‘Through the rainstorm came sanctuary, and I felt my spirit fly’ ~Seal, Love’s Divine
If you’re like most teachers, you don’t keep your students in time-out long enough. For a majority of students, regardless of grade level, five or ten minutes won’t cut it.
They need at least fifteen minutes in order to…
- Calm their emotions.
- Reflect on their misbehavior.
- Feel remorseful.
- Accept responsibility.
Unless these conditions are met, time-out is a waste of time; behavior won’t change and the same students will break the same rules time and again.
Teachers often forget that time-out is meant to discourage future misbehavior. It’s not a formality. It’s not a hoop your students jump through. And it’s not a way to get them out of your hair.
It’s a tool to motivate students to improve.
If time-out doesn’t have meaning for them, if they don’t feel something as a result, then it’s worth nothing. You might as well not even use it.
The Three Requirements Of Time-Out
For real, behavior-changing time-out, fifteen minutes is minimum. The maximum depends on the student and is based on their fulfillment of three clear-cut requirements:
Requirement #1: Do what is asked.
The student must sit quietly in time-out while doing the work you’ve assigned—even if it’s simply paying attention to your lesson. If he (or she) does what you ask during those first fifteen minutes, then stroll by and whisper, “Let me know when you’re ready to return to your seat.”
Requirement #2: Take initiative.
When the student feels he has learned his lesson and is ready to accept responsibility for his misbehavior, then he must raise his hand and wait patiently. When you have a moment, approach him with a simple, “Yes?” (As in, “Can I help you with something?”)
Requirement #3: Take responsibility.
In his own words, the student must then take responsibility for misbehaving by showing remorse and resolving not to make the same mistake again. If you’re satisfied with what he has to say, then welcome him back with a smile. If not, then let him marinate in time-out a while longer.
Note: You must teach and model how to fulfill each requirement before expecting them from your students.
From The Heart
If the student is truly repentant, if it’s clear his words are coming from the heart, then the time-out will prove effective. If he is simply going through the motions to appease you, however, then he isn’t ready to return to class.
He must convince you he is ready.
The onus is on the student, not you. This is where the power of time-out comes from–that is, with the burden of responsibility resting solely on his shoulders.
When you use the three requirements, misbehaving students must choose to be agreeable to your rules or remain in time-out.
It’s up to them. But having this choice makes all the difference and leads to true accountability.
Strength & Tenderness
Time-out means nothing and does nothing unless your students are affected by the experience. They have to care. Otherwise, it’s a waste of time. And your students will see time-out as a not-so-unpleasant punishment that, as long as they sit through, provides them a ticket to the free and clear.
This is yet another reason why it’s critical that you continually work toward creating a classroom that your students like–even love–being a part of.
If your students are bored and unhappy being in your classroom, if you have poor classroom management skills and your students are disruptive and bothersome, then time-out will have little if any effect.
Because they just won’t care.
One of the core principles of Smart Classroom Management is that non-negotiable boundary lines of behavior, when coupled with a classroom your students like being part of, makes for extraordinarily effective classroom management.
Knowing that there is real, weight-bearing accountability on the other side of your boundary lines will give your students the freedom to explore, to grow, and to soar within them.
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Hey Micheal,
I love your articles. How can I deal with the students who have loud voices, and talk or laugh loudly in the classroom?
sariya
Hi Sariya,
It depends on when it’s happening. If they’re talking or laughing loudly when they should be doing their work, then enforce it with a consequence–follow your classroom management plan. If it’s during a time when you prefer they talk with softer voices, then you have to be clear about what you want and expect from them. I’ll be writing an article on this topic in the near future, perhaps next week, which will include a few simple strategies. I hope you’ll tune in.
Michael
Hello,
I love your articles. I ran across them some days ago because I was desperate. I’ m an English Teacher, and I work at a high school with teenagers ages 12 to 16. As you can imagine my biggest problem is classroom management, especially with the biggest students. The head mistress believes that with a smile you can deal with even the most difficult students, but as their behaviour is everyday worse she decided that I have to send the students to her office when they are off task, talking and so on in the classroom, I commented to her about your website and your ideas and she told me that the students are going to laugh at me if I follow your suggestions and that I have to send them to the office when they are not working and their behaviour is not the expected. I’m desperate because I need something to make my students behaviour better, not just send them to the principal’s office. I’ll lose my job if I don’t find a solution sooner. Hope you can give some suggestion .
Bye. Maria Jose
Hi Maria,
Everything you need to manage your classroom effectively you can find right here on this website. Read through the articles, take notes, and then begin to implement the strategies recommended. This site, along with the book Dream Class, will transform your classroom. Thousands of teachers like you are doing it every day. If you ever have any specific questions, email me. I’m happy to help!
