Strategies & Intervention Ideas
October/November 2005
Volume 1, Issue 1
(Click on the Headings below to view related material.)

1. To Promote Student Attention and Motivation

2. To Increase Student's Organization

3. Keeping an Inattentative Student On-Task

4. Understanding New Concepts

5. Following Directions or Multi-Step Directions

6. Completing Independent Academic Tasks

7. Keeping Students On Task During Independent Seatwork

8. Finishing and Turning In Assignments

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1. To Promote Student Attention and Motivation:

  • Seat the student at the front of the room. Face him or her as you teach (the teaching “action zone”)
  • Use alerting cues to get the class’s attention before giving a directive or assignment.
  • Integrate learning into game-like tasks. Promote friendly competition between student teams. This allows students to win praise, points, privileges, or rewards.
  • Use puzzles, riddles, or other novel vehicles to kindle student interest.
  • Present instructional material in short sessions at a brisk pace.
    - Require that students engage in some type of active responding to teacher instruction (e.g., students respond to teacher question in unison; students write down their response and then the teacher calls randomly on one student to share his or her answer; students break into small groups and use cooperative-learning strategies to solve a problem).

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2. To Increase Student's Organization:
  • Post a daily classroom schedule. This should also include what materials will be needed.
  • Preview the schedule with students and highlight academic and behavioral expectations for reach activity.
  • Leave the schedule up through the entire day.
  • Post schedule for next day or week. This could include what students will be doing, their academic expectations and materials needed.
    - Have student keep a log/calendar for class highlighting main ideas.
3. Keeping An Inattentative Student On-Task:
  • Post a daily classroom schedule. This should also include what materials will be needed.
  • Preview the schedule with students and highlight academic and behavioral expectations for reach activity.
  • Leave schedule up throughout the day.
  • Proximity control - teacher roams room to increase student attention to task and show improved compliance with teacher requests.
  • Keep Students Guessing - randomly calling on students occasionally selecting same students in a row.
  • Clear up multi step directions - writing directions on board or a handout to consult to when needed for clarification
  • Stimulate Activity - make it “real life” related for student to see the pay off
  • Acknowledge/praise On-Task Students
  • “Think Out Loud” - encourage student (and teacher) to think out loud when going through steps in material...this helps with strategy and helps teacher observe key issues.
  • Attention Breaks - after finishing a certain amount of work contract with students to do their preferred activity.
    - Advance Organizer - give students a brief overview of the day’s agenda as well as a mental schedule of the days events.

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4. Understanding New Concepts:

  • Structure Lessons with no more than 1/4 new material. Students are most successful when they can “anchor” new concepts to known information.
  • Match student’s level of instruction to ability level to guarantee a high rate of success.
  • “Think Out Loud” Approach .
  • Give the student your master notes as a guide for improving or expanding their own notes.
  • Give students an opportunity to compare their notes with a classmate that takes thorough notes.
5. Following Directions or Multi-Step Directions:
  • Post a daily classroom schedule. This should also include what materials will be needed.
  • Preview the schedule with students and highlight academic and behavioral expectations for reach activity.
  • Leave schedule up throughout the day.
  • Make eye contact with the student before giving directions.
  • Have student repeat directions back to your before beginning assignment.
  • Use simple, clear language when communicating with the student.
  • Keep instructions brief.
  • Break multi-step directions into smaller subsets. Have student complete one subset before advancing to another.
  • Write assignments or complex directions on the board in addition to saying them.
6. Completing Independent Academic Tasks:
  • Decrease assignment length. Reduce number of items, shorten the required length of an essay.
  • Break assignment into smaller, more manageable “chunks”. Acknowledge, praise, or reward student for completion of chunk.
  • Explicitly recognize, praise, and reward the student’s EFFORT no matter how imperfect the outcome. Students can become more motivated as they learn that effort (a factor entirely within their control) can actually pay off!
  • Have student Monitor and Chart own work completion as a motivation builder.
  • Provide student with a copy of reading material (e.g. expository article) with main ideas already highlighted.
  • Classroom “ Work Accommodations” that any student can take advantage of. E.g., moving to a different part of the classroom to work, using a tape recorder to dictate the first draft of an essay, etc.
  • Write assignments or complex directions on the board in addition to saying them.
7. Keeping Students On Task During Independent Work
  • Create Easy-to-Flow “Strategy” sheet or write on board the directions during that time for student to refer to as
    needed.
  • Teach students acceptable, unobtrusive ways to get academic assistance from peers and teachers.
  • “Help-Signal” Program - when a student gets “stuck” on seatwork, student displays help-signal (e.g., brightly colored index card) on desk, switches to other work until teacher is freed up to approach and provide assistance.
  • Peer-Tutors - Specific students trained to circulate and assist students having difficulty during seatwork.
  • Write assignments or complex directions on the board in addition to saying them.

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8. Finishing and Turning In Assignments:

  • Help student PRIORITIZE assignments by importance and deadline.
  • Establish a Homework Contract with the student.
  • Have Student Write Homework Assignments into a daily planner. Check planner to ensure accuracy.
  • Chunk or Break down long-range assignments into shorter subtasks.
  • Help student construct a Timeline/schedule for completing tasks.
  • Acknowledge, praise, or reward student for completion of chunks/tasks.
  • Decrease assignment length.
  • Explicitly recognize, praise, and reward the student’s EFFORT no matter how imperfect the outcome.
  • Have student Monitor and Chart own work completion as a motivation builder.
  • Provide student with a copy of reading material (e.g. expository article) with main ideas already highlighted.
    - Write assignments or complex directions on the board in addition to saying them.

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