Classroom Behavior Management
Guidelines for Success

INTRODUCTION

How do the most effective teachers… • manage behavior in their multi-ethnic, multi-cultural classrooms? • develop and use classroom rules and routines? • use classroom consequences that work? • design positive behavioral supports for challenging behaviors? • avoid career- and health-threatening frustration and burnout?

The establishment and maintenance of safe and supportive classrooms that contribute to high quality student achievement are critical skills that are rarely taught at the university. Consequently, those skills must be crafted and honed “on the job.” Each school and each classroom presents its own unique challenges, and because every year brings a new group of students, teachers must become lifelong learners.

The foundation of this learning lies in just a few research-supported principles and actions, TeachSafeSchools.com and the Melissa Institute for Violence Prevention and Treatment have condensed the information for ready consumption.

Everything starts with TEACH:

T.E.A.C.H.

T – Tailor for diversity. Make it a point to know as much as possible about your students, including their diverse cultural, ethnic, behavioral, and learning characteristics, along with stressors they may experience outside of school.

E – Encourage positive behavior. Aim for a 4:1 ratio of positive comments to negative corrections for all the students.

A – Arrange the environment for success. Teach your behavioral expectations directly and immediately through collaboratively-established classroom rules and well designed classroom routines.

C – Consult your peers. Seek collaboration with experienced teachers and specialists before difficult problems start to become entrenched.

H – Hug yourself. Prevent stress and burnout by focusing each day on what you are accomplishing and not just on what is frustrating.

To help you implement the TEACH guideline, we have put together the next section that elaborates, clarifies, and expands on these five essential principles. We have divided them into three segments:

• The Needs of All the Students – The essentials for every student in every classroom Link to this section • The Needs of More Challenging Students – Managing challenging behavior effectively Link to this section • The Needs of the Teacher – Securing professional support and managing stress Link to this section

Classroom Behavior Management
Guidelines for Success

The Needs of All the Students

Culture Counts! The effective management of any classroom starts with a solid understanding of who the students are. Schools today are diverse groupings of children, youth, and adults who see the world through their own lenses of experience, culture, and ethnicity. The teacher who fails to take into account the profound influence of these human differences can never expect to truly reach his or her students in a meaningful way. Effective teaching and effective classroom management means recognizing that the classroom is full of “other people’s children,” and the teacher’s first task is to learn who they are.

The many suggestions in these guidelines must be taken in the context of cultural competence. What may be an effective behavior management procedure for a classroom of middle class, European-American students may be wholly inappropriate for students of Haitian descent. Similarly, second or third generation Hispanic American students bring a different set of experiences than do more recent immigrants, and middle class African-American students see the world differently than do students who live in pervasive poverty.

An outstanding discussion of these issues can be found in Carol S. Weinstein’s et al article, Toward a Conception of Culturally Responsive Classroom Management available online at: http://jte.sagepub.com/cgi/content/abstract/55/1/25 (click Full Text)

Among their recommendations for the teacher to understand:

• Family background and structure: Where did the students come from? How long have the students been in this country? What is the hierarchy of family authority? What responsibilities do students have at home? Is learning English a high priority? • Education: How much previous schooling have the students had? What kinds of instructional strategies are they accustomed to? • Interpersonal relationship styles: Do cultural norms emphasize working for the good of the group or for individual achievement? What are the norms with respect to interaction between males and females? What constitutes a comfortable personal space? Do students obey or question authority figures? Are expressions of emotion and feelings emphasized or hidden? • Discipline: Do adults act in permissive, authoritative, or authoritarian ways? What kinds of praise, reward, criticism, and punishment are customary? Are they administered publicly or privately? Are they directed to the group or the individual?

Becoming a culturally competent classroom manager is a journey, not a destination, and the effective educator is always on that road. Teachers should access as many opportunities for professional development as possible, and school district administration should provide them.

