AMS Cool Tool:
Universal Expectation: Be respectful
Focus Area: Respect All Adults at AMS
Grade Level: 5-8
Purpose of Lesson
Students sometimes behave differently for their classroom teachers than they do for other
adults in the building. For their teachers, they follow directions, control their actions and speak
respectfully. However, when they are with other adults in the building they may not follow the
expectations Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe, and Be Ready to Learn. To be sure that
Altoona Middle School is a safe and positive learning environment for all, we are going to discuss
how to act responsibly and respectfully with adults in the building that are not your teacher.
Expectations
Specifics
Be respectful
Speak quietly and politely
Raise hand to share
Respond positively to teachers and
classmates
Listen to others
Follow adult directions
Say “Please” and “Thank you”
Teaching Examples/Student Activities
Teachers Demonstrate/Students Model and Practice Positive Behaviors
• What do you think the job of a guest teacher is like? What might be some
problems a guest teacher might face during the day? (job might be confusing at
first, knowing who everyone is in the class, how the class routine is conducted, how
to handle unusual situations, people giving them wrong information)
• How does your classroom teacher expect you to behave with a guest teacher?
(the same, worse…or better than usual?)
• Why do some students show their worst behavior when there is a guest teacher?
(sub is easily confused, students might think they won’t be punished for bad
behavior, they think it is funny/fun)
• What will the class do the next time there is a guest teacher? How will the class
Be Respectful, Be Responsible, Be Safe, and Be Ready to Learn when there is a
guest teacher?
• Why do some classrooms have aides and other support staff? (to help students
be more successful in the classroom, to help the teacher, to help children who have
trouble hearing or difficult learning)
• What are some things classroom aides and support staff do?
• How do you think a classroom aide/support staff should be treated? (with
respect, just like any other adult)
• Teachers, discuss with the class how important an aide is to you and how s/he
helps you.
• How does a bus driver make getting to school easier – or even possible – for some
students? (parents can’t drive because they have to get to work, some families
don’t have a car, students live a long way from school and driving to school
everyday would be too hard)
• What does a bus driver need to think about when s/he is operating the bus?
(other cars, stopping at the right places, watching out for children that are walking
rules of the road, etc.)
• What are some problems a bus driver might have if students aren’t being
respectful? (lack of concentration, might have an accident, longer bus ride)
• What are the expectations for riding the bus? ( Follow adult directions, Speak
quietly and politely, Interact positively with others, Keep hands and feet to
yourself).
• What are some of the jobs the custodian does? (fixes things that are broken,
keeps the building clean, helps find things – like lost balls on the roof)
• Why are these jobs important? (helps keep things running properly, keeps the
school safe, makes the school a pleasant place to be, etc.)
• Does the custodian deserve the same respect as any other adult in the building?
Should students listen when s/he gives them directions?
• How can we show respect to the custodian? (keep things clean, respect the
building by talking care of it – not writing on walls or breaking things, listen to
him/her)
• Are the secretaries important to the school? Why? ( they keep track of
attendance, they help Mr. Pszeniczny do his job, they help
children when they have hurt themselves and when they are sick, they keep the
school runing smoothly). What are some ways that we can show respect to the
secretaries? (ask politely, be patient when waiting your turn, be sure to say thank
you, be friendly).
Teaching Scenarios
1. Guest teachers: Mrs. Cihasky could not come to school today because she has
the flu. All during the day Robert helped the guest teacher by telling her how the
class did attendance and handed back papers. He also followed her directions,
even though she did things differently than Mrs. Cihasky. Mikah, however, tried to
trick the guest teacher into thinking that students were allowed to sit anywhere
they wanted. He also did not follow her directions, and complained loudly that she
didn’t do things the right way. Compare the actions of Robert and Mikah. Which
one was respectful to the guest teacher and which one could have been more
helpful?
2. Classroom aides and support staff: Mrs. Hibray was busy helping some students
in Mrs. Navarre’s class. Beatriz was talking to Jane instead of working on the
assignment. Ms. Hibray reminded them that this was a time for working instead of
talking. The girls gave her a cold stare and continued talking. Is this the type of
behavior that we expect from AMS students? Discuss with your teacher what
being respectful to classroom aides and support staff looks like.
3. School bus drivers: Faith and Hope were riding the bus to school on Monday.
They were having lots of fun talking with their friends. The problem was that their
friends were sitting four rows behind them and they were yelling to be heard. The
bus driver told them to lower their voices because they were too loud. Hope told
the driver she didn’t think her voice was too loud, and kept shouting to her friends
four rows behind her. As they were driving, the driver could barely hear an
ambulance siren at an intersection. Luckily, the driver heard it just in time to pull
over and avoid being hit by the ambulance. What type of consequence did
disrepsect almost have in this situation? Can you think of other reasons to be
respectful to bus drivers?
4. School custodians: Mrs. Ottinger was busy cleaning snow off the sidewalks when
she noticed Zach and Tyler throwing a ball back and forth near the lunchroom
windows. She asked them to move because she was afraid they might hit a window
and break it. Zach said, “Oh, sorry, Mrs. Ottinger. We’ll move over here away from
the windows.” Even though Mrs. Ottinger is not a teacher, why is it important to be
respectful to her?
5. School secretary: Mrs. Watt was busy answering the phones and doing her
morning paper work. Kendell came in and said he wanted to use the phone to call his
mom. Gloria and Josh said they wanted passes to class because they were late.
John wanted his temperature taken because he wasn’t feeling well. Kathleen
wanted her medicine before she went to class, and Bobby had been sent to the
office because he hit someone while putting his coat in his locker. All this was
happening at the same time and not one “Please” was said to Mrs. Watt in the
office. How do you think she was feeling? How could these students have been
more respectful to the secretary?
Reinforcements/Acknowledgements
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Reinforce individual students, groups of students, or the class for being
respectful toward other adults in the building with a compliment and/or a
ticket.
Provide a verbal reminder if you notice a student is being disrespectful.
Prompt and pre-teach students to be respectful toward ALL adults in the
building.
Provide specific feedback to your students during and after identified skill
practice.