Are you looking for strategies to teach students to behave appropriately while sitting at their desk? If so, keep reading.

1. Connect with the learner’s parents to disseminate information about the learner’s progress. The parents may reinforce the learner at home for behaving properly while seated at school.

2. Intervene early and often when there is a problem to prevent a more severe problem from happening.

3. Place the learner next to a peer who behaves properly while seated.

4. Provide a full schedule of learning activities. Keeping the learner engaged in learning should decrease unacceptable behaviors.

5. Select a peer to model appropriate ways to sit in their seat for the learner.

6. Give constant, positive reinforcement for appropriate behavior. Ignore as many unacceptable behaviors as possible.

7. Praise the learner for behaving properly in their seat 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.

8. Praise the learner for behaving properly in their seat: (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.).

9. Urge the learner to create an understanding of themselves and those around him/her. Get the learner to periodically step back and ask themselves, “Am I fidgeting and being overactive?”

10. Get the learner to make a list of consequences associated with regularly occurring behaviors (e.g., by disrupting others, I will be perceived as unmannerly; by behaving aggressively, I will cause people to avoid me.).

11. Ensure that the learner knows the logical consequences that may happen from behaving improperly while seated (e.g., injury, damaging property, hurting others, etc.).

12. Teach the learner to think before acting (e.g., they should ask themselves, “What is happening?” “What am I doing?” “What should I do?” “What will be best for me?”).

13. Put the learner in a carrel to lessen distracting stimuli that may cause the learner to behave improperly while seated.

14. Praise those students in the classroom who behave properly while seated.

15. Give the learner an easily grasped list of consequences for unacceptable behavior.

16. Minimize the emphasis on competition. Competitive learning activities may cause the learner to act improperly while seated.

17. Assess the degree of task difficulty to ascertain whether the learner will require additional information, time, assistance, etc., to avoid becoming frustrated and engaging in unacceptable behaviors while seated.

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.

22. Consider using a socio-emotional learning app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.

23. Consider using an emotional intelligence app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.

24. Consider using a school counseling app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.