At Risk Behavior

At Risk Behavior
Shawna R. Saylor

The student described in the reading exhibits at-risk behaviors. One at-risk behavior is that the student is constantly daydreaming. It has been observed that during lectures and class discussions the student is often unfocused. Instead of paying attention and taking notes or raising his hand and participating, the student stares off into space or out windows. The student is often missing out on valuable information that is discussed during these lessons. Many questions that are gone over during discussions will appear on tests and quizzes. In addition the student is missing out on class participation points due to lack of participation. Another at-risk behavior the students shows is having a hard time sitting still in a chair. The student often stands at his desk. Often times the student is shuffling in his seat, constantly moving to different positions in the chair. The student often fumbles with items in his desk. This constant moving and shuffling is a distraction to other students as well as to the student himself. It is imperative that the students remain seated for order to be obtained within the classroom. It is also important for the student to be able to sit still for a length of time necessary to focus and complete the assignments.
A third at-risk behavior the student exhibits is sleeping in class. During morning lesson and often time afternoon lesson the child falls asleep in class. He will simply lay his head on his desk and go to sleep. This is problematic because the child is missing out on activities and lessons that are being taught while he sleeps. This is also a distraction to the rest of the class.
Possible interventions for the at-risk behavior of the child daydreaming may include moving the child to the front of the classroom. If the child is directly in front of the teacher it may be harder for the child to lose focus. Instead of having windows so stare out at the child will only