The following resources are recommended:

For teachers:
Two enjoyable and informative books by Gloria Ladson-Billings:

The Dreamkeepers: Successful Teachers of African-American Children. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. http://www.josseybass.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0787903388.html Crossing Over to Canaan: The Journey of New Teachers in Diverse Classrooms. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass. http://www.josseybass.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0787950017.html For Counselors and School Psychologists: http://www.nasponline.org/resources/culturalcompetence/index.aspx#whatcompetence For Administrators and Policy-Makers:
Research-Based Resources: Cultural Competency of Schools and Teachers In Relation To Student Success http://www.nwrel.org/request/2005june/annotatedbib.pdf Play by the Rules. Probably the best investment in time a teacher can make at the outset of the school year is the establishment of communally-developed classroom rules. Done well and at the appropriate developmental level, this investment can pay returns in all of the days to follow. Rules are prevention-focused, designed to stop the misbehavior before it happens. For the student, rules act as a kind of “surrogate frontal lobe” by providing guidance on what to do and what not to do.

Rules should be: o Few in number; 4 or 5 is best o Positively stated, telling the student what to do. For example, “Use indoor voices” is preferred to “No yelling” o Communally developed with the students to encourage ownership o Posted prominently for all to see o Taught through modeling, role-play and daily examples over the first few weeks or so o Firmly and fairly enforced

• Teachers should be certain the rules cover the major disruptive behaviors of concern. Examples of positively-stated classroom rules include: o Bring all required materials to class each day (secondary level) o Raise your hand to speak o Use school voices and school language only o Have permission to leave your desk o Keep hands and feet to yourself o Do as the teacher asks the first time

Have students take ownership of their classroom rules by participating in their development. Teachers should guide the process to ensure that all of the important bases are covered. For example, an elementary teacher might say, “We need a rule to help us decide how loud to talk in the room. What’s a good rule for that?” A middle or high school teacher might start the discussion with, “If say I want ‘school voices and school language only’ in our class, what does that mean to you? How shall we define that?” Once done, engage the students in a discussion about why each rule is important and what might happen if the rule was not in place. • Use a workplace analogy to help the students understand the reason for the rules and the positively-stated format. For example, a rule in a mechanic’s shop might say, “Return tools to their proper place when finishe,” rather than say “Don’t leave tools lying around.” This rule reminds the workers exactly what to do to keep a safe and orderly workplace.

Once in place, the teacher must enforce the rules with a calmly-stated reminder and a mild aversive classroom consequence. This should be done privately if possible and in a soft, composed voice. For instance: “Jose, what does the rule say about leaving your seat? That means two minutes off recess. Please sit back down.” Rules should not cover everything, however. See the section entitled, “It’s Just Routine” below.

HELPFUL HINT: Consistency is essential, especially in the first weeks as the rules are being learned. Every time a teacher ignores a broken rule, the message to the student is: “This rule is not very important.” A practical, step-by-step guide on how to implement classroom rules can be found at http://www.responsiveclassroom.org/newsletter/15_2NL_1.asp.

Consequences Count! Implementing classroom rules means implementing classroom consequences so that the rules can have real influence on student behavior. If a rule is broken, there must be some form of unpleasant consequence that follows. Remember: Rules without consequences are only suggestions. If it is not important, don’t make it a rule. If it is, enforce it.

Classroom consequences should link to the seriousness of the rule violation. Forgetting to raise one’s hand might be a rule violation, but it hardly demands a detention or loss of recess. Most classroom consequences should be mildly unpleasant, but not so unpleasant that they stimulate another problem, like an angry student. Teachers can divide consequences into three levels:

o Level One for minor, first time violations ▪ Example: Reminder; brief time off recess

o Level Two for multiple violations of the same rule ▪ Example: Loss of recess or other reinforcing activity for the day

o Level Three, for more serious violations ▪ Example: Loss of recess or other reinforcing activity for the day and a phone call or signature-required note to parents

Students should learn from classroom consequences, not just suffer from them. A negative consequence for a rule violation should reduce the likelihood that the student will break the rule again. Teachers can ensure that the rules are working effectively by approaching them like an educator and not a disciplinarian. For example, students who misunderstand general curricular content are provided additional instruction to ensure understanding. The same should apply to learning the rules.

• Does the student truly understand what a “rule” means? Some young children come from households in which there are few if any consistent, verbal rules and so have no prior learning to draw from. Learning to adjust behavior based upon a written guideline requires a level of cognitive maturity, understanding, and practice. Be patient and teach.

• Old habits die hard, and students who come from previous classrooms that did not contain effective rule structures have some un-learning to do. Acknowledge that to them, and encourage their new learning. Most will soon make the adjustment.

• Does the student have the necessary skill to adhere to the rule? The biggest culprit here is impulsivity, including ADHD. Adding verbal reminders, visual cues, and foreshadowing the onset of a challenging time period will all help.

