AX

I’ve written hundreds of behavior referrals for students, mostly when I’ve had to kick them out of my classroom. For my first two years, when I taught at a middle school, students who were sent out of class went to our in-school suspension room, strangely known as the Opportunity Room, or OP room. Students were almost always held there for the remainder of the period, then sent on to their next class, and expected to return to my class the next day—with no real consequences. Here are the referrals I wrote for one student who we’ll call AX:

9/8/10 AX bragged in class about being sent out of class by Coach X, but then not going to the Opportunity Room, and not getting caught. Coach X confirmed that he had recently sent AX out, and Ms. Y confirmed that he never showed up.

9/16/10 At the beginning of class AX ran around the room slapping people, “giving them the bloop.” He then kept talking repeatedly while I was teaching, and he also threw a paper ball at someone. I sent him to Ms. X for a time-out.

10/4/10 AX ran around the classroom with V. He threw another student’s binder and possessions on the floor. He kept beating rhythms, tapping his pencil, and whistling. I sent him to Ms. X for a time-out.

10/5/10 AX ran into the classroom when he was still supposed to be in line in the hallway. He interrupted my teaching to yell “I need my fucking pencil!” I gave him a “strike,” and he defiantly answered “I don’t care.” I told him to go to the OP Room. He refused to leave for a long time.

10/18/10 AX kept beating rhythms on the desk, kept singing, kept rapping, and hit another student.

10/19/10 AX kept beating rhythms on the desk, kept rapping, and kept singing.

10/20/10 AX kept beating rhythms on the desk, repeatedly ignored my instructions, kept singing, and did little to no work.

12/2/10 AX kept talking while I tried to teach, kept shouting out while I tried to teach, kept making strange noises, kept singing, kept rapping, and kept beating rhythms on the desk. Once we began independent work time, AX kept singing, rapping, and beating rhythms on his desk constantly, despite numerous warnings, until he was sent to the Opportunity Room.

12/6/10 As he does almost daily, AX kept singing, kept rapping, kept beating rhythms on the desk, and kept making strange noises.

12/9/10 AX keeps singing, rapping, and beating rhythms all class long. He knows that from now on, any time he’s doing these things it earns him a “strike.” Today he almost got sent out because of it. I called and left a message for his mother describing his behavior, and the consequences if he continues.

12/10/10 AX came late to class, and he almost got himself sent to the Opportunity Room by beating on his desk, singing, and rapping. He also talked back when redirected.

1/14/11 AX kept whistling in class, he sang and rapped, and then when redirected he got angry and said “you got me fucked up, bitch.” I told AX that I’d heard what he said, and he needed to go to the Opportunity Room. He left without argument.

3/1/11 AX loudly beat rhythms on the lockers in the hall, ignored my instructions to stop, slammed his desk back into other people’s desks, and then kept singing and rapping until I sent him to the Opportunity Room.

4/28/11 AX kept talking and talking and talking while I tried to teach!

6/1/11 AX kept singing and rapping, and saying antagonistic things to me and to students. He kept repeating jokes about “dees nuts” (e.g. “You want CDs? To see dees nuts?!”) over and over and over, and absolutely refused to stop, and defied all my redirections and warnings.