I remember having sudden, major cramps once in class. We had a sub who refused to let me leave. I was a meek, quiet kid. I never got into trouble or did anything wrong. And I was in, literal, tears at being in so much pain. What surprised me was that the guys in the class were very angry on my behalf. They all told me to just leave and go to the bathroom. They would leave with me and go to the principal’s office to let him know what had happened. I was scared to do that, but it was so sweet that I had the other students’ support. Please be careful with saying “no” - while it makes sense with those who’d abuse the privilege, it may also terrify those who truly need to leave. Not all of your students are trying to put something over on you; sometimes, a student really needs to go.
DottyGale8 agreed, this video was mostly for the kids that abuse the bathroom or ways to weed them out from the ones that really need to go. Sorry you had a teacher who didn't recognize your need! I actually did that to a female student the first yr I taught and learned a valuable lesson on how to gauge the bs bathroom needs from the real deal!
@DottyGale8 I'm sorry that happened to you. Those years can be tough on a kid at times. I obviously wasn't there in that classroom with you but IF it's any consolation, subs are often in a tough spot in that they basically get the phone call at 5:00 AM to come in and outside of that, get little, if any direction other than what classrooms to go to and when. It's stressful and frustrating (yes, I'm speaking from experience, here) and the only reason I'm telling you this is because it's POSSIBLE (again, I wasn't there so I won't speak in absolutes) that that sub wasn't trying to be a jerk to you or anything; he or she just might have simply been overwhelmed and/or honestly just didn't know what the hell to do.
@Marysol Alvarez Agreed. Maybe this is just me, but at some point, I learned that the best way to be a sub is just be low key (because, as you point out, you don't "know the system") and if any students are a particular problem, leave a note for the regular teacher and leave it at that.
When I was a substitute teacher, I used the "ask me again in five minutes" strategy all the time and it worked wonders! Any student that truly had to go would ask again, but 9 times out of 10, students wouldn't remember. It was perfect for subbing, since I didn't know which students were trustworthy.
I teach at the elementary school level and I buy a large desk calendar. If the students need to use the bathroom, then they need to write their name on the calendar. If I see that the same students are using the bathroom constantly, then I contact the parents via telephone or a letter to let them know that I am concerned about their students. That is a subtle way of taking care of the situation.
John Lopez when I was in fourth grade during silent reading( which was right after lunch) the bathroom pass would be passed around the room from table to table. Their were two, an it took pretty much the entire period for everyone to go.
@@slk678 If it is related to their period then you’d probably see the pattern and the telephone call would also probably lead to you getting a better idea. Maybe not the wisest strategy for high school
I am not a teacher yet, but I remember that back in high school one of my teachers would give us 3 restroom passes per semester and if by the end of the semester we didn't use the passes we could use it as extra credit or to be invited to a pizza party during lunch. I really liked that because I know I wasn't the best student and that I was going to need that extra credit at the end of the semester lol
@@CJReynolds August '20 will be my first time in the classroom as a Career Switcher. Can I ask what kind of legal releases your students/parents need to sign in order to be filmed and put on public RUclips? I want to obtain a video recorder to record my lessons for me to look back on and improve, but I don't know if I will be allowed to. Also as a (hopeful) Theatre teacher, I would like to use video to record rehearsals for the students to reflect on their own performances. Thanks in advance.
My civics teacher in High School issued a punch card every semester to each student. If I remember correctly, it had 10 trips that could be punched and that's all you got for the entire semester. For every punch you had left at the end of the semester, he would give you extra credit points. When your bathroom trips are basically converted to a currency, it makes you less likely to waste them. Most of the kids in my class cashed in full punch cards. It was the best teacher Jedi mind-trick I've ever seen.
I had a teacher that did that. I was failing the class for other reasons. But one day, I had to go REALLY bad. I knew, tho, if I used up my passes, I wouldn't have all my bonus points. I eventually peed myself. Luckily, I have epilepsy, so I made up the excuse that I had a seizure. The last seizure I had was years before that. But it was an excuse to cover up peeing myself in middle school
I explain my procedures at the beginning of the year. Kids are allowed to ask to go to the bathroom when I’m not giving direct instruction. If they are working independently or with a group, they can asked to use the restroom. Or right at the beginning of class before the bell rings, they can ask and I usually tell them yes they just need to try and hurry to be back on time. I find that kids respect this when they know that you will let them go if they really need to go. But if I see that they’re asking to go all the time, I ask them if they really need to go or if they just need a quick break. When they admit to that I usually tell them to hold off five minutes and they can go get a drink of water for them to come back quickly. I love the idea of a magic eight ball or Ken. I have a giant poster of Shakespeare on my door, and when kids start to tattle to me (you know, silly kid stuff), I tell them to go let Shakespeare know. They either realize that it is dumb to talk to a poster and sit down, or they go have a talk and feel better. 😂
Hey Reynolds! Was one of your students back in the Camden academy days . Now I work there as a science teacher! A great bathroom technique I use is a tap light mounted on the wall. Light On= Someone is out don’t ask. Light off= You can go (no need to ask but I may still stop you because I’m King!)
I was subbing in a grade-7 class today and I tried the Magic 8-Ball trick. It backfired hilariously. The kids thought it was so cool that they were practically lining up to ask the 8-Ball if they could go to the bathroom so I had to nix it. I might bring it back when I become a regular teacher (so that the novelty wears off), but it really doesn't work on a one-day basis.
Anthony that’s hilarious! 😂😂😂😂 I’ve never heard of anyone having that response! Great work man! You are probably the most memorable sub those kids have ever had.
It's hard to say no. Especially for girls. I realize you're in an all boys school and are male yourself, so it might not have occurred to you. But while I agree that there are kids who are playing you and just want to go and socialize, with girls there are genuine emergency situations that will come up at exactly the strangest moments. We know when stuff is getting real down there. My personal policy is to just let one person (per gender) at a time go. That way if a kid is taking his/her time, kid #2 can't go until kid #1 returns. It gives them a bit of social shame as kid #2 will razz kid #1 for taking his/her time. If there's a genuine emergency, then they tend to show the panic on their faces and I relent.
Before I read any of the comments, I'll give my own take on this. I actually really like your ideas and I completely respect your style of just saying... NO sometimes. Some kids need that. I also like the idea of making light of the situation. It builds a classroom environment where your individual actions affect the opportunities of the entire group (working as an individual in the community). However, I've always been a proponent of considering the use of a washroom a right rather than a privilege. It makes me very uncomfortable refusing anyone the washroom. They may be asking because they don't actually have to go to the bathroom, and half the time, it's not. But so long as you're being safe, doing what you need to do to "refresh" yourself (a five minute refreshment break is what I like), then it's none of my business. It might be because they need to send a text to their mom who is freaking out on them for not texting them back in class (yes this happens), to get a break from the environment, get up and walk around, it might be because they legitimately drank 2 cups of coffee and have to pee so badly and can't think about anything else until they "take a leak" (as your students put it), even for five minutes. But we don't know, and we never will know for sure. I had a student who was a real goofball but he had irritable bowel syndrome. Teachers refused to let him go to the washroom and we needed a meeting with his parents and principal to reveal his condition, which he found very embarrassing. Might seem like an extreme example but there could be anxiety, depression, period stuff (not a boys only school haha), lots of stuff going on. Yes, my dear goofball boy with IBS should use his time more productively in class, but he still needs to use the washroom. On the other side of things, I do feel like students play this "bathroom game" out of tradition and with my style, I actually remove it as a game. I say, "Sure. See you in a few minutes," they kind of self-regulate and use it responsibly. If I find out they're doing something they're not supposed to be doing, or going somewhere they aren't supposed to be, I have them stay at lunch (or some other form of discipline), but I don't take away their right to use the washroom. It's just something I feel strongly about. The hall pass is a good idea but I feