Managing Impulsivity
Managing impulsivity is a critically important Habit of Mind that will benefit my students inside and outside of my classroom. Increased mastery of this HOM creates a safer more cohesive classroom community for all students. At this age, children struggle with managing impulsivity due to their still-developing frontal lobes (Costa & Kallick, 2009). However, managing impulsivity is a skill students can learn, develop, and practice. At the beginning of the school year, my students had a limited understanding of the HOM managing impulsivity. Over the course of the year, I have introduced them to HOM through direct instruction, engaged in reinforcement activities such as anchor charts, Do Nows, and discussions. As the HOM became reinforced my students did more than just talk about managing impulsivity they were using it to drive their personal growth.
Direct Instruction
This lesson was developed because I saw a clear need to develop this Habit of Mind in my students. My students were not able to effectively manage their impulses which created a plethora of problems in my classroom. Explicit instruction is a critical first step towards developing a HOM. In order to internalize a HOM, it needs to be praised and practiced. This lesson gives my students the opportunity to practice the HOM in a safe and structured way. Students will first participate in a Do Now to activate prior knowledge about impulsivity followed by a reflective journal entry. Students were tasked with creating a skit that demonstrated managing impulsivity. Having students act out the HOM will push them to internalize it and use it to solve problems that they face.
My students entered my classroom with various understandings of what impulsivity is. A foundational understanding of each HOM is necessary if the HOM is expected to be used intelligently with fidelity. This PowerPoint provided my students with the foundational knowledge of HOMs. Additionally, the PowerPoint makes a connection between impulsivity and the development of the frontal lobe. Students are provided with one strategy: Stop. Think. Go. that will help push them to slow down and manage their impulses. This presentation has multiple turn and talks to ensure that active learning is happening and to help students begin to internalize the content.
This activity was developed by Boyes & Watts (2010). I used it in my classroom to help my students develop an understanding of managing impulsivity. This activity helped students gain a deep understanding of this HOM because it asked them to describe what it looks like, sounds like, and feels like. One trend that emerged from examining student work is the connection between managing impulsivity and anger. My students described anger as a trigger that prevents them from managing their impulsivity. This is a major realization for my students that I believe will have a significant effect in my classroom. The inability to control one's impulses has caused many behavioral issues in my classroom, identifying triggers is an important first step in preventing the behavior.
To help my students begin to internalize managing impulsivity I had them create skits that demonstrated the correct use of the HOM. Acting out the HOM allowed my students to practice what using the HOM sounds like, feels like, and looks like in a safe environment. My students watched eight groups present their skit which further exposed them to more scenarios in which managing impulsivity is being used intelligently to solve a problem. In the skits created by my students, a common problem they solved was a conflict between two peers. This activity demonstrates that students are applying the HOM to problems outside the classroom. In the skits, students showed how managing impulsivity can be used to deescalate the situation and promote conflict resolution. Below are two skits from my 6th-grade science students. The audio quality in the videos below is intermittent throughout the video, I have provided a transcript of the audio below each video link.
Video Transcript
Student 1: My bird died yesterday night and I am sad.
Student 2: Are you going to be okay?
Student 1: Shrugs
Student 3: At least your parents didn’t die. It just a bird.
Student 2: It’s just not just a bird.
Student 4: Okay!
Student 2: It’s not just a bird. It was her friend.
Student 4: Okay, I think we should stop and take a few deep breaths. Maybe we should think about another solution that would be a nice way to support her.
Student 3: What about if we do a funeral?
Student 2: Would that make you feel better?
Student 1: Yes, I think so.
Student 3: What about a cardboard box?
Student 2: I think we can find something better than that.
Student 4: Find a nicer way to talk about the bird.
Student 3: Maybe we could do a little funeral service for your bird?
Student 1: Yes, that would be nice.
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This artifact shows students using the stop. think. go. strategy. Once student three learned and used the strategy it pushed her to grow individually. In the last part of the skit she is thinking before speaking and selects a solution that resolves a conflict between the peers.
Video Transcript
Student 1: Why did you do that bro?
Student 2: Ah, that was an accident, sorry.
