juvenile to you, check out mnemonics plus medical school. Most medical students use mnemonics to help them remember the complex systems of the body.

Here’s just one example:

Superior thyroid artery branches"May I Softly Squeeze Charlie's Girl?":MuscularInfrahyoidSuperior laryngealSternomastoidCricothyroidGlandularMotivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 33 -

So after mnemonics are made the students are taught in this manner based on Michenbaum’s 5-step Cognitive Learning Theory:

Day of the Week Step Procedure Example: Monday One The teacher models the

way to write and spell the word at the board with the students watching. The teacher tells what she’s thinking to herself out loud so the students can hear what she’s thinking.

Singing M-U-S-C-L-E-S while writing it. (see above)

Tuesday Two The teacher models the way to write and spell the word at the board; while the students imitate the process at their seats using paper or small dry erase boards.

Students and Teacher sing the song together while they both write the word : Muscles

Wednesday Three The students model by saying and writing the steps to write the spelling word while the teacher watches.

Students sing the song while writing the word.

Thursday Four The students model by whispering and writing the steps to write the spelling word while the teacher watches.

Students whisper the song while writing the word.

Friday- final test Five Students think the process while they write the word

Students think the song while writing the word.

Sorting

It’s sad to see students with autism sorting the same thing day after day. Sometimes 18 year olds are still sorting the same red, yellow, and blue bears they were sorting when they were four years old. If you want them to sort here are some ideas of other things to sort: Motivating Students to Succeed- Riffel -© 2011-Permission to copy is granted with the caveat that no changes be made to original content - 34 -

socks laundry by colors (start a laundry business in the school and sort, wash,

and fold laundry for donations that you spend on class treats) clothespins samples of shampoo, conditioner, and lotion from hotels silverware canned goods hair bows hot wheel cars books- small books vs. big books pencils vs. pens balls- (ping pong, tennis, koosh, racquetball) Go down to the supply closet and see if there are markers or other

supplies that the secretary would like sorted-there will be a social pay off when the job is finished.

For sorting activities you can use the following containers: muffin tins egg cartons divided plates laundry baskets small plastic baskets butter tubs swimming pools (the blow up kind you can get at the Dollar Store)


Writing StrategyFor students with learning disabilities the thought of stringing a group of sentences together to form a paragraph is much too much an abstract thought. So here’s a great mnemonic to help.

3-2-8 paragraph

The first sentence has three ideas in it. For my summer vacation I went to Paris, London, and Madrid. That is the ‘3’.

The next phase is writing two sentences about each of the three ideas in the first sentence. For my summer vacation I went to Paris, London, and Madrid. (1) In Paris, I saw the Eiffel Tower. (2) We ate lunch at the leaning tower of Pizza. (1) We then went to London where I saw the Buckingham Palace. (2) The guards really don’t smile when you talk to them. (1) When we went to Madrid we saw a bull fight. (2) The matador wore a red cape. That is the ‘2’.

The eighth sentence ties everything together by restating the first sentence: For my summer vacation I went to Paris, London, and Madrid. In Paris, I saw the Eiffel Tower. We ate lunch at the leaning tower of Pizza. We then went to London where I saw the Buckingham Palace. The guards really don’t smile when you talk to them. When we went to Madrid we saw a bull fight. The matador wore a red cape. I had such a wonderful vacation in Paris, London, and Madrid. That is the ‘8’.

Once the paragraphs are written you can teach the students to “make it interesting” by adding fancy words written on index cards.

For my fabulous summer vacation, I went to Paris, London, and Madrid. In Paris, I saw the gorgeous Eiffel Tower. We ate lunch at the quaint leaning tower of Pizza. We then went to scenic London where I saw Buckingham Palace. The stoic guards really don’t smile when you talk to them. When we went to steamy Madrid we saw a bull fight. The brave matador wore a red cape. I had such a wonderful summer vacation in Paris, London, and Madrid.


Three Stars and a Wish

A secondary school in England has increased reading and writing scores of boys to be equal or above girls by following this intervention.

When students turn in reading or writing work, the teachers must write 3 stars- 3 things they believe to be good about each paper. The teachers then write one wish- I wish you’d work on developing your characters a bit more.

The students each Friday write 3 stars and wish about their own endeavors of the week and review these again on Monday.

