Positive Classroom Behavior Interventions That Work

Today, I’m really excited to share with you some great ideas for handling challenging behaviors with classroom behavior interventions that actually work!

I know you’ve had your own experiences with that one kid… the one who has so many unwanted behaviors that you don’t know where to start, the one who disrupts your class every single day, the one that you’ve tried EVERYTHING with. Daily notes, calling parents, behavior contracts… nothing works. It can be so very frustrating for classroom teachers!

If you understand just what I’m talking about, then you need to know about the website PBIS World. This is a super awesome and free website for teachers full of research-based classroom interventions for just about any issue you might be dealing with.  It’s like your own personal behavior specialist available 24/7.

So let’s take a dive into the site and see how it can help you find just the right positive behavioral interventions to bring about positive changes in your classroom environment.

Finding Classroom Behavior Interventions on PBIS World

When you arrive at PBIS World, the first thing you see is a list of problem behaviors. To get started, just scroll down and click on the one you want to address. This is so simple and there are no hoops to jump through. You don’t even have to register for an account.

As you can see in the image below, just about any student behavior issue is there to choose from. So I’m going to click on “Disrespectful” because I can’t stand disrespectful and would like to nip that in the bud first.

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After you make your selection, the site gives you a list of specific behaviors that you may be observing. This is to make sure you’ve correctly identified the root problem.

If the list accurately reflects what you’re seeing in the classroom setting, go ahead and click YES at the bottom:

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After you’ve selected the problem, you will be presented with a list of tier 1 intervention strategies to try for that particular behavior issue.

Here is how it looks for the disrespectful behavior I selected:

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Now you might be thinking, “Hey, I’m already doing all of this. I have a great classroom management plan.” Maybe you do, but really look closely and make sure you aren’t missing something that you could try. Most behavior challenges can be addressed in a multitude of ways.

For disrespectful behavior, I see that one of the positive classroom behavior interventions is to speak with the student in the hallway. I’m wondering why that’s important, so I click on it:

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This is where the site becomes really helpful. Now you can see the nitty gritty of that specific intervention… why you should do it, when you should do it, and exactly how you should do it so that it will actually work for the student.

This is so important. If you implement classroom behavior interventions the wrong way, you might as well not do anything at all. You have to use it correctly and consistently and this page really helps you with that.

So after you look at the details, you can go back to the tier 1 page. At the bottom of the page, you have a few options.

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• See All Tier 1 Interventions
• Data Tracking Forms & Strategies
• I’ve Tried Tier 1 For at Least 6 Months, Take Me to Tier 2

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If you click on “See all tier 1 interventions”, you’ll just get a list of every intervention under the sun. I don’t really suggest this one because you need specific interventions for the problem. However, you should most definitely check out the data tracking forms and strategies. This page will give you all of the forms you could need from daily behavior notes to self-tracking sheets to parent questionnaires. 

The last choice is what you need after you’ve been doing interventions and the behavior hasn’t improved. It says “as least 6 months” but your district may want you to move to tier 2 on a different timeline. I suggest speaking with your behavior specialist, psychologist, or ESE department for guidance.

PBIS World really is your one-stop shop for classroom behavior interventions. It utilizes a multi-tiered system of supports so you will find tier 1, tier 2, and tier 3 sections to help you find what you need depending on what stage of intervention you’re working in. Most websites for behavioral strategies don’t go into the same depth as the three-tiered framework on PBIS World. Here you will get truly needs-based behavior interventions with specific strategies for any student – from non-serious behaviors all the way through kids who are facing suspension.

The best part is that it helps you zero in on the issue and then provides all of the tools you need for documentation and to track student progress. Your guidance counselor or school psychologist will love you!