Every Minute Counts

Undesirable Behavior Targeted:

Packing up during instruction time.
During the last five minutes of every class students tend to start packing up their belongings in order to be ready to leave as soon as
the bell rings. This interferes with learning because the sense of anxiety and the process of putting all their belongings away
disengages them from instruction and causes a distraction to other students.
Desirable Behavior Targeted:
Students will focus on academic work until the teacher instructs them otherwise.
Students will start packing up their belongings only when instructed to do so by the teacher.
1. Focus on the work at hand rather than what is coming next.
2. Pack up your belongings when the teacher instructs you to.
3. Return to working on the task at hand.
4. Continue academic work until the bell rings.
Types of positive reinforcements - Reinforced when & how?
1. Plastic gem.
2. Class jar.
3. Socratic seminar.
4. If all students follow the teachers directions, then he will put a plastic gem on each students desk while they are finishing
their end of class activity (exit ticket, journal entry, etc.). As the students exit the room at the end of class, they can place their
plastic gem in the class jar. When the class jar reaches capacity, the students will be allowed to have a Socratic seminar.
Interactive Learning Activity
When the students have reached their goal of filling the class jar with plastic gems the teacher will play a short celebration song
through the speakers. The class will have been taught the functions of Socratic Seminar at the beginning of the year. In order to have a
well prepared seminar, the teacher will schedule the activity for the next time the class meets. This will give the teacher and the
students time to properly prepare.
110.34. English Language Arts and Reading, English IV
(24) Listening and Speaking/Listening. Students will use comprehension skills to listen attentively to others in formal and informal
settings. Students will continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to:
(A) listen responsively to a speaker by framing inquiries that reflect an understanding of the content and by identifying the positions
taken and the evidence in support of those positions; and
(B) assess the persuasiveness of a presentation based on content, diction, rhetorical strategies, and delivery.
(25) Listening and Speaking/Speaking. Students speak clearly and to the point, using the conventions of language. Students will
continue to apply earlier standards with greater complexity. Students are expected to formulate sound arguments by using elements of
classical speeches (e.g., introduction, first and second transitions, body, and conclusion), the art of persuasion, rhetorical devices, eye
contact, speaking rate (e.g., pauses for effect), volume, enunciation, purposeful gestures, and conventions of language to communicate
ideas effectively.
Teaching the Desired Behavior:
The teacher will pull two or three students aside before class begins to ask them to help model the behavior. When the bell rings the
teacher will call the class to attention and ask the two model students to come to the front of the room. The teacher will give a short
explanation of the new procedure and enact the model.
1. Pull model students aside before class; explain the procedure.
2. Give short lecture to the class; explain need for the new procedure.
3. Model the behavior with the students.
Teaching the Plan:
After teaching the desired behaviors, the teacher will show a short video clip from a Harry Potter movie that explains the house point
system. Then, the teacher will explain how, like Hogwarts, each class has its own jar. The teacher will show the students the plastic
gems and will explain that when all students have followed directions at the end of class to only pack up when instructed to, then they
will all be given a gem to place in the class jar on their way out of class. The teacher will drop a gem in the jar to show them where it
is and to start them off with one free gem. The teacher will also let them know that they earn a Socratic Seminar day.
Options:
To adjust for different age groups other options may be considered for the reward. Having class outside, where-do-you-stand activity,
or a kahoot quiz game are all feasible options. This same process may also be used for students being tardy.
Necessary Items:
A jar for each classroom. A great amount of plastic gems (different colors for each classroom). Socratic Seminar handouts.