Student 1: You saw me walking here/
Student 2: Sorry I didn’t mean to.
Student 2: Why would you that for?
Student 1: For tripping me, why else?
Student 1: Oh, so you want to fight?
Student 1: Yes
Student 2: Why?
Student 1: Because you tripped me.
Student 2: It was an accident.
Student 1: It was not an accident.
Student 3: Stop guys.
Student 4: Go over there.
Student 3 & Student 4: Use Stop. Think. Then Go. Before your actions.
Student 3: You might hurt somebody
Student 4: You need to apologize. Go say I’m sorry.
Student 1: Sorry for overacting.
Student 2: I’m sorry too. I guess that’s it.
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This artifact illustrates how anger leads to the inability to manage impulses. In this skit, a heated argument occurs between two students over a misunderstanding. Students use stop. think. go. to deescalate the situation and apologize to each other. This demonstrates that students have internalized the HOM beyond speaking about it, they can use it to deescalate and solve conflicts that arise between their peers.
Reinforcement
Habits of Mind are not innate skills nor do they develop naturally. HOM are developed over time through consistent practice and application in a variety of settings. My lesson on managing impulsivity was an important first step towards developing this HOM. For true internalization to happen HOMs need to be reinforced. Habits are very easily formed but very hard to forget, which is why HOM need to be introduced and reinforced in a structured and consistent manner (Namelocamme, 2010). In my classroom, I reinforce managing impulsivity through the use of anchor charts, word walls, do nows, discussions, pre and post Habits of Mind assessments, and behavior tracking.
These activities push students to move past merely discussing the HOM. Through repeated exposure and reinforcement my students have internalized managing impulsivity. My students are showing the HOM by raising their hands before they speak, staying seated in their assigned seat, and the ability to deescalate and solve conflicts between peers.
This is a student-created anchor that hangs in the front of my classroom. Creating the anchor chart solidified the student's understanding of the HOM. Now his work is being used by other students to reinforce their understanding of managing impulsivity. The Stop. Think. Go. strategy is the main focus of this anchor chart and I have seen students utilize it in my classroom. During a silent reading activity, I observed a student in my first period ask a talkative student to review the anchor chart which led to a quiet classroom. The anchor chart increases their exposure to the HOM which makes them more likely to use the HOM in their own life.
I created a Habits of Mind wall in my classroom to increase my students exposure and understanding of these important skills. There are 16 HOM in total, this wall provides my students with a visua, a definition, and an example of each HOM in use. I have leveraged this wall in my class by offering students extra credit or merits for identifying the correct HOM to solve a problem. Additionally, I have seen many students use it as a resource when they are stuck. Students will walk to the wall scan it for a HOM that provides them with the best solution and then return to their seat. To improve this wall for next year I will be having a few students make a student-created version of all 16 HOM.
Do Nows are an instructional strategy that I leverage to reinforce content in my classroom. In addition, to science content, I use the Do Now to reinforce other relevant topics such as Habits of Mind. As students enter my classroom they see their Do Now on the smartboard. The Do Now typically contains three questions and a five-minute timer. I have created three Do Nows that my students have completed that reinforce the HOM managing impulsivity. These Do Nows were introduced at different point s in the school year to push students to think about the HOM multiples time and reinforce the concept in their brain. I collect my students Do Nows at the end of the week and store them in a filing cabinet in my classroom. Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, I am unable to access those files and provide PDF copies of student work. Below are pictures of the Do Nows my students have completed.
This artifact contains my Do Now that was completed the week of December 9th by my 6th-grade students. This Do Now reinforced managing impulsivity because it provides students with a video example and pushed them to think about ways they could demonstrate the HOM inside and outside of my classroom. The most common way students identified to manage impulsivity in my classroom was "keeping your hands to yourself." The most common way students identified to manage impulsivity outside my classroom was "Not talking back."
This artifact contains my Do Now that was completed the week of January 21st by my 6th-grade students. This Do Now reinforced managing impulsivity because it requires students to reflect on a situation where managing impulsivity is needed and identify the proper course of action. This Do Now helped solidify the Stop. Think. Go. strategy of managing impulsivity in my students' brain.