HELPFUL HINT: Consistently administered mild consequences for misbehavior will be effective for most of the students most of the time. Chronic rule violators may need more in the way of classroom behavioral support, and a consultation with the school psychologist or behavior specialist should be sought as soon as possible.

The Bob Dylan Rule. Building enjoyable activities into the school routine serves a dual purpose. They give the students something to look forward to, and they contribute to the overall positive climate of the classroom. Anticipating an enjoyable activity – such as computer time, class game, or a special Friday video – can serve as a motivator for work completion and rule adherence. Plus, it simply makes the school week more fun!

• In addition, remember that an effective and easily administered consequence for rule violation is the loss or partial loss of a rewarding activity. But first, the activities have to be in place. Like Bob Dylan said, “When you ain’t got nothin’, you got nothin’ to lose.”

• The behavioral term for this is “response cost.” A “cost” is exacted for rule violation. For example, a speeding ticket is a response cost: You have money. You broke the rule. They take away some of your money. In the classroom, the student has access to 15 minutes of free computer time at the end of the morning. The student breaks a rule. The teacher takes away five of those minutes.

HELPFUL HINT: Enjoyable activities are not enjoyable if they always get taken away because of rule infractions! A rule of thumb: Once a particular student has lost the privilege for the third time, it is time for additional behavioral support. Change the plan or seek consultation from a master teacher, the school psychologist, or behavioral specialist. Do not stick to a non-working classroom management plan. As the saying goes, “When the mule is dead, it’s time to stop trying to ride it.”

It’s Just Routine. Think about what you did in the morning before you arrived at school. It was probably pretty much what you do every workday morning – Bathing routines, dressing routines, eating and transportation routines… We like regularity; it is comforting and lowers stress because it reduces the many decisions we have to make over the day. We don’t start the day agonizing over whether to brush our teeth before or after the shower – we have our routine already established.

The same thing works for students in the classroom.

Classroom routines are teacher-designed behavioral guidelines that inform the student, “This is how it is done in my classroom.” For instance:

• When I say, “Get ready for recess,” we dismiss by rows starting when every desktop is cleared and every eye is on me. • We hand papers in by folding them lengthwise, writing your name on the top of the folded edge, and passing them forward from the rear. • When you are tardy, sign your name on the tardy sheet on the door, put your pass in the box, and quietly take your seat.

Teachers will find it helpful to develop clearly stated routines for all the repeated activities that are open for possible problem behavior, such as:

• Entry and departure from the classroom (morning, recess, lunch, end of day) • Entry when tardy • Re-entry into the building from recess • Removing material from cubbies or curriculum displays • Getting help from the teacher • Behavior when a visitor needs the teacher’s attention • Behavior when a classroom assignment has been completed early

HELPFUL HINT: As it is with classroom rules, it is important to teach the routines to the class just as you would any other curricular subject. Use role-plays and other practice techniques until all of the students understand, and then… stick to the routine!

Catch ‘Em Being Good. It’s an old bit of advice, but still one of the best. Positive teacher regard is given when the student is demonstrating desirable behavior. It’s really just that simple. Studies of general education classrooms have shown that the ratio of negative teacher comments to positive teacher comments over the course of a school day can be as much as 20 to 1. Effective teachers, even those in difficult circumstances with high risk students, have learned to substantially reduce and even reverse this ratio. Once a teacher has had to warn or reprimand a student, an effort should be made to “reverse the ratio” by the subsequent addition of more positive interactions.

Positive comments should not be hollow, phony praise. Positive social praise should come only when it is earned, but then it should come. Other forms of positive comments are equally important, however, and will make up the majority of the total. For example:

• Greet each student by name every day • Remark to individual students about attractive clothing, new hairstyle, etc. • Ask friendly questions about popular culture, sports, etc. • Use nonverbals such as smiles and thumbs-up to reinforce on-task or otherwise desirable behaviors

HELPFUL HINT: The goal is more positives than negatives, especially with the most challenging students. Once a student has been reprimanded, make a mental note to increase the number of positive interactions. Some useful advice on how to “catch ‘em being good” can be found at http://www.behavioradvisor.com/CatchGood.html

______________________________________________________________________________

The Needs of More Challenging Students

The behavioral support needs of most the students in a typical class will be met by establishing a positive, welcoming environment with an effective system of rules and routines. For some of the students, however, this will not be enough support, and additional measures will be required.

Follow the Law. An important element to remember about student behavior – whether appropriate or problem behavior – is that it always follows certain laws or principles. The two most critical laws for the teacher are: o Behavior that pays-off (is reinforced) is more likely to be repeated in the future, and; o Behavior that no longer pays-off is more likely to go away.

The classroom is full of potential pay-offs for both problem behavior and desirable behavior. The teacher’s objective is to reduce the pay-offs for problem behavior and increase those for desirable behavior. The three most common pay-offs in the classroom are: o Peer approval o Teacher approval o Task avoidance

All of these consequences can follow and strengthen problem behavior or follow and strengthen desirable behavior. For example: o During reading, Andy regularly makes animal noises and the class giggles. The pay-off for the problem behavior may be peer approval. o During reading, the teacher frequently acknowledges the students who are following the rules. The pay-off for the desirable behavior may be teacher approval. o Fed up with the animal noises, the teacher sends Andy to the principal’s office. The pay-off for the problem behavior may be now both peer approval and task avoidance.

HELPFUL HINT: Repeated problem behavior is paying-off or serving a purpose in some way for the student. Ask yourself: “How can I arrange it so that the student gets the desired pay-off but not through problem behavior?” For example: • Can I make the task less aversive by shortening it? • Can the student get peer approval if assigned to a leadership role? • Can I increase my positive attention toward the student?

Most schools have a professional trained in Functional Behavior Assessment (FBA), usually the school psychologist or a special educator. This person can assist the teacher to discover the purpose or function of the problem behavior and to design a classroom intervention to address it. A full explanation of how to conduct a FBA can be found at the Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice - http://cecp.air.org/fba/.

Attention, Please! Teacher attention is a very powerful tool in the hands of the skillful educator. Most students crave it. Effective teachers understand this and use it to best advantage for positive classroom management. When teachers are struggling with classroom management, it is often because too much of their attention is being directed toward suppressing problem behavior rather than toward increasing desirable behavior. Which behaviors the teacher chooses to attend to and which he/she chooses to ignore or punish are critical decisions.

• When possible, ignore minor negative attention-seeking behaviors that are not interrupting the learning of other students (pencil tapping, rocking, hand waving). • When the attention-seeking student is engaged positively in the curriculum, then and only then provide attention.

Attention from peers for disruptive behavior can also be very powerful, especially as the students get older. This can be challenging for teachers to address if left to flourish.

• Speak with peers privately and inform them of your expectations to avoid laughing at or otherwise reinforcing the disruptive student. • Problem-solve with them for ways to avoid this behavior (turning away, being assertive to the disruptive student). • Provide the peers with positive feedback when they successfully ignore the disruptive behavior.

Remember, the more the peers are successfully engaged in the classroom curriculum, the less likely they are to participate in disruptive behavior as an audience.

HELPFUL HINT: Some students arrive at school from homes in which there was very little praise or attention provided to positive behavior. These students have learned that if you want any adult attention at all, you must misbehave. For these unfortunate students, negative teacher attention can be reinforcing, and verbal reprimands and classroom consequences seem only to fuel the misbehavior. In this circumstance, the teacher must creatively manufacture opportunities for the student to be successful, and then give them the gift of positive attention. Patience, understanding, and persistence are key; there may be a great deal to overcome.

Keep ‘Em In Class! Effective classroom managers aim to address 95% of all behavioral problems through rules and consequences in the classroom. It’s when teachers are really struggling that the office referral slips start to come out and the lines begin to form in the principal’s office. Nationwide, the two most common results from a trip to the principal are a verbal tongue-lashing or a suspension, and neither has been demonstrated in the history of education research to have a positive effect on student behavior. Attempting to manage student behavior through fear of an office visit is destined to failure.

• The best predictor of being suspended is being sent to the office, and the best alternative to suspension is classroom consequences.