John Morris principal of Ardleigh Green Junior School in Hornchurch, Essex UK recently shared his findings in Reykjavik, Iceland. The Raising Boys’ Attainment Project sponsored by Cambridge University and DfES in England has published their findings. (1999-2004) To view the school’s website click here: http://www.lgfl.net/lgfl/leas/havering/schools/ardleigh-green-jnr/

For adults to fill out about literacy in your own school…. From John Morris.


http://www.lgfl.net/lgfl/leas/havering/schools/ardleigh-green-jnr/

Token Economy

Token Economies have received a bad rap. If you think about it…you work for a token economy. We are all waiting for the big pay off at the end. So why did they get a bum rap? Too many people tied token economies with M&M’s and toys. The payoff should be what the student is trying to get or escape. In other words, if the student is having behavior to get attention then they should earn points, tickets, tokens that will pay off with an attention getting activity. An example of this would be a student who earns ten tickets and gets to eat lunch in the counselor’s office, listening to music and having a one on one conversation with that adult. If the function of the child’s behavior is to escape, then the tokens should pay off with a “get out of homework free card” or fifteen minutes of free time on the computer. This is a really fun one: Let’s say Johnny is earning tokens for not disrupting the class. Previously, it was discovered that Johnny was disrupting the class in the hopes that the teacher would stop teaching, lecture him, and eventually send him to the office. Thus the function of his behavior was escape. Let’s say now we put this token economy in place when Johnny is quiet and when he gets five tokens the teacher gives away an answer to the class homework assignment. Is it worth giving away one answer? I hope you know the right answer to that question.

Time to work:

____________________________________child who has behaviors that might be improved with a token economy.

_______________________________ perceived function of the behavior.

_______________________________ item you are going to use for tokens.

______________________ goal number of tokens the student has to earn for a reward.

______________________________--what will the reward be? (Be creative)


Strategies to help students do better with studying:

Memory Tests

Bring in 20 items and put them on a table and give the students 30 seconds to look at the items on the table and then cover it with a sheet. The students then have to write down everything they remember seeing. This helps improve their brains in using their visual and language areas (Shelley Carson, Ph.D. 2011)

How Does Your Engine Run????

www.alertprogram.com Great ideas for modulating their mind and body. This is great to help with anxiety.

Test Taking Strategy

PIRATES- from Hughes, C., Schumaker, J., Deshler, D. and Mercer, C. (1993) The Test-Taking Strategy. Lawrence, Kansas; Edge Enterprises, Inc.

Prepare to Succeed

Inspect the Instructions

Read, Remember, Reduce

Answer or Abandon

Turn back, go back and answer any questions that you skipped

Estimate Your Answer

Survey to Ensure all Questions are Answered

There is more to the PIRATES Strategy- check it out online for more information.

Be a Smart Cookie


http://www.alertprogram.com/

Teach students to answer all the easy questions first in the test section. Knowing you know something helps you raise your confidence for the ones you aren’t quite sure of when you come back to them.

For anxiety:Crank up some lively music- (Shelley Carson, Ph.D., 2011) Being in a good mood inhibits parts of the brain that are negative and critical.OrShow 7 minutes of images of land, sea and sky. Nature’s restrful effect can enhance memory and attention by 20% (University of Michigan Study)

Writing about Anxiety:January 13, 2011- University of Chicago study- students can combat test anxiety and improve performance by writing about their worries immediately before the exam begins, according to a University of Chicago study published in the journal Science.Researchers found that students who were prone to test anxiety improved their high-stakes test scores by nearly one grade point after they were given ten minutes to write about what was causing them fear, according to the article. “Writing about testing boosts exam performance in the classroom”. The article appears in the Jan 14 issue of Science and is based on research supported by the National Science Foundation.

For Students Who Don’t Have Ownership of Their GradesWork on teaching them self-affirmations. Remember Stuart Smalley from Saturday Night Live fame? Here are a list of self-affirmations:I am good enough.I deserve to have good grades.I am capable.I will do well on my tests.I will be ready for tests.I’m dependable.I will be well rested.I will eat good foods so my body is healthy.I will exercise my brain, so I do well in classes.I will practice my breathing so I am cool, calm, and collected for my classes.

Then give all the students a small stack of 3 x 5 cards and have them copy or write their own and take them home and put them around their bathroom mirror.

STRESS Reduction

Sleeping

Going to bed the night before is extremely important. Sleeping only six hours instead of eight, increases levels of the stress hormone cortisol by 50%. Sleep deprived people score 30% lower on memory tests. Help students figure out how to get enough sleep.


Eating BreakfastDon’t skip breakfast. Students who eat breakfast score higher on tests and report less test-related anxiety. Best bets? Eggs for brain-boosting choline, and oatmeal for a calming increase in serotonin levels.

After the healthy breakfast, treat yourself with a little dark chocolate. It boosts memory, alertness, and concentration and it’s special chemicals even decrease anxiety.

Chewing GumPop a stick of gum. In one British study, the act of chewing was found to activate the hippocampus, the brain area responsible for memory, improving recall by 35%.Link to the article:http://4mind4life.com/blog/2008/06/11/chewing-gum-boosts-brain-power-and-memory/

MintThe scent of Mint increases alertness, leading to fewer mistakes.Link to the article:http://www.testanxietytips.com/brain-foods-to-increase-alertness-and-concentration.html

Brain Connections:www.braingym.com

Carla Hannaford says these things are great:Drink water. Drinking water is very important before any stressful situation.Check out the website above for just a few of the many activities like:

Brain buttons Cross crawl Hook ups

To help students study:Upload your lessons on i-tunes so students can download them. Check out http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/what-is.html This will help you.

