PEVELY, Mo. (KMOX)--A modern version "time out" is helping to reduce disruptions in the classroom at Pevely Elementary in the Dunklin R-5 School District.
There's a special space called an "anchor room" where students causing trouble are sent to go over class work with a teacher in an environment where they can calm down and return to the class refreshed.
"[The Anchor Room] has decreased our discipline by two thirds at the elementary level this year alone," said Dr. Clint Freeman.
"If the student is having a break down, we get them out of that classroom so they are not disrupting the class," said Superintendent Dr. Clint Freeman. "We take them to a smaller room with an adult where they have an assignment and that adult and start to forge a relationship even further with the student and get them calmed back down."
Pevely Elementary has two anchor rooms for the 700+ students who attend. Each room has a paraprofessional there to help the kids get back into the classroom.
"It's decreased our discipline by two thirds at the elementary level this year alone," said Dr. Freeman. "What we were doing before was: a kid would get kicked out of class, they would spend time in the office until the principal got to them, and then we would send them home for one or two days. When they came back, the behavior had not changed."
KMOX reporter Stuart McMillian speaking with Dr. Clint Freeman about the success of the anchor room at Pevely Elementary.Matt Lichtenstein
With the anchor room, Dr. Freeman says our "teachers are able to teach, everyone in the classroom is able to learn, our principals are doing the things that they need to be doing in the building. Overall, it's just a better culture at the elementary school right now."
This is one of the anchor rooms at Pevely Elementary.Dunklin R-5 School District
Pevely Elementary had to make some adjustments along the way when kids started wanting to go to the anchor room on purpose. "The goal is to get back to class, said Dr. Freeman. "You can't just stay in the anchor room all day."
The Dunklin R-5 School District is working to get an anchor room implemented at the middle school next school year.
