Are you looking for ways to encourage students not to make inappropriate statements or sounds? If so, keep reading.

1. Praise the learner for making appropriate remarks in the classroom: (a) give the learner a concrete reward (e.g., classroom privileges, passing out learning materials, 10 minutes of free time, etc.) or (b) give the learner an informal reward (e.g., praise, handshake, smile, etc.).

2. Praise the learner for making appropriate remarks based on the duration of time the learner can be successful. As the learner shows success, slowly increase the duration of time required for reinforcement.

3. Assist the learner in developing an understanding of the consequences of their behavior by writing down or talking through problems that may happen due to disturbing others (e.g., perceived as unmannerly, avoided, etc.).

4. Urge the learner to self-monitor behavior by asking themselves questions such as, “What should I be doing right now?” “Is what I have to say relevant to this topic?” “Is this an excellent time for me to comment?”

5. Praise those students in the classroom who make appropriate remarks.

6. Attempt several groupings in the classroom to ascertain the situation in which the learner is most comfortable.

7. Take the learner away from the learning experience until they can demonstrate appropriate behavior and self-control.

8. Make sure that the learner knows the relationship between unacceptable behavior and the consequences that follow (e.g., making unnecessary noise will cause others to not want to be around him/her).

9. Minimize the emphasis on competition. Competitive learning activities may cause the learner to become anxious and excessively noisy.

10. Teach the learner to watch signals from others (e.g., if they blurt out remarks with no response from others, stop talking; when there is silence in class, it is not appropriate to fill the silence with remarks; etc.)

11. Assess the degree of task difficulty to ascertain whether the learner will require additional information, time, assistance, etc., to avoid becoming frustrated and making unnecessary remarks and noises.

12. Get the learner to question any directions, explanations, or instructions they do not understand.

13. Plan leisure activities for the end of the day. Make participation in these learning activities dependent upon the conclusion of daily duties and appropriate classroom behavior.

14. Talk with the learner to explain (a) what he/she is doing wrong (e.g., making unnecessary remarks or noises) and (b) what they must be doing (e.g., waiting until it is appropriate to speak, thinking of remarks that relate to the situation, etc.).

15. Consider using a classroom management app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.

16. Consider using an adaptive behavior management app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.

17. Consider using Alexa to help the student learn to behave appropriately. Click here to read an article that we wrote on the subject.

18. Click here to learn about six bonus strategies for challenging problem behaviors and mastering classroom management.