• Teachers and administrators should meet and agree on which behavioral violations should warrant an office referral and which should receive consequences in the classroom, and then stick to the agreement. For example: o Classroom: Horseplay, non-aggressive defiance, lack of supplies, inappropriate language, minor teacher disrespect, student-to-student verbal aggression (the list continues…)

o Office: Physical aggression, gang-related behavior, sexually or racially inappropriate language or behavior, verbal aggression to teacher, teacher concerns for student or staff safety (the list continues…)

HELPFUL HINT: Behaviorally troubled students are not afraid of anything that a school can do to them, and thus fear of consequences is a poor management strategy. A much better approach is a firm, consistent, and predicable classroom augmented by additional positive behavioral supports, discussed here in the “An Ounce of Prevention” section. Remember also that the student who is engaged in the curriculum is much less likely to engage in problem behavior. Further discussion regarding increasing academic engaged time can be found at http://www.nwrel.org/request/oct00/textonly.html

An Ounce of Prevention. Like the rest of us, students who exhibit high rates of disruptive behaviors tend to be creatures of habit. Day to day, pretty much the same things set them off – transitions between subject lessons, teacher compliance requests, unstructured time, independent seat work, peer interactions, and so on. Addressing the behavioral needs of these students is accomplished most effectively by efforts to prevent the problems before they arise by setting up positive behavioral supports (PBS). These classroom supports answer the question: “What additional guidance or structure does this student need in order to be successful in this activity?”

The answer to this question may, at times, be obvious to the teacher, but at other times may require the eyes of a trained observer who can better determine the function or purpose of the problem behavior. Once that is decided upon, PBS can be set up to address the behavior. For example:

Environmental Supports: • Is the student’s desk placed in the area most favorable for academic engagement and positive behavior? • Would the creation of a small “office” away from distracters help during independent seat work?
Incentive Supports • Consider the use of a written behavioral contract that spells out the expectations and provides a reinforcing incentive for the student. • Tie desired behavior to a preferred activity, such as extra computer time. • Use group contingency programs such as the “Good Behavior Game” or “Response Cost Lottery.” (see Intervention Central - www.interventioncentral.com)
Peer Supports • Seat student near peers who will model desired behavior and can ignore problem behavior.

HELPFUL HINT: The Training and Technical Assistance website at the College of William and Mary has numerous links with helpful positive behavioral support advice - http://www.wm.edu/ttac/links.html#9 . The Positive Behavior Support process is explained fully at www.pbis.org. Click on “High School PBS” for a comprehensive discussion of the use of positive supports with this age group.

The Needs of the Teacher

Teaching is hard work, a fact made clear by the high percentage of teachers who leave for other professions after less than five years. The effective classroom manager takes advantage of school support resources and attends to his or own level of personal stress.

Consult, Don’t Sulk. What if you went to the doctor with a health concern, and she said to you, “I don’t really know how to treat your illness, but I’ll give it a try anyway?” Chances are, you’d find yourself another doctor fast! Our fellow professionals in medicine are different from educators in an important manner: They don’t feel bad about not knowing everything and eagerly seek the advice of others.

Yet there is something about the culture of schools that makes teachers uncomfortable about seeking assistance. Am I admitting ignorance? Will my supervisor think less of me?

To change this culture, leadership needs to come both from within and from the top. Principals must send the message that peer consultation is not just approved, but it is expected as a criterion of positive professional evaluation. This should especially apply to beginning teachers.

• Pass along the expertise. Arrange weekly “Round Table” discussions in which master teachers can field concerns from beginning teachers.

• Form a Behavior Consultation Team consisting of the school psychologist, behavior specialist, and others with expertise in problem-solving and classroom management to receive teacher referrals and provide evidence-based recommendations, progress monitoring, and follow-through. A useful guide to this process can be found in 25 Minutes to Better Behavior: A Teacher to Teacher Problem-Solving Process. http://positiveschoolclimate.sopriswest.com/product.asp?productid=40

• Mandate professional consultation after the third office referral for disruptive classroom behavior. Something is not working, and it may be that the teacher needs additional support… and permission to seek it.

Be Good to You! Teaching is a high stress profession due in major part to the fact that teachers are given enormous responsibilities but too little in the way of decision-making power. This is especially true in large school districts where policy is frequently made at the top and delivered to the building level as a mandate. For many, each new school year seems to bring a new initiative, a new curriculum, a new program, a new something to learn and teach. Top-down policy making in the context of the needs of high risk students can create an exceedingly stressful working condition. Add to this the long work hours, student discipline problems, and the seemingly ever-present media reports on “how schools are failing our children” and one can easily understand why so many good teachers leave for other professions.