This artifact contains my Do Now that was completed the week of February 10th by my 6th-grade students. This Do Now reinforced managing impulsivity because it asked students to apply the HOM to a specific situation that they experience frequently, a test. During the test, I gave students merits for demonstrating their ability to manage their impulsivity which further reinforced the behavior that I wanted to see.
Discussions are a great way to reinforce HOMs because they expose students to a wide variety of situations in which students can use a HOM. This discussion takes place in my 6th-grade science class. My students are discussing what managing impulsivity is, why its important, and how they can use it in their lives. Press the play button below to hear our discussion on managing impulsivity. The audio quality in the file below is intermittent, I have provided a transcript of the audio below each video link.
Transcript
Teacher: Question 1: Can someone tell me about a time they acted impulsively or rash? We all have writing on our papers. The teacher selects three students.
Student 1: One time I was running, and I didn’t take time to realize where I was and I broke my collar bone
Teacher: That is a great example.
Student 2: I threw a chair once.
Teacher: Explain that situation to us.
Student 2: I have done that twice.
Teacher: Did you think about throwing a chair? What caused you to throw the chair? Were you feeling an emotion?
Student 2: I was really mad at this in my class.
Teacher: He just said something really important. He was mad, anger is a big emotion we feel before we act rash or impulsively because we are not in a clear headspace to think through the situation.
Student 3: One day a girl at my school was making fun of me and similar to the other student I threw a chair too. I did this because I wasn’t thinking.
Teacher: The sentiment is being repeated, think before you act. Can someone tell me why we might act in this why? Why might we act without thinking?
Student 4: Because we are only thinking about emotions and feelings at that time. We don’t think about the effect that our actions will have.
Teacher: I like that, that is perfectly worded. In that moment you have so many things going on in your body and your brain that you are not able to fully comprehend the situation. Your brains are flooded with hormones and emotions. You are not in a clear headspace to sit there and think about how the outcome would be different if I did this instead of this. Can someone tell me the outcome of a situation where you acted impulsively?
Student 5: You get in trouble.
Student 6: You lose a friendship.
Student 7: If you don’t think before you speak or act you can really hurt someone’s feelings.
Teacher: Yeah, people can get emotionally, mentally, and physically hurt. Any other outcomes we want to share?
Student 8: Getting a phone call home or getting in trouble with the teacher.
Teacher: Okay final question. How could using this strategy of stop. think. and go. Change the outcome for you? How could use stop. think. and go change the situation?
Student 9: One time I was arguing with my sister at the dinner table about what tv show to watch and my parents got mad. I could have stopped taken a breath and talked about it instead of arguing.
Teacher: Perfect, he could have taken time in that situation with his sister to stop and think about what his actions are and how they could affect her. If he had paused and thought about it he would’ve chosen an action that would’ve had a better outcome for him and his sister.
Teacher: You had your hand up.
Student 10: Stop you realize what is happening. Thinking you look at the other options you have. For me, it’s important to make the right choice and be the bigger person. Sometimes you need to get help, ask your parents or a teacher. For go you select an action.
Teacher: She brought up two really big points. It’s definitely important to think about the options you have but it also important to think about who can help you. We have time for one final student. Can you tell us how your situation would have been different if you used stop think and go?
Student 11: I could’ve stopped and paused and took a deep breath. I should’ve thought about it and went to Kimberly with my problem.
In this discussion, my students describe times they acted rash and impulsively. They identify the outcomes that occurred as a result of their behavior. I then pushed students to think about how using managing impulsivity would have changes the outcomes in their scenarios. While students are talking about the HOM their experiences demonstrate that some of my students have internalized the HOM and it has led to their personal growth. The personal growth my students experience while developing this HOM is their ability to control their emotions and deescalate conflicts between peers.