Michael
Another excellent post Michael! I like how your explain the reasoning and purpose for a timeout. If a teacher is going to take classtime to deal with a student he/she better make it effective. I think teachers many times let kids off too easy and without them thinking about their actions. Quite frankly, it shouldn’t be “easy as pie” for a student to rejoin the class.
Some teachers I know require a written letter. What are your thoughts about that?
Thanks,
Bryan
Hi Bryan,
The only problem I have with a written letter is that the student will miss the required work while doing it.
Michael
I’ve always heard that time outs, at least as they are relevant to parenting, should be the same amount of minutes as the age of the child. I guess this doesn’t apply to teaching as well, then. Why do you think 15 minutes is better? I feel like 15 minutes might be too long for a young child.
Hi Ashley,
The four bullet points at the beginning of the article explain why time-out should be at least 15 minutes.
Michael
I have some questions about time out. I am an elementary general music teacher. I have each class for less than 40 minutes usually. I don’t have any time between classes, which makes it really hard to reflect on how the class period went and to make notes about student behavior. Sometimes teachers will ask me “Why did Bobby get into time out?” and I honestly don’t remember because I’ve seen 100 other students since I had Bobby in class, Also, I hesitate to go to step three, taking away recess time, because I’ve had classroom teachers in the past who have said “That kid really needs the recess time to run around and blow off steam” or “I can’t believe he got to that point when he only has you for 40 minutes!” What I end up doing sometimes is sending him/her back into time out. Any thoughts?
Hi Lisa,
Because you see so many students, it’s especially important you have a method for documenting behavior. A simple check-off system on clipboard will do. There is nothing wrong with responding to a teacher’s question about a student with, “I’ll take a look at my notes and get back to you.” It’s part of the job of a specialist like yourself to keep teachers informed (if they wish). Finally, you don’t need to make any apologies regarding the management of your classroom. The truth is as a specialist you’re often at the mercy of the classroom teacher and how well he or she manages their classroom. When your students are with you, they’re your responsibility and you must do what you have to do–and what you know is best for them–to run your classroom successfully.
:)Michael
Hi Michael,
How many time-out desks do you usually have in a classroom? I have two extra desks on the side of the room I could use, but I’m not sure that will be enough for my class, especially on the first day back after break- I’m anticipated really rowdy behavior. I’m planning on following your management plan closely, so I’m hoping I’ll be able to regain control of the room. But I’m wondering if having multiple kids in time out at a time will make it loose its efficacy, or if I’ll simply run out of room for kids in time out. If I don’t have another desk is a seat change good enough?
Thanks!
Hi Frances,
Remember, rules and consequences are only a small part of effective classroom management. You need leverage–through creating a classroom your students enjoy coming to every day. Having said that, two desks for time-out should be enough. If you find you need more than that, then you have to look at other areas of classroom management–rapport, routines, room environment, etc. All of which are written about extensively on this site. 🙂
Michael
Hi Michael,
I’m so glad I found your website! I’m currently student teaching 8th graders and I have very little support from my mentor teacher. I want to implement the Classroom Management plan you suggest, but I’m not sure how to do the time outs. I have 32 students and they fill every seat. The classroom is very small so if I brought in a chair, the students would still be sitting very close to their peers. The only spot where there is some room is at the front of the classroom, by my white board. I think this would cause my class clowns to try to get the rest of the students to laugh the whole time. I don’t want my students to miss class, but I’m not sure where to send them. Any suggestions?? Should I ever send kids out of the classroom? Thank you!
Hi Emilie,
I don’t recommend sending students out of your classroom. They should be responsible for all instruction while in time-out. As for your other question, for time-out to be effective, your students have to want to be part of the class. Thus, time-out need only be a symbolic separation from the rest of the class. A desk separated by only few feet is fine enough for showing that they’re no longer a participating member of the class. If a student is silly in time-out, then follow through with the next consequence.
Good luck! I know teaching in someone else’s classroom is tough, particularly if their style differs from your own. It’s a good experience, though, if only to learn what not to do. No matter what, remember that it isn’t at all indicative of how successful you’ll be in your career.
:)Michael
Hi Michael,
Thanks so much for your quick reply! I’m going to rearrange my seating chart today and figure out a symbolic time-out desk. I have to say that student teaching is much more challenging than I expected, but I am learning so much! Even on hard days, I still really enjoy it. I just bought your book and I’m looking forward to reading it.
You’re welcome, Emilie!
Can this work on the high school level? I’m thinking of making my second consequence a chat in the hall. I would tell the students to meet me in the hallway. Once there, I say : “I see your having trouble following the rules, can you tell me why?” Then I’ll hear them out. Maybe having a bad day or something. Possibly need to be sent to the nurse or counselor. If not, I’ll say “Okay thank you for letting me know. Let’s move on and return back to class.”
