Red flags go off for teachers when they notice students struggling to follow directions. This has huge implications for academic success.

It can be so frustrating to watch students struggle and not know how to help them because if they have trouble following directions it is often hard to help them because your coaching involves….following directions.

I know the frustration that comes from watching students struggle. After working with thousands of children over the last 15 years, we have learned some strategies (hacks?) to help students follow directions.

This video dives into using 3 key practices that will help students follow directions:

1- Get Their Attention
2- Inhibit Distractions
3- Help them Recall

If you ignore these practices, your students will struggle academically and socially because they could fail to realize something important is happening, they will be too distracted to process the directions, and it is highly likely that they will forget what they are supposed to be doing.

If you follow the suggestions in this video, all your students, even those with significant language impairments, will do better with following directions. This will result in easier classroom management, fewer students that seem “lost”, and happier students- Students are usually happy when they know their teacher is pleased with them..