Somewhere Else Plan
Strategies
- Send the student to a "Thinkery," where the student can contemplate his or her actions (Claasen, 2008)
- Send students to a Planning Room where the student can calm down and an adult supervisor can help the student to create a plan to re-enter the classroom (Villa, Thousand, and Nevin, 2010)
- Give students a space to meet that is not strictly managed by the school, such as a student meeting place/support group (Olson, 2009)
- Encourage the creation of student-led clubs
- Allow the student to utilize a virtual world (Minecraft, other virtual worlds) to briefly disengage from the current situation and calm down
Philosophical Grounding
Often times, students are dealing with different pressures, many of which may not have anything to do with what is going on in the classroom. Sometimes, these students just need to step out of the classroom and go somewhere where they can think or where an adult can help them reflect on their own situation. Having a separate room or area run by a counselor, SPED teacher, or student group can be very helpful in these types of situations. Another great resource may be to utilize a virtual world like Minecraft. By entering a virtual world, a student may be able to disconnect from their current issue or situation and begin to calm down, eventually exiting the virtual world and returning to class when in a more appropriate state.
Often times, students are dealing with different pressures, many of which may not have anything to do with what is going on in the classroom. Sometimes, these students just need to step out of the classroom and go somewhere where they can think or where an adult can help them reflect on their own situation. Having a separate room or area run by a counselor, SPED teacher, or student group can be very helpful in these types of situations. Another great resource may be to utilize a virtual world like Minecraft. By entering a virtual world, a student may be able to disconnect from their current issue or situation and begin to calm down, eventually exiting the virtual world and returning to class when in a more appropriate state.
Citations
Claassen, R. & Claassen, R. (2008). Discipline that Restores: Strategies to create respect, cooperation, and responsibility in the classroom. South Carolina: Booksurge Publishing.
Olson, Kristen. (2009). Wounded by School: Recapturing the joy in learning and standing up to old school culture. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Villa, R.A. Thousand, J.S. & Nevin, A.I. (2010). Collaborating with Students in Instruction and Decision Making, Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Claassen, R. & Claassen, R. (2008). Discipline that Restores: Strategies to create respect, cooperation, and responsibility in the classroom. South Carolina: Booksurge Publishing.
Olson, Kristen. (2009). Wounded by School: Recapturing the joy in learning and standing up to old school culture. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.
Villa, R.A. Thousand, J.S. & Nevin, A.I. (2010). Collaborating with Students in Instruction and Decision Making, Thousand Oaks, CA: Corwin Press.
Resources
Thinkery Form
Thinkery Form