Self-regulation used to be a problem for my students. They’re 10- to 11-years-old, so this is to be expected. But often, a lack of control over their feelings and their actions would disrupt learning, friendship groups and playtimes - sometimes with disastrous consequences.
I was constantly looking for ways to create an environment where my students could self-regulate their behaviour and emotions. I wanted them to increase their capacity to read social situations and adjust their behaviours accordingly, without being reminded by me. Not only would a self-regulation solution support classroom management, but it would preserve my sanity.
I found my salvation in a simple and cost-effective strategy called “energy check stations”. It works like this. You create an energy check station in the corner of the room, away from where students are working.
The station consists of two posters on the wall and a dice. One poster provides options for students to decrease their energy levels, the other is for students that need to wake up and increase their energy.
Each poster has six activities to correspond to the six sides of a dice. Students simply roll the dice and match up their number to the instructions on the poster. They then have two minutes to complete the activity and centre themselves.
In my classroom, no more than one student is allowed to use the station at any time, and no-one can use it when the teacher is talking or giving instructions. But once they have settled into the activity, students are free to use the station when they wish.
I’ve found that students are far less likely to disrupt, distract and fidget when using the energy check station, which gives me much more time to focus on small-group and independent instruction without having to worry about why a certain student is getting up to sharpen their pencil for the fifth time.
Greg McGrath teaches 5th Grade language arts and social studies in New Jersey, US
This is an edited version of a feature in the 6 May edition of TES. This week’s TES magazine is available in all good newsagents. To subscribe, click here. To download the digital edition, Android users can click here and iOS users can click here
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