Most of the times, that is enough because they don’t want parental involvement. They are usually willing to cooperate and deescalate the situation. I know this takes away from class time, but so does distracting students. And hopefully, after the other students witness it, they will be encouraged to follow the rules too. And then of course, my third consequence would be the letter home. I don’t know, is there a weakness in my idea?
Hi Terry,
Time-out isn’t absolutely necessary in every high school classroom–particularly if your students are older and/or mature. So you’re okay there. The weakness I see in your plan is asking why. (See this article.) Instead, I recommend simply informing them of the rule that was broken and reminding them that if they break another one, then you would have no choice but to send a parent letter home.
:)Michael
Hi Michael,
I had a question regarding time-out. I have middle school students (6th-8th grade). Our school suggests that the flow of consequences goes from first a warning (I write their names on the board) then to a 30 min. detention then to a 2 hr. detention. Would you suggest adding your consequences to the previously stated consequences or would you suggest fully replacing the given consequences with the ones you mention?
Thank you!
Elizabeth Bertels
Hi Elizabeth,
I think for middle school your consequences are fine. I would however still send a letter home to parents after the third consequence.
Michael
Hi, Michael!
Could you give me some tips on managing bd students? These rules don’t hold much water with them.
Thanks,
Sharon
Hi Michael!
I’m an elementary school teacher. I used to work in a preschool setting and they used to tell me that if you put a child in time out, they need to only sit there according to how old they are. For example, if the child is 4 years old, then they sit in time out for 4 minutes. I have been looking for public school teaching jobs but I am planning to substitute teach if I can’t find a full time position. Do you think fifteen minutes is too long for a kindergarten student to sit in time out or should I keep it at fifteen minutes?
Hi Leigh,
It depends, based on a number of factors–which I’ll be sure to cover in a future article. A wish I could give you more than that, but because of the lack of time and space we have available here, I don’t want to give you less than a complete answer.
Michael
Hi Michael,
I’ve been away from your site for a while, but it’s refreshing to come back. Really like your advice as it instills hope in us that classrooms can be pleasant places if properly managed. So much of what you say resonates with my experiences.
One question regarding time-outs. What would you do if a second student requires a time-out, but the time-out desk is already in use? Would you have two time-out desks? Also, I teach lower secondary. Is an in-class time-out or an outside-classroom time-out better?
Thanks,
Ash
HI Ash,
You should always have 2-3 places in your room for such an occasion. They don’t, however, need to be specifically designated as time-out areas. In-class time-out is preferred so a.) your students don’t miss valuable instruction and b.) so they can see what they’re missing and therefore wish to be a part of it.
Michael
Hi Michael,
What do you do if a student has gone through all three steps that day (ie warning, time out, letter home) and they are still being disruptive?
Hi Marie,
The student goes back to time-out. Be sure and read through the Difficult Student category of the archive. 🙂
Michael
Hi Michael,
I love your articles and was reading through the comments on this one, particularly the one from Elizabeth Bertels and your response. I work with middle school students as well and was confused about the response you gave her. I really liked the idea of the classroom time outs that were around 15 min. because I think that those shorter, more frequent but less intensive consequences can really help change behavior. But you advised her to go ahead and use the school’s given consequence plan in which only the second infraction is a 30 min. detention and a third is a 2 hour detention. This seems very extreme in a classroom where not only “major” behaviors are enforced like in many schools, but all are enforced. I would not feel comfortable administering those consequences and am sure there would be parent and administration complaints because of that. Can your standard rules and consequences and time out policies apply to middle school?
Hi Allison,
For the most part it’s best that teachers try to work within the school’s suggested plan. From the outside it seems excessive to me also, but I don’t have the benefit of knowing anything about the school or why they’re those particular consequences were suggested. To answer your question, yes, absolutely, the classroom management plan I recommend applies to middle school. Remember, though, rules and consequences are only a small part of classroom management. It’s all the other stuff that makes them work.
Michael
Hi Michael,
I cant tell you how thankful I am for finding this website!!! This year, I have a challenging class. Talkative and unruly. I have been known to have a strong classroom management – that is why this year is so frustrating. I teach 5th grade, we team teach so I teach 3 different classes. My question is, what if a student reaches time-out during an independent practice work. Should I wait for a game time towards the end of the class to have the child sit in time-out then, where he feels he is missing something?
Hi Tammy,
I can certainly see the value in wanting to do it that way, but it can be confusing to students and lead to inconsistency. Also, even though time-out can be more effective when the student acutely feels they’re missing something, you want to send the message that being part of the class is always a privilege.
Michael
Hi Michael – I was wondering, which of your strategies would be ineffective at the high school level? I’m thinking specifically about time out, since it’s so integral to your plan. I’m trying to imagine what a time out would look like for a junior or senior, and what I would even call it. Is this site mostly for elementary/middle school?