Most individuals choose a career in education because they want to be of service – they want to be part of the solution, and the overwhelming number of them work very hard at it. Whereas the occasional “Staff Appreciation Day” sponsored by appreciative administrators is valued, it is rarely enough as a complete stress management intervention. Teachers and their fellow educators need to take responsibility for their own emotional well-being on a regular basis.

• Stop admiring the problem. When educators get together, whether in the lounge or after work, there is a natural tendency to tell “war stories” and commiserate with one another. There is nothing unhealthy about that unless it begins to dominate all of the social interactions. Know when to cut it off and turn the talk in a solution-focused direction. If “shop talk” in your home means complaining about work, put a strict time limit on it. One educator we know made a deal with her fellow educator spouse: “Fifteen minutes of shop-talk, then that’s it for the evening. Period.”

• Plant your flag on the smaller mountains. An educator’s day-to-day professional life is defined mostly by minor victories and continuing challenges, not Grand Accomplishments. Pay attention to those little victories! What worked? Who improved? The typical day is full of little triumphs if one takes the time to appreciate them. Taking five minutes at the end of the day to jot down the successes can be a very healthy activity.

• Keep learning. Continuing education can be especially stress reducing if it is focused in an area of personal concern. Both professional and personal development can enrich skills and offer new and healthier outlooks. Learn a new language. Become computer literate. Learn to meditate. It is not only the outcome of learning but also the process that feeds and refreshes the mind.

• Stay fit. The “mind-body connection” is now established doctrine in the health sciences. Physical exercise is an excellent addition to any healthy stress management program, and it doesn’t take much. Find a buddy and walk at lunch. Organize a regular after or before school volleyball game. Park at the far end of the lot. Wear a pedometer and set goals. Climb the stairs just for the exercise.

• Listen to yourself. Be careful of the natural tendency of people in stressful situations to exaggerate reality to fit their temporary discomfort. Watch for overgeneralized, stress-inducing words like “always,” “never,” and “everyone.” For example, change “These kids never listen!” (which is certainly not true) to “The kids are not following directions well.” Work out an agreement with a friend to call each other on the use of these stress-words.

• Take care of one another. Get in the habit of recognizing the skills and successes of your fellow educators in the building. Peer approval can be very reinforcing, and a single, little comment can make someone’s day. “I heard the field trip was a smashing success! Congratulations!” “That is a great bulletin board!” “I love the way your kids listen to you so well in the hallway.” “I glanced in your room, and they were just glued to your presentation!” The simple task of offering praise can feel just as good as receiving it.

• Reward yourself. Made it through another week? Another semester? Do something nice for yourself that is only for the pleasure of it. Visit a day spa. Get a massage. Go to a ball game. Buy a new pair of shoes. All the while, say to yourself: “This is because I work hard, and I deserve it.” (Important: In order for this technique to be effective, one must first work hard and deserve it!)

Cited Classroom Management Links

Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice (CECP) http://cecp.air.org/center.asp CECP is a Washington, DC-based organization dedicated to improving education for children with, or at risk for serious emotional disturbance. The site contains numerous evidence-supported prevention and assessment strategies.

Dr. Mac’s Amazing Behavior Management Advice Site http://www.behavioradvisor.com/ This is the website of Dr. Tom McIntyre, education professor at Hunter College in New York. It is clever, fun, and packed with ideas for teachers of all levels.

Intervention Central www.interventioncentral.com It is one of the most popular education sites on the web, and for good reason. Intervention Central is a gold mine of ideas, procedures, techniques, and down-loadable forms for hundreds of teacher and support service concerns.

Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory (NWREL) http://www.nwrel.org/index.php NWEREL is a non-profit educational organization that seeks to bring research-based support programs, technical assistance, and training to schools nation wide. Numerous free publications related to effective teaching are available on the website.

Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) http://www.pbis.org/main.htm This is a collaboration between the federal Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) and numerous universities to bring Positive Behavioral Supports to schools. The site is full of “how to’s” to guide schools in the implementation of school-wide Positive Behavioral Supports.

The Responsive Classroom http://responsiveclassroom.org/index.html This comprehensive site advocates a social and emotional learning approach. It contains an excellent article database under Article Library.

Training and Technical Assistance Center at the College of William and Mary http://www.wm.edu/ttac/ This site offers many useful idea and links can be found in the Resources section.