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CWPBIS Self-Reflection and Planning Tools 2026

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Tier 1 Practices Learn from teachers as they model strategies and explain how procedures work effectively in their classrooms. These are the practices that teachers and educators have been using for decades to create safe and supportive schools. Please share ideas and feedback to help us grow this

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CWPBIS Self-Reflection and Planning Tools 2026

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Scenarios Padlet Activity

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Class-wide Practices Self-Reflection Padlet

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Copy and edit your own class management plan using this template

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Blurt Beans: Classroom Management Strategies - Teacher’s Brain

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Blurt Bean Jars are amazing for helping to reduce classroom interruptions! Students love their beans, writing about beans and improve quickly.

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Blurt Beans: Classroom Management Strategies - Teacher’s Brain

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Blurt Bean Jars are amazing for helping to reduce classroom interruptions! Students love their beans, writing about beans and improve quickly.

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Looking for classroom behavior chart ideas? You've come to the right place! These behavior charts for school are teacher-tested and focus on positive reinforcement rather than shaming or punishment.

[You might also be interested in 5 Reasons Why I Won't Use a Behavior Chart, too!]

1.Digital Marbles

The digital marble jar method is good for teachers who do not have a lot extra space in their rooms or who do not want to have a physical jar or marbles in the room. When a student earns a marble, the digital marble is placed in the jar. When the marble jar is filled up, the class received the pre-determined prize. Not into marbles? That's okay. You can also choose digital cookies, sundaes, hot cocoa, and more.

Source: Teaching in the Tongass

2. Blurt Beans

Blurting out answers is one of the speediest ways for a classroom to get out of control. It's a slippery slope from one student blurting out an answer to everyone talking at once. The Blurt Beans is a neat classroom management system that allows students to physically see the effects of their actions. Each day every student is given X number of beans. If they talk out of turn, you simply take away a bean. Students may place their beans (if they have any left) in this jar at the end of the day.

Source: Miss Giraffe's Classroom

3. Behavior Bingo

Behavior Bingo is another behavior tracking method that focuses only on the positive. To make this you need a few rocks (or the small glass gems that are made for vases) with magnets hot glued to the back. The student must place the rock (which has a number painted on it) on the corresponding square. When a line is filled, the class can receive the pre-determined prize or activity. This activity fosters community because the students root for each other to get certain numbers to complete a line.

Source: One Sharp Bunch

4. Personal Clip Chart

There are many classroom management methods that involve clothespins; however, most of them involve putting everyone's clothespins on one chart. The benefit of the personal chart is that each student focuses on his/her own chart. It also gives the student a clear visual warning which may help stop the unwanted behavior in its tracks.

Source: What the Teacher Wants

5. Classroom Data Sheets

Classroom data sheets are fun spin off the old standby behavior chart. This method encourages each student to look at his / her own behavior patterns for a month a time. Each student can take this monthly report home to get signed by a parent. Bonus: this method doubles as a math lesson about graphs and charts.

Source: Teaching with Love and Laughter

6. Star Bucks

Star Bucks is a fun play on Monopoly Money and Star Wars. Students receive money for good behavior such as good listening or completing specials deeds or services. On the flip side, students must pay the teacher when s/he engages in certain behaviors like talking to a neighbor or blurting out answers. At certain intervals (e.g. every Friday afternoon) students can "shop" with whatever money they have left at the end of the week.

Source: Southern Fried Teaching

7. Classroom Coupons

Class coupons are similar to the Star Bucks but instead of shopping with currency, the coupons are exchanged for certain activities. For instance, a student may have the coupon for "switch seats" in which he could relocate his desk to be near a friend. Other ideas include: wear sunglasses to school, extra computer time, or sit with a friend.

Source: Proud to Be Primary: Class Coupons

8. Daily Behavior Charts

This behavior chart tracks behavior during each subject of the day. What this does is allow each student to "recover" from a low mark and do better in the next segment of the day. Also, the chart doesn't refer to negative behavior ("bad behavior"); instead, behavior is simply rated with a number. Grab this free (and editable!) printable by clicking the link below.

Source: What I Have Learned

9. Bee-havior Punch Cards

Bee-havior punch cards are a cute way to encourage good behavior. Students are rewarded for filling up a whole punch card. It's up to you what happens when the punch card is filled. Maybe you have a little treasure chest that students pick prizes from, or maybe you offer extra free time. Whatever the reward is, your students will look forward to the reward with each punch in the card.

Source: First Grade At Last

10. Team Tables

What better way to track behavior than to encourage a healthy sense of competition. This method involves each table working together to earn points. Not only will this foster community among students but it will also give them the opportunity to practice good sportsmanship. When the table works together as a team, they are rewarded. Print these fun labels and laminate them and you'll be on your way to a happier, more well-behaved classroom.

