The Behavior We Must Not Ignore

Ignore Distractions.

That is posted on many of our anchor charts and has become one of the most pivotal behaviors of stamina building. To have stamina and stay engaged in one task, you must work to not let your attention wane or become distracted. To do this, it is helpful to learn how to stay focused.

When listing behaviors for Read to Self, Work on Writing, sitting in the gathering area, or any task that requires focus, we consider behaviors we can control. Get started right away, stay in one spot, work quietly, work the whole time . . . Those are all behaviors that an individual person can control on their own. A person can’t, however, control the behaviors of another student who is disruptive. It can be a bit defeating to work hard at building stamina only to have someone disrupt your learning. That is why we added “ignore distractions” to the list of desired behaviors on many of our I-charts. Ignoring distractions gives the control back to the individual learner. They can’t control another student’s outburst, but they can control how they react to it.

It is important that we not just list this behavior on the I-chart, but that we explain what it means. What does it look like and feel like to ignore distractions? It means

I won’t look up or make eye contact.

I will keep working.

I will stay focused.

We model this behavior for students and let them know that although it is hard, it can be done.

When stamina is progressing at a slower rate than you would like, or if it has stopped growing altogether, you may want to consider a brief lesson on this one behavior. Equipping students with the skill to ignore distractions will not only increase class stamina but also help them far beyond the four walls of your classroom.