Coloring Outside the Rules
By Samantha Cleaver

A color-coded level system, proved a beneficial tool for behavior management in this special education teacher's classroom.

The first time a student hit me, I had just begun teaching a self-contained special education class of five-year-olds with developmental delays. I asked a student to give me the marker we were using to write "A." He said, "No!" and slapped me across my chest and shoulders. I chose, in the moment to ignore it, using a different marker to finish the lesson.

Ignoring him was a mistake – he continued to hit and also screamed, kicked, threw chairs and fell on the floor for temper tantrums. My classroom cascaded into a discipline free-for-all.

Getting specific. I researched a solution, determined to stay positive and flexible. The research insisted on specific rules, so I modified mine, which had been: "Listen. Follow directions. Keep our hands and feet to ourselves. Quiet in the classroom." My rules, I found out, didn't cover all my students' behaviors. There were no rules against swearing, jumping on tables or throwing toys.

To address the rules problem, I used positive behavior supports (PBS). "We have new rules," I informed my students. "Be Safe. Be Nice. Be Responsible." I took pictures of them being safe, nice, and responsible: walking in the halls, helping their peers, cleaning up. When one student acted out, I rewarded the others with stickers. This worked well unless all the students acted out, knowing there were no severe consequences for their behavior.

Revisiting revision. After a student attacked me while he was in time-out, the parents and my special education coordinator told me to "stop being so nice." I introduced a color-coded level system and listed the target behaviors: hitting and saying "no" to the teacher, jumping on chairs and tables, running in the hall, throwing things, teasing and saying bad words.

Green level – I taped green paper to the table where we did most of our work. When on green, students could play with whatever they wanted, walk by themselves and sit with the group.

Yellow level – For this modified time-out, students had to sit at a different table and could not play with certain toys.

Orange level – This was the official time-out for aggressive or repeated behaviors.

Red level – For severe behaviors, I required students to meet with a counselor or the principal.

I also added more time for free play; miraculously, the students usually managed to get themselves back onto green level for play time.

The combination of PBS and a level system has provided the structure and reinforcement that my students need. It's still difficult, at times, to manage behavior. But, after repeating the rules to my students every time they move from orange to yellow to green, they know them inside and out, and so far I can match their every behavior to being safe, nice or responsible.

Samantha Cleaver teaches kindergarten special education in Washington, D.C.

November/December, 2006, Vol.37, No.3