Source: Proud to Be Primary: Team Tables
Have more classroom behavior chart ideas? Come and share in our WeAreTeachers HELPLINE group on Facebook. And here are a few more of our favorite resources on managing student behavior:

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10 Creative Ideas for Tracking Classroom Behavior

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Looking for classroom behavior chart ideas? You've come to the right place! These behavior charts focus on positive reinforcement.

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Support EF/SR to Engage Learners Choice Board 2025

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Thinking Routines

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Visible Thinking is a flexible and systematic research-based conceptual framework, which aims to integrate the development of students' thinking with content learning across subject matters.

Visible Thinking began as an initiative to develop a research-based approach to teaching thinking dispositions. The approach emphasized three core practices: thinking routines, the documentation of student thinking, and reflective professional practice. It was originally developed at Lemshaga Akademi in Sweden as part of the Innovating with Intelligence project, and focused on developing students' thinking dispositions in such areas as truth-seeking, understanding, fairness, and imagination. It has since expanded its focus to include an emphasis on thinking through art and the role of cultural forces and has informed the development of other Project Zero Visible Thinking initiatives, including Artful Thinking, and Cultures of Thinking.

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Visible Thinking is a flexible and systematic research-based conceptual framework, which aims to integrate the development of students' thinking with content learning across subject matters. Visible Thinking began as an initiative to develop a research-based approach to teaching thinking dispositions. The approach emphasized three core practices: thinking routines, the documentation of student thinking, and reflective professional practice.

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Working Memory Strategies

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Strategies for Planning and Prioritizing

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Developing Executive Function With Priority Lists

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Strategies to Support Cognitive Flexibility

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Bolstering Skills in Middle/High School Student

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Bolstering Skills in Middle/High School Student

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Bolstering Executive Function in Middle and High School Students

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Simple classroom strategies can assist students with deficits in executive function skills like time management and active listening.

©Shutterstock/T. L. Furrer

Executive function is an umbrella term in neuroscience to describe the neurological processes involving mental control and self-regulation. Executive functions control and regulate cognitive and social behaviors like controlling impulses, paying attention, remembering information, planning and organizing time and materials, and responding appropriately to social situations and stressful situations.

Experts believe executive function is regulated by the frontal lobe of the brain-the prefrontal cortex. Because humans are born with brains that are not fully developed, children are not born with these skills, but they have the potential to develop them.

Some students do not develop executive functions to the same degree as their peers. For these students with deficits, additional support in the classroom may improve their development of executive function.

Offering Teaching Support

Addressing a deficit requires understanding the type of deficiency the student faces. If a student lacks knowledge, he or she does not know what to do or how to do a task. For example, if students lack the ability to regulate their impulses to speak while others are talking, the behavior of active listening should be explicitly taught by identifying examples of active listening. Educators might also create a chart with what it looks and sounds like when students are engaging in active listening.

A student may know what to do to complete a task, but may have trouble knowing when and how to apply the appropriate skills. For a student with this type of deficit, the teacher may confirm that he or she has all the required materials to complete a task. The teacher could provide a checklist with the necessary materials. For older students, the teacher could ask the students to generate the list and then gather the appropriate materials.

Metacognition: Another strategy for addressing deficits in executive function is using metacognitive language. For example, with a younger student, articulating the challenge could be useful. "I see that you are missing a pencil. You will need a pencil to complete the assignment. Where could you find one in the classroom?"

Displaying the steps or questions that students could ask themselves in the classroom is also helpful to promote independence with a skill. Students can repeat directions to a partner and then have a volunteer repeat the direction for the whole class. This process takes less than a minute but allows additional time for auditory processing and repetition for any students who may need it.

Time management: Posting schedules can be a useful tool in developing time management skills. A classroom schedule outlines the entire day and prepares students for what's coming next. An activity schedule breaks down a block of time into smaller chunks and outlines how each period will be used and in what order activities will be presented. These schedules are commonly placed in spots where every student can refer to them during the day.

Long-term assignments can be particularly challenging for students with deficits in executive function. One way to address this issue is by directly teaching students how to map out larger projects and break them down into smaller, more manageable pieces. Use a calendar to determine when each smaller assignment will need to be finished, and place the smaller benchmark goals on the calendar.

Review before new learning begins: Provide opportunities for students to review previous learning. This review may be a quick oral presentation, or teachers can pair students and have them share what they remember from the previous day.