Record your lessons and then upload them on www.blogtalkradio.com - for free and then students will be able to download the lecture onto their I-pod or I-pad.

Play more games:10 minutes of non-violent games quickens your thought processes. This lets you make decisions and see connections faster. These games distract you from anxieties; which hampers quick thinking. Check out these websites:

http://www.jc-schools.net/tutorials/PPT http://facstaff.uww.edu/jonesd/games/index.html


http://facstaff.uww.edu/jonesd/games/index.html

http://www.jc-schools.net/tutorials/PPT

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/

http://www.apple.com/education/itunes-u/what-is.html

http://www.braingym.com/

http://www.testanxietytips.com/brain-foods-to-increase-alertness-and-concentration.html

http://4mind4life.com/blog/2008/06/11/chewing-gum-boosts-brain-power-and-memory/

Final Thoughts

It’s not fairFrequently, I hear things like: It’s not fair to put one kid in my class on a token economy because not everyone is getting tokens for being good. I have two things to say to that: 1) put everyone on a token economy. It’s easy, and 2) Fair is what everyone needs, not everyone getting the same thing. To drive this last point home let me tell give you a scenario.

You and I are having a discussion about boating and we are enjoying our conversation. However, you are just getting over a cold and you are sucking on a cough drop. Suddenly, you choke on this cough drop and you are turning blue. You can feel the air getting harder and harder to pull in. I look around the room and see the 40 other people in the room and I tell you, “I’m sorry. I don’t have time to give the Heimlich to those other 40 people in the room, so it wouldn’t be fair if I only gave it to you. I’m so sorry.”

I know this is a silly comparison but it’s the same analogy. If you function on the “it’s not fair” rule, you are functioning on the same emotional level of a seven year old. students understand if things are explained to them; that, each of us needs different things in life.

One year I had five students on token economies and the students looked out for each other. The students would come back and say, “Ms. Riffel, Ms. Riffel. Samuel didn’t throw his shoe at the music teacher. You need to give him a ticket.”

If you explain things to them in the beginning; they don’t function on the “it’s not fair” rule.


Remember………………………………….

If a student is pushing your buttons

…………….You are delivering goods.


Resources:

Alberto, P., & Troutman, A. (2003). Applied behavior analysis for teachers (6th ed.). Upper Saddle

River, NJ: Merrill Prentice-Hall.Ormrod, J. (1999). Human learning (3rd ed.).Upper

Saddle River, NJ: Merrill Prentice-Hall.Richards, S., Taylor, R., Ramasamy, R., & Richards, R. (1999). Single subject research: Applications

in educational and clinical settings. San Diego: Singular Publishing Group, Inc.

Websites of Interest

http://www.ablenetinc.com/productLocation.asp?page=/products.asp

Order able net boxes and Big Mac Switches

http://www.bestfreestuffonline. com/kidstuff.htm

Free things for students to order

http://www.garylamb.com/ Sixty Beats Per Minute Music

http://www.irlen.com/index_autism.html

Irlen Reading Website for students who are distracted by lights

http://www.kelloggs.com/us/ http://www.kraftfoods.com/postcereals/cereal_1.html http://www.generalmills.com/corporate/brands/index.aspx

Icons of favorite cereal choices

http://www.ku-crl.org/iei/index.html

This is the University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning. The Strategic Instruction techniques are helpful for all students.

http://www.pecs.com/page5.html

Picture Exchange Communication System

http://www.sensorysmarts.com/diet.html

Information on Sensory Diet

http://www.sraonline.com/index.php/home/curriculumsolutions/reading/ocphonicskit/1318

Open Court Reading Series

http://www.sunkist.com/takeast and/

Lemonade Stand information

http://www.timetimer.com/products.htm

Visual Timer


http://www.tsbvi.edu/Education/early-childhood/object-calendar.htm

Object Calendar

https://www.schoolspecialty.com/ordering/ECommerce;jsessionid=E1D18FED41551E183FB4 7F820460F008

To order the air filled disk for students who need to move

www.ablelinktech.com Visual Assistant- Hand Held Personal Digital Assistant for verbal and auditory prompting system

www.amazon.com Book website- type in any title topic

www.aPBIS.org Association for Positive Behavior Support

www.discoverytoolsandworkshops.com

Hemi-sync products

www.pbis.org National Technical Assistance Center for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports sponsored by the Office of Special Education Programs

www.behaviordoctor.org Site based on the tertiary level of Positive Behavior Support

http://www.vistaprint.com/frf?frf=691384697124

Website where you can order business cards and they only charge you for the shipping. “Caught you Being Good Cards”

www.ustoys.com Online ordering of inexpensive incentives


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