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Provide an In-Class Agenda to Keep Students Focused

Tags

Social-Emotional Learning All Ages Strategy

Skills

Anxiety Flexible Thinking Self-regulation Listening Comprehension Organization Working Memory Attention

Provide an In-Class Agenda to Keep Students Focused

Teach It!

  1. Objective: Students will be mentally and emotionally prepared for the upcoming session when they are provided with an agenda at the beginning of the class. This can be particularly beneficial for students who are anxious about class and/or students who struggle to sustain focus.
  2. Model and Practice: a) Have a written agenda visible to the whole class. b) At the beginning of class quickly review the agenda. If appropriate, provide approximate times associated with each task. For students who struggle with executive functions, these time estimates can help them plan ahead and figure out how they will need to respond if they are losing focus. c) As you move on to each new agenda item, point it out to the students. Checking it off on the list is a helpful visual cue. This can help students who struggle with organization and planning to re-orient to where they are and what is to come.
  3. Teacher Takeaways: a) If you decide to go off agenda or realize you will not get to items, let students know. Awareness can help manage disappointment and frustration, especially if students might be looking forward to specific activities. b) Recognize that using this approach in class models good time management skills for students for when they are planning their own activities or homework.

Why It Works (the Science Of Learning)!

Students with weaker executive functions benefit from having structure so they can more effectively anticipate what they will need to do to self-regulate. Furthermore, they might have difficulty with unexpected events or ambiguity. Taking a few minutes at the start of class to provide students with a clear view of what to expect can make it much easier for some students to self-regulate their focus, behavior and emotions.