A review might also take the form of a mind map or concept map created in small groups. Concept maps are useful graphic organizers for note taking, comparing/contrasting, and writing. Graphic organizers can be particularly helpful for students with executive function deficits because organizing thoughts can be as difficult as organizing time and materials.

Teacher interaction: Teacher behavior is also influential in supporting students who may have deficits in executive function. Teachers should check in frequently with students who are known to have deficits and provide discrete support when needed. In addition, having a caring demeanor and using positive reinforcement with students with deficits can positively affect their school experience.

Offering Environmental Support

Post a daily schedule. Clear and consistent routines and procedures offer structure to students.

Provide visual supports such as posters with problem-solving steps or routines, and color-coded schedules and folders. Consider highlighting key words and ideas in texts.

Minimize clutter and create clearly defined areas in the classroom.

Environmental support means creating a space where children can thrive. Some easy ways to help students improve executive function include:

Potential for Growth

Executive function takes time to fully develop, and it develops at different rates in different children. The prefrontal cortex of the human brain is constantly growing and changing in young children as well as adolescents. Because of the human brain's plasticity and enormous capacity for learning, it is possible to improve the executive functions of students with deficits through classroom strategies and support.

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Helping Students Develop Executive Function Skills

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Simple classroom strategies can assist students with deficits in executive function skills like time management and active listening.

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Resource Padlet with More Ideas for EF

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brain science

This post is written by Charrell Coleman, author, blog content creator, educator, presenter of Student Engagement and Executive Functioning Matters, book junkie, self help/care enthusiast, mother & calligraphist. You can follow her on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram @heartucator. Check out her blog at teachyourheartoutcon.com/blog.

Have you ever wondered why students with learning or behavior issues in school perform better in some classes, poorly in others and inconsistent in others? Typically if this is the case in elementary school for a student, it only worsens by secondary level.

Executive function profiles are not equally problematic in different settings. Research shows that students with developmental executive function weakness generally require far greater adult supervision than their developing peers across grade levels. (Barkley, 1997, 2006). Therefore these students need strategies that move them to the front of the class. We want to assure these students are not left behind!

Skills that help students with organization, homework completion, time management, and impulse control are executive functioning skills. Although the ultimate goal is for students to learn how to complete tasks independently, teaching and modeling strategies will help students move towards independence rather than forcing them to use skills they don't yet have.

7 strategies for students who struggle with executive functioning

Giving students an "artificial frontal lobe" is almost like giving the brain a booster or a head start in the learning process. Consider these strategies as adding artificial flavoring to make it just the right taste of learning!

Give one-on -one instruction after group or whole group lesson

Provide guided practice as you teach the lesson

Start homework in class so that students can ask any questions. During this time, the teacher will demonstrate the expectation of the homework task.

Use a project planning form for long term projects

Sit with students to plan out time projected for each task-

Post visual reminders in students' immediate sight, whether it is on their desk, on the wall, or the board

This includes writing strategies, reading strategies, math formulas.

Social Mentoring: A trained adult provides the students with severe executive deficits with an adult or more socially skilled peer for specific periods of the day to serve as their social coach.

Be clear about when tasks are due by listing dates on the school's LMS and class page.

At the beginning of each month, have students write dates on a monthly calendar of any assessment or due date you will require

Teach the material to the whole group/small group, pause to discuss, allowing collaboration and discussion to emphasize the importance of students' voice

Have a visual representation of the material you may be teaching on the board or an anchor chart when possible

When reading stories or novels, have an auditory version for students to follow along if needed (Learning Ally, TeacherTube, Youtube, SOAR, or any other resources.

Check to see if websites have an immersive reader feature

When teaching vocabulary, have students act out the words using the pantomime game or play Win Lose or Draw for student engagement. Follow up with a writing activity as an application exercise.

Build student comprehension of a text read aloud to the class by stopping at every page or two to have fast-paced role-playing, discuss the critical plots for element story elements of that story, and also have students discuss with a partner or partners

Provide students with comprehension questions to the answer before they read the question and then stop to explicitly discuss the answers and questions as a group or as a whole

Have students track how much time it takes them to complete a task completely undisturbed by using a timer or an app like RescueTime, then write their start and finish time. (This means multitasking is off the table.)

Model pre-reading strategies. For example, read an article from Newsela, your local newspaper, etc. Afterward, organize and summarize information by using a KWL chart.

Explicitly model the writing process using expert, proficient, and novice-level writing samples.

Use the HEAR strategy to organize and sequence students' thoughts while writing.

You might hear students say things like, "I can't keep all my thoughts in my head" or " everything you're saying is just too much, and it makes my head hurt." These are signs of memory overload.

