3.2: Consistent Routines
- Page ID
- 222434
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)Consistent routines help children meet expectations for interacting with each other and with the environment.
Students feel safe with predictable structures, which helps them remain in a regulated, related state and ready to learn.
Most teachers have routines, but there are a few specific qualities of routines within the Whole Child Model that make them more effective.
How to Do Consistent Routines Well
Children are capable of learning how to meet reasonable expectations for routines and procedures.
- Ensure that your expectations for procedures and routines are the least restrictive possible while maintaining emotional and physical safety.
- Maintain consistent, predictable routines as much as possible, and inform students when a change in the routine is necessary.
- Teach expectations for routines and procedures using multiple methods and incorporating visuals. Post visuals throughout the classroom & school to remind children of expectations.
- Have a growth mindset: not meeting expectations is a sign that more practice, not punishment, is needed.
Why Consistent Routines Work
Establishing consistent routines helps children feel safe because their environment is predictable. They are not left wondering what will happen next, whether they will be safe, or whether they will be prepared. This feeling of safety allows them to remain physiologically regulated, build trusting relationships, and focus their mental energy on learning.
Teaching and trusting children to meet reasonable expectations helps them build self-regulation skills. When children are constantly externally controlled or held to rigid behavioral expectations, they miss out on this opportunity.
While ‘equity’ is a big idea, it lives concretely in the ways you expect children to interact throughout the day. Classrooms centered on equity prioritize students’ freedom of movement and expression. Ensuring that your procedures, routines, and expectations are the least restrictive possible - while maintaining emotional and physical safety - will help children experience a classroom community of equal members.
Promoting freedom of movement and expression within safe limits helps children understand the acceptable boundaries of comportment in a classroom, which are not self-evident or obvious to children.
Establish a Daily Schedule
First, design your schedule, considering:
- Children need a balance of group time and independent work time so that they can develop a variety of skills, like paying attention and listening but also self-direction and persistence on a task.
- Children have physical needs for frequent opportunities for movement. This can be accomplished within individual activities, as transitions between activities, and as entire activities. Place movement opportunities strategically throughout the day.
- Children need a balance of active time and quiet time (think centers and outdoor time versus a read aloud).
- Integrating components of Strong Start at strategic points will help students remain ready for learning. Consider when students become antsy or highenergy and plan for Purposeful Partnering, Community Building, or Breathe & Focus rituals at these times.
Carefully construct a daily routine that meets students ’ needs and sets them up for success.
Next, teach and use your schedule
- Create a visual daily schedule
- Review the schedule daily
- Discuss any changes that day
- Refer to it as you change blocks during the day, moving a clothespin or other marker to each new block.
These steps are especially important at the beginning of the year and for younger children.
Your daily schedule establishes the structures that will enable students to meet academic, social-emotional, and physical development outcomes.
Tips: Include main schedule blocks in words and pictures. You may use photos of students in each block to best show what happens. Post the schedule at a level that students can see it.
Create Routines & Procedures
Create your routines, considering:
- Set a clear, specific vision for students’ movement, voice, and participation during each routine and procedure.
- Ensure that your expectations are age-appropriate and reasonable.
- Structure procedures to be efficient but also maximize students’ autonomy. In many cases this will also reduce your workload by sharing responsibility with students.
- Embed learning or purposeful activity whenever possible.
You will likely have procedures & routines for:
- Greetings & morning/entry routine
- Breakfast
- Carpet time
- Centers or stations
- Taking out and putting away materials
- Lining up
- Walking in the hallway
- Lunchtime
- Recess
- Transitioning to specials/electives or departmentalized team teacher’s room
- Getting the teacher’s attention, getting a tissue, and other needs during instruction
- Getting students’ attention
- Using the restroom
- What to do when done with seatwork
- Dismissal
Teach Routines & Procedures
Use social stories to teach routines & procedures.
- Customize social stories to show and tell your precise expectations.
- Read and re-read as you introduce and practice routines and procedures.
Consistent procedures and routines help keep your classroom running efficiently and help students feel safe because they know what to do.
Add social stories to the classroom library for students to read independently!
Post Visual Expectations
How are visual expectations helpful?
- Visual expectations are useful for communicating situation-specific guidelines for behavior (movement, voice, participation).
- Providing visuals allows pre-readers and early readers to access this essential information and begin to monitor & regulate their own behavior.
- Teachers can use these visuals to teach, re-teach, and redirect students.
Visual expectations posters show behavior guidelines in words & pictures.
Tips for creating visual expectations posters
Post the expectations signs at a level where students can see them. It may be helpful to laminate or frame expectations signs for durability.
Provide one or two ways to meet the expectations and, if relevant, one nonexample showing a likely mistake.
Use photos of students, clip art, or other graphics. See www.wholechildmodel.org for printable expectations posters!
Post visual expectations wherever students complete a routine or procedure.