To further reinforce this HOM I have created a goal. My personal SMART goal for managing impulsivity is to have students demonstrate that they can use the HOM in a variety of situations intelligently to solve problems they are facing. I will measure my students’ success at demonstrating managing impulsivity by measuring the number of demerits my students receive in my classroom that are related to managing impulsivity. Over the next two weeks, I want to see the number of demerits reduced by 20%, within one month from today’s date I want it to be reduced by 30%. I will use extra credit and merits to reinforce students' behavior when they are exhibiting the HOM. I will review demerits for talking out of turn, leaving class without permission, and horseplay in the classroom to measure my students' success. These behaviors are directly linked to managing impulsivity when my students exhibit these behaviors they are not demonstrating the HOM. Tracking these behaviors and providing feedback will push students to manage their impulses. In addition, students will be completing a pre-assessment and post-assessment asking them to self-rate their ability to manage their impulsivity (Johnson et al., 2005). Students will be supported to meet this goal through explicit instruction, anchor charts with a strategy they can do to help manage their impulses, videos illustrating what managing impulses looks like, acting out skits, and reflections. (Costa & Kallick, 2009).
This artifact is the pre and post-assessment I used in my classroom to see if my students have internalized the HOM. This assessment is specifically for managing impulsivity and it uses a Likert scale to measure student responses (Johnson et al., 2005). I am unable to access the completed assessments because my school is closed for the remainder of the school year due to COVID-19. 63 out of 94 students checked three or more "not yet" sections on the pre-assessment. On the post-assessment, 59 students checked three or more "frequently" sections. Data from the pre and post-assessment demonstrates that most of my students began in the "not yet" section and as the HOM was reinforced overtime they internalized it moving into the "frequent" section
This artifact is my school's behavior tracker. Along the bottom of the tracker, it displays the merits and demerits that we have at our school. The blue bar represents the total number of students who received a demerit for that behavior in a given week. I can further refine these results to examine the data from the demerits that I have given to students. To examine and track my students' development using managing impulsivity I examined the number of demerits in the following categories talking out of turn, leaving class without permission, and horseplay in the classroom. While the number of demerits I issued did decrease, due to my school's closure in early March, I was not able to gather enough data from the behavior tracker to complete my smart goal.
Internalization
Internalization requires a deep and enduring understanding of a topic. For HOM internalization is demonstrated through one's ability to intelligently apply the most appropriate HOM in a wide variety of situations. In my students' reflection, I asked them to identify what managing impulsivity is and how they use it in their lives. I wanted my students to provide examples of how they use the HOM inside and outside the classroom to illustrate their ability to use the HOM in a variety of situations because that demonstrates internalization.
These reflections were completed by my 6th-grade science and 7th-grade science students. Each student identified multiple ways they could incorporate managing impulsivity into their daily lives. Furthermore, each student provided a brief example of how they have used the HOM in the past to solve a problem they faced. All four students provided an example of they used the HOM outside of school. This demonstrates a deep internalization of the HOM because my students are intelligently applying to various situations inside and outside of school.
At the beginning of the school year, my students had a limited understanding of the HOM managing impulsivity. Over the course of the year, I have introduced them to HOM through direct instruction, engaged in reinforcement activities such as anchor charts, Do Nows, and discussions. As the HOM became reinforced my students did more than just talk about managing impulsivity they were using it to drive their personal growth. As students managed their impulses behavior in my classroom began to shift. I gave students more merits than demerits and observed fewer students shouting the first thing that comes to their minds, fewer students out of their assigned seats, and fewer conflicts between students.
References
21 Foundation. (2010, August 23). Interview with Arthur Costa [Video file]. Retrieved from
Boyes, K., & Watts, G. (2009). Developing Habits of Mind in elementary schools. Retrieved
from http://www.ascd.org/ASCD/pdf/books/boyesAT2009_exploring_the_meaning
_of_habits_of_mind_with_teachers.pdf
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Costa, A. L., & Kallick, B. (2000). Describing 16 Habits of Mind. Retrieved from
http://www.habitsofmind.org/sites/default/files/16HOM2.pdf
Costa, A. L., & Kallick, B. (Eds.). (2009). Habits of Mind across the curriculum: Practical and
creative strategies for teachers. Alexandria, VA: Association for Supervision and
Curriculum Development.
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Namelocamme. (2010, June 14). What is a habit poem [Video file]. Retrieved from
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nwIckU-lZJo
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