Expected vs unexpected behavior in the elementary classroom is essential. But what exactly is expected behavior vs unexpected behavior and how do you teach it?
Expected behavior can be a great reason to write a behavior intervention plan. But figuring out tricky student behavior can be hard. Grab this free 5 step guide to writing an amazing behavior plan to walk you through the process.
What Are Expected Vs Unexpected Behaviors?
So what is expected and unexpected behaviors in the classroom?
It’s as simple as things that you and others around the person would like them to do and not do.
The behaviors that they do are things that would make you and others feel good and what you think would happen is considered expected.
On the flip side, unexpected are behaviors that are out of the ordinary. They can make others around the person uncomfortable and not sure what is going on. Additionally, people around aren’t sure what is going to happen next and might shy away from being around the person in the future.
Teach Using Direct Instruction
Direct instruction (saying explicitly what it is) is necessary. Students don’t always pick up on what they can and should not do in a school setting. Sometimes it’s a big ask of students who aren’t always super aware of social skills and others around them. So telling them exactly what you are looking for them to do and not do is a great starting point.
When doing this, start off by giving the definitions of keywords. Then giving examples from your life is helpful in them seeing it in their own lives.
Next, give examples from different settings of things that happen in everyday life. These can be super simple. An expected behavior could be raising your hand and waiting to be called on when you have something to say. On the reverse side, unexpected behavior could be something like shouting out the thought in your head when everyone else is quiet.
It’s also a great idea to tie in how others around the person feel when something is happening. When the behavior is something that is preferred, others around the person feel good and know what is going to happen next. When the behavior is unexpected, others can have uneasy feelings.
Short on time with coming up with an entire lesson? Then check out this expected and unexpected behaviors lesson plan. You’ll get a full page lesson plan along with all the materials you’ll need to teach it. Simply print, cut out a few items, and teach. There are also some situation cards both posing situations to say which behavior is being seen along with some task cards with situations for students to practice expected behaviors. Find this time-saving resource here.
Expected vs Unexpected Behaviors Activities
Wondering how to teach and practice this important skill in your classroom?
Read on for some great ideas!
Expected Vs Unexpected Behaviors Scenarios
Using real-life scenarios is a great way to practice identifying different types of behavior.
All you need to do is use a simple situation from a child’s everyday life. This could be something like a pencil breaking while doing work, not getting their preferred color of paper for a craft project, or not being able to play with a ball at recess time. Then have the situation have a main character. Next, have the character react to the situation (the problem).
An example of this is situation: Ryan was at recess where he wanted to play football but it was being used by someone else. Then for an expected behavior ending it could be: he decided to play with the soccer ball instead. For an unexpected behavior ending it could be: Ryan took the ball out of the other person’s hands.
When doing an activity like this, make sure to have students state which type of behavior is being seen and why.
For an extension, have students replace unexpected behaviors with a more expected one.
Expected Vs Unexpected Behaviors Videos
Using videos is an engaging way to teach this topic.
To use videos, simply have students watch the clip where the main character in the clip has a small problem and reacts to that problem. Then have students identify if they saw expected or unexpected behavior to that situation. They can further it by stating how they knew.
When picking expected and unexpected behaviors movie clips, here are a couple of tips:
- Should be no more than two minutes in length – too long and it becomes too confusing to the child what is happening, plus attention span can be difficult.
- Find specific behaviors to really focus on a certain time – this will help to pick out if the behavior is really expected or not as it is for a specific occurrence.
- Find clips from movies that your students enjoy as they gain students’ attention. Using clips from recent, well-know movies is a great idea.
- A great place to find clips is on Youtube. It is helpful if you already have a movie that your students already like as it will help narrow down your search.
Expected and Unexpected Behaviors Worksheet
While worksheets don’t sound the most exciting, they can be super beneficial to help student re-practice skills.
It is also helpful to vary the type of worksheet that you use. Mixing things up by having students define key terms, matching, cut & sort, and comic strips are a great way to keep them engaging as well. Try putting in different scenarios as well as having students think of times in their everyday lives to apply their learning.
Check out this expected vs unexpected behaviors free worksheet. This one page resource starts off by defining the terms. Then it gives different situations for students to decide what type of behavior is happening. Students simply read the scenario, think about the behavior happening, then circle the correct behavior keyword. Check out this free resource here.
And if this one is helpful, check out this resource with a flip book and 14 different worksheets. This expected and unexpected behaviors worksheet pdf is as simple as download, print, and use – such a time saver! Students will love the interactive flip book that helps them define what these terms mean. Plus they will enjoy the different formats of the other fourteen sheets. Help students learn this important social skill using a variety of different formats while giving yourself more time by not having to come up with everything on your own. Find it here.
Even More on Unexpected vs Expected Behaviors
This post by the Kindergarten Cafe dives into behaviors at the kinder level.
Or check out this post by the Naturally Creative Classroom to dive further into classroom management strategies that are positive in nature.
Happy Teaching!
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