Thanks so much!
Hi Blanca,
Yes, it it written mostly with elementary and middle school teachers in mind. In most cases, I would not recommend time-out for juniors and seniors.
Michael
Hi Michael,
I just finished reading The Classroom Management Secret. I have a question about the time-out. My classes are scheduled to be 40 minutes but usually end up being 30-35 minutes because of the transition from other classes.teachers. Would you still recommend a time-out of 15 minutes?
Thanks, Jennifer
Hi Jennifer,
Yes, I do. 🙂
Michael
Hi, Michael.
I’ve used your ideas for 2 years now, and it not only makes my classes run more smoothly, other teachers have started to use the same methods to (1) make their classes run more smoothly and (2) give more consistency to the students at the school.
The issue I keep running up against is that I taught middle schoolers in 40-min sessions and now I teach high schoolers in 80-min sessions. I haven’t used this plan with the high schoolers yet, so I don’t know if I’ll have the same problems, but with the middle schoolers, 15-minutes or more in a 40 minute class is problematic logistically. They have to be let go to the next class, but if there is a behavior issue in the last 1/2 or 1/4 of class, there ISN’T enough time for them to sit in time-out effectively. I enforce the consequence, but I find when they are there for the last few minutes of class, it isn’t very effective.
Suggestions?
Thanks,
Sarah
Hi Sarah,
I don’t recommend time-out for high school students. I’m trying to put together a guide or ebook for high school teachers to explain what I recommend instead. (It’s too involved for the time and space we have here.) Stay tuned.
Michael
Hi Michael,
I am an art teacher and read your book. I was telling my principal about having a student, a first grader, in time-out for 15 minutes. She thought it was excessive and that 5 minutes is recommended for a six-year-old. Do you recommend 15 minutes regardless of age? Also when you give a child a warning, how do you do it? There’s so much talk about shaming so I wouldn’t write names on the board.
Hi Susan,
Although there can be exceptions depending on the student, I recommend 10-15 minutes for most kindergarten and first graders. As for how to give a warning, please refer to the Rules& Consequences category of the archive.
Michael
I have been a fan of your site since I stumbled on it this fall, and just ordered your book “Dream Class.” I follow your plan to T, and have since early this school year. I have modeled appropriate time-out behavior expectations several times throughout the year, including yesterday, and have a good personal rapport with all my students (even the ones I’m mentioning here). Most of the time, my class seems engaged and having fun, so time-out should not be a desirable respite.
Despite all this, I still have a few students with pretty severe emotional issues in their background in my 4th grade class who seem to enjoy fit-throwing while in time-out, and one who continually tries to put himself in time-out. What do you do about students who sullenly sit in time out all day and are unwilling to raise their hand to ever rejoin the class? What would you suggest about a student who wants to send himself to time out, even when I haven’t given a warning or noticed an infraction? My hunch is that these behaviors are attention-seeking, and I’m doing my best to give them as little attention as possible, but I would appreciate any advice! Thank you.
Hi Rachel,
I’m glad you’re doing so well. Way to go! We’ve covered some of these topics in the past—the search function is the best way to find old articles—but I’ll be sure to write about them again in the future. As for the rest, I’ll put them on the list. They’re too big to cover here. 🙂
Michael
Hi Michael,
I enjoy your site and used your plan when I was a classroom teacher, with great results. Now I am a reading specialist who works in a small office. I work with small groups (7-8 students) most of the time. There is no way that I can fit a desk in here. Even an extra chair would be pushing it. What would you suggest I do for time outs?
Jillian
Hi Jilliain,
You have to find a way. Remember, time-out is a symbolic separation, if for only a few feet.
Michael
I teach 4th grade in a small room with 24 students. I do not have one iota of extra space for a time-out desk. Would it still work if I have them stay at their desk and tell them they are in time-out — no participating, no talking to others, etc.?
Hi Cheryl,
No, it would not work nearly as well. You must find a way. (There is always a way.) 🙂
Michael
Hi Michael,
I teach 6th grade (at an elementary school), so they’re the oldest at the school. I like the idea of your 3 steps of consequences and using the time out especially. I am wondering, however, if the name “time out” evokes more of a younger student consequence. I am not so much worried about the physical act of separating the student and enforcing their behavior to sit and do the work during the lesson. I wonder what your thoughts are on calling “time out” something else for me and my 6th graders? I want to treat them as young adults and I feel that telling them about “time outs” would set that back. Have you ever used different terminology with older students?
Thanks,
Allison
Hi Allison,
I don’t believe there is any negative with calling time-out what it is for 6th grade students. I don’t think it’s harmful to them or less effective in any way. However, if you prefer to call it something else, that’s fine too. It should make little difference one way or another.
Michael
Hi,
What do you suggest I do if a student is in time-out at the end of the day?
Thanks,
Adina