Are you looking for strategies to encourage students not to leave their seat without permission? If so, keep reading.
1. Connect with the student’s parents to disseminate information about the student’s appropriate behavior. The parents may reinforce the student at home for staying in their seat at school.
2. Allow the student a break while working on monotonous tasks to relieve restlessness and improve concentration.
3. Urge the student to say a mantra to themselves when entering a situation in which they have to sit for an expanded duration of time (e.g., be still, be still, be still).
4. Get the student to chart the duration of time they can remain in their seat.
5. Make sure the student knows when it is acceptable to leave their seat (e.g., in an emergency).
6. Make sure the student has all the appropriate learning materials assembled prior to beginning a project, task, etc., to lessen the need to leave their seat.
7. Give constant, positive reinforcement for appropriate behavior. Ignore as many unacceptable behaviors as possible.
8. Get the student to question any directions, explanations, or instructions they do not understand.
9. Allow some time for movement between tasks if the student appears to need a break.
10. Attempt several groupings in the classroom to ascertain the situation in which the student is most comfortable and remains seated without constant supervision.
11. Make the appropriate adjustments in their surroundings to prevent the student from experiencing stress, frustration, anger, etc., as much as possible, to decrease the student’s tendency to leave their seat.
12. Praise those students in the classroom who remain in their seats and ask permission to leave their seats.
13. Praise the student for staying in their seat based on the duration of time they can be successful. As the student shows success, slowly increase the duration of time required for reinforcement.
14. Take the student away from the learning experience until they can remain their seat.
15. Give the student an easily grasped list of consequences for unacceptable behavior.
16. Minimize the emphasis on competition. Competitive learning activities may cause the student to become overstimulated and leave their seat.
17. Select a peer to model staying in their seat for the student.
18. Consider using a classroom management app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.
19. Consider using an adaptive behavior management app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.
20. Consider using Alexa to help the student learn to behave appropriately. Click here to read an article that we wrote on the subject.
21. Click here to learn about six bonus strategies for challenging problem behaviors and mastering classroom management.
