Recently I began using some tools new to me: social conferencing, problem-solving meetings, and role plays. I am employing them to help eliminate some of the chronic behavior issues in my classroom and to create a more positive, productive learning environment in which my first grade students develop better social skills.

Abby and Betty
In the fall, I focused on two of my students who immediately stood out as having some high needs in the area of social development -- I’ll call them Abby and Betty. I noticed Abby blurted things out almost continually. Sometimes her comments were related to what we were doing, but often not. She had an extremely hard time controlling her body. I observed her making faces at a friend during morning meeting, leaving the room without permission, and frequently using side talk.

Betty chronically complained about others, refused to do what was asked of her, and displayed some bullying behavior.

Beginning observation
In order to track improvement, I decided to target days to make observations and take notes on these students. On other days, I tallied the number of times a given behavior occurred and took anecdotal records. I planned which days I would observe each student, and I set to work.

Another adult who is in my classroom part of the morning agreed to do the tallies for me. The first day we tallied Abby, she had a total of 32 undesired behaviors in two hours. Notes I took mentioned her drawing with her finger on the carpet instead of focusing on our lesson, talking out of turn, leaving the room without permission, making faces at others, and doing cartwheels in the room!

The first time we tallied Betty’s behaviors she had 13 undesired behaviors in two hours. Some of the notes include Betty lying down during group lessons, talking across the room to others, budging in line, and taking her shoes off for no apparent reason.

Social Conferences
First I planned a social conference for Abby. I focused on her talking and being off-task. The conference went well, though the flow wasn’t quite smooth. (I had to refer to my planning sheet more than once!) We agreed that Abby would work to stay on task and to wait for appropriate times to talk. We came up with a signal that I could use if to help her find a place to sit that would be best for her learning if she was having a hard time doing so. We practiced, shook on it, and went on with the day.

I thought Abby might be upset after being singled out to talk with me. But that morning during our Writer’s Workshop block she wrote about how she likes her teacher and her teacher likes her. She said, “She is nice because she loves me.” That statement was huge to me. It affirmed that children do want boundaries; they do want to know what is expected.

I did a social conference with Betty, too, and she participated and received it well. I found that each time I did a social conference it became more natural.

Problem-solving Meetings
Once I had the social conferencing underway, I looked for find areas that needed work with the whole class. Our first problem-solving meeting was about friendship issues. I have a group of girls who say things like, “Don’t be her friend” and “You can’t play with me.”

The first thing a first grader wants to do when his/her feelings are hurt is run and tell the teacher. We came up with alternatives and talked about what to do or say if someone behaves unkindly. In another meeting we talked about what you can do if you feel like saying something unkind.

Role-play
My first experience with role plays wasn’t exactly something to brag about. I forgot the signals, “action” and “cut,” and had to back up several times. Surprisingly, the kids didn’t care. They had a great time and were able to discuss the scenarios and see possibilities for them. As with social conferencing, each time we did a role play I was able to make it a smoother experience. We role-played lining up, what to do instead of tattling, and how to respond to someone without saying unkind words.

Results
When October rolled around and it was time to tally again, things were going much more smoothly. Abby had no tallies in a two-hour period, and Betty had six tallies in two hours. I was sure it must have been just a really “on” day for Abby, and that it would be different when we tallied in November but I was wrong. She had made real, lasting gains. In November she only had one tally in two hours. Betty was also down to only one tally in that time. In a class survey on attitude towards school, both girls rated nearly everything as positive.

I have been truly amazed at the changes in the behavior of the two girls. Other adults have commented on their growth, too.

The social conferences proved to be wonderful one-to-one. They can be longer and well planned or they can be smaller, more spontaneous moments with a student. I am confident that I will include all these practices in my classroom from now on.

And I saw how useful it is to do role plays and problem-solving meetings to redirect behaviors class-wide.

New kids, new opportunities
Just as we were making such gains with Abby and Betty, two new girls joined our classroom. One of them will definitely be my next focus. It is obvious she wasn‘t part of our class when we were setting up rules and expectations. She missed out on a number of our role plays and doesn‘t have the skills yet to handle conflict. Using the same type of plan will give help me to help her make the social progress necessary for her success in school.

I don’t believe the social conference alone would have made lasting changes in Abby or Betty’s behavior. It isn’t something that stands alone, or can be done once and for all -- many structures for classroom management reinforce each other.

The key seems to be taking different kinds of small steps, and continually revisiting and practicing. For example, I have seen how important it is to take moments every day to remember some of the basics with the children. Yes, it takes time to implement the many components, but the outcome is well worth it. My relationships with Abby and Betty are so different from earlier in the year -- now they both try to sit close to me during lessons and have smiles and hugs to share with me daily.

Remind & remember
I am thoroughly enjoying my class this year, and it is due in great part to the practices I have implemented. I have given myself permission to slow down and review anything and everything. We have spent lots of time reminding each other what it looks like to take a break, remembering what our rules are, talking about expectations, and building relationships.

I am reminded that no matter how long you teach, you never stop learning.

Kristi Abbott teaches first-graders at LC Webster Elementary School, North St. Paul, MN.

This article first appeared in Origins: A Newsletter for Educators, Spring 2006