I agree with Jenne K, it is very important to find out why the child is misbehaving. Behavior modifications have a better chance of working when they are tailor made for specific problems. You will notice in the classroom that some modifications work for one student, but not another–that is because reasons for their behaviors are different.

My most effective method for modifying a students behavior is PROXIMITY. Walk around the room while you are speaking to the class and stop next to the child. The closer you are to the student, the more attention he/she is getting, which will lead to a decrease in the behaviors. This way, you can help a child to modify the negative behaviors without embarassment or punishment. You may also consider moving the student closer to where you spend the most time.

Make sure your rules and consequences are clear and always FOLLOW THROUGH. Otherwise you seem like a pushover. Developing rules together helps to get the other students on your side. If the disruptive one is getting negative feedback from the other students, there’s no fun in it anymore.

There are lots of great rules, tips, and advice here. The best thing is to get to the root of the problem. Figure out why the kid is so disruptive (need for attention, not understanding, boredom), and use an approach that addresses that.

Oh, never get sucked into a back and forth argument with a student during class. To quote a great mentor: “Arguing with a student is like mud wrestling with a pig: you both get dirty, and the pig loves it!”

Disruptive students must be aware of how their behavior effects the other students learning. Other students should be free to tell the disruptive student that they are interfering with their learning. Each time a student is disruptive, they should be given an opportunity to “own up” to the problem and devise a plan to correct it (on their own). We call this a “recovery plan,” and if the plan doesn’t work the student should have that same opportunity to revise their plan (this time with the help of the teacher or parent). This works because it does not give too much authority to the teacher (kids want to be the boss of themselves), teaches them to take responsibility for their own actions, and see how their behavior effects the students around them. Good luck!

Have a trap door under their desks and a remote control button in an undisclosed place. Let’s see how disruptive they can be from the BASEMENT, shall we? (You have to put an overstuffed mattress beneath the trap door or risk being sued.)

No, seriously, depending on the age of the children, an explanation that the unruly ones are hindering the serious ones from learning can be effective if you do it right. I’ve seen it work before, but I’ve seen it fail before too.

The main problem is that too many people are expecting the school officials and teachers to raise their kids for them these days.

Personally, I have always ***dreamed*** of shock collars on a small handful of chronically disruptive students. [I teach 15 to 17 year olds.] But, in real world terms, if I know that the student is not advanced and bored or behind in need of tutoring, I’ve asked for the parent and assistant principal to sit in on an afterschool chat. Usually, I start the chat with the child outside. In this time, I can create rapport with the parent and let her know that we are their for the sake of her child. I’m teaching…and your kid isn’t learning.

Be authoritive and create rules and consequences from the first day of school. Do not be lenient, the moment they start to misbehave, tell them not to, and do not let bad behavior continue and escalate. Students should not get away with disrupting other classmates’ learning. If the students know that you can get them into trouble, they will respect you and behave. But remember, that when you are having a good class, let them know that they are doing well and you appreciate their attention and participation. Kids like to know they are appreciated.

They can be redirected, relocated, or failing those, removed. If I have any trouble with kids, I immediately go straight to their parents–that usually does the trick.

Kids believe that a teacher will follow a stepwise disciplinary model that will allow them to get away with all sorts of crap BEFORE their parents will ever hear about their behavior. You know, “parent contact” is step four, and I’m only up to step two–so I’m safe. That sort of reasoning. I disabuse them of that from day one.

I’m not a “mean teacher”–but trust me, this approach works, and other students appreciate the results as well.

if your classroom is set up to do this, you could walk over by the student while you are speaking and poke him/her..not hard…. poke him on the shoulder a couple of times without disrupting your speech. You give him/her the attention they are seeking without calling major attention to it. You can take that student aside and talk to him/her try to get them to cooperate. If that doesn’t work you can send a note home with the student that reads like this. (I have a ton of these printed and ready to go….it’s amazing how wonderful they work….)

Dear Mom and Dad,

I am really sorry to have to give you this note but I have been misbaving in my ________ class. Ms. _________ has asked me several times not to talk during class but I just can’t resist. Can you please talk to me tonight and help me understand why this is important and how I can adjust my behavior appropriately?

_____________________ (parent signature)

Make them sign for the note, proving you gave them one–give them a day or so to bring it back signed–if they don’t bring it back within the time specified, they get silent lunch until they bring it back.

If THIS doesn’t work, I would try calling the parents. For me, last resort is sending them to the office. DOCUMENT everythign you do……….

You shouldn’t warn them all the time. Warnings don’t get you anywhere, and your students will consider you a “softy” and that they can get away with anything. You should give out a detention when it’s fair and you should make sure that the student knows that YOU are the teacher, and not them. But, don’t be so overpowering, because you do want your students to have fun too.

i’m not a teacher but i have studied the tactics my teachers use on the class.

– detention after school

– warn them that if even one person causes some kinda ruckus, the whole class will have to suffer by staying after school for half-an-hour. if they do dare to ignore this dire warning, then put your warning into action! believe me, it works in my class because the trouble-maker always gets beat up after we’re released -winks-

-play the “three strikes and your out” game.

– make the miscreants write an essay or report as punishment.

-call the parents in, so that the trouble makers get the message.