Here are a few valuable tools:

Encourage students to use sticky notes to remember tasks in each class to avoid memory overload by the end of the day. Transfer this information to one centralized place before the midpoint in their day if possible.

Use apps like Forest to avoid distractions while working on a task.

Break tasks into smaller tasks. For example, when writing, have students start with the pre-write process. Pause and conference with students before beginning the planning and outlining process.

Use rubrics and checklists in all writing tasks for a visual. Now turn these rubrics or checklists into your grading rubric as a time saver!

The stronger your working memory, the less your brain has to work. This can make room for more brain power when encountering new challenges. Russell Barkley calls our working memory our brain's GPS.

Use guided oral reading practice exercises. Many students with executive function skills find reading boring and laborious.

Use writing templates, math templates, reading diagrams throughout the year.

Present new skills in a spiraling manner. Keep reviewing skills.

Do role-playing and demonstrations of class rules once a week.

Kiss your brain with consistency! The brain loves predictability!

When students enter your learning space, always have a calendar with upcoming assessments and due dates of an assigned task.

Set aside the same day each week to plan out the week on their digital or paper calendar (including students' extracurricular activities and family events). This will look different for each student. I create a Google Calendar for the class and share it with them to edit their calendars. Students add their extracurricular and family events to this calendar.

At the beginning of the year, develop a homework and project turn-in (this includes where things are physically turned in). Try to stick to this and not tweak this too much. Keep the same routines so that students know where to find things.

Try to arrange for your test to be on a specific day of the week if possible. From a school-wide approach, this looks like :

Have the schedule for the day printed on the board when students walk in each day

Develop classroom-wide organizational systems such as English items on blue paper, Math items on white paper, reading on lavender paper

Keep binder dividers in sync with color coding and in a specific order school-wide.

Use the same heading for papers school-wide. i.e. Decide if students need a Name, Date, Class Sec, and Topic and whether this should be on the left or right side of the paper.

Perform binder checks so that students know that the organization of the binder is essential.

Open up class with check-ins. Take time to ask each student how they are Arriving at class. I created my own set of emojipresssions, google slides and use online resources.

While students are working on a task, play calming music with interactive backgrounds on a projection board when possible help to set the mood for learning and settles the nervous system

Practice simple meditation. It is one of the most effective ways to access the use of your executive functions. This helps students who need assistance with self-awareness and stabilizes the nervous system. Calm App and Headspace App have many features for the classroom.

Use mindfulness techniques. You can find yoga and tai chi quick exercises on YouTube when you notice students need to self-regulate.

Allow Brain Breaks. Students enjoy having dance parties to rejuvenate the dendrites in the brain. GoNoodle has a variety to choose from.

Allow students to share in your mistakes and challenges. Say aloud to them that you have made a mistake and are frustrated. (For example: "Girls and boys, I have no idea why I keep spelling that word incorrectly. This frustrates me. Are there any ideas on how I can help myself break this cycle?" Start the discussion about how you handled the situation and how you could have handled the situation differently.) Students will begin to view you as a person who is just human and gain tremendous respect for you. This also creates a safe space for students to make your flaws transparent to them!

What strategies do you use to help students who struggle with executive functioning? Share in a comment below!

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7 strategies for students who struggle with executive functioning

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Executive functioning helps students get tasks done and work through their day. Here's how you can support students who struggle. This post is written by

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Using Acknowledgements in a PBIS Framework

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Copy and edit your own class management plan using this template

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SCTG Webinar December 8, 2021: Equitable Classroom Acknowledgment Systems

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Training Series Agenda w-Links

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NJCIE Student Behavior Support Series 2024-25

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Link to Self Regulation for Engagement Padlet of Resources

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focus scale strategy w-checkin sheet 2023

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Social Behavior Mapping to Set Expectations for Problematic Routines

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Complete the classroom management self-reflection to determine if adjustments are needed in your existing classroom management plan...

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Pick a scenario or two and brainstorm your ideas for addressing the behavior issue described...

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Read the article on tiered class management plans, then consider how you might apply this in your classroom...

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Click the link to access and explore the Classroom Management Padlet for Secondary Students...

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Click to access and explore the Classroom Management padlet for Elementary Schools...

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Brainstorm potential "triggers" and ways you would try to address them...

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Use the list to identify strategies that you might try...

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As you watch the video, look for things that seem to "trigger" Caleb's behavior. Think about what you would do if you found yourself in this situation...

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Use the worksheet to record things you would like to include in your classroom management plan...

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Link to Self Regulation for Engagement Padlet of Resources

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Tiered Systems of Supports for Behavior in Classrooms

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Feelings Check-in for Emotional Reg Materials

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Zones of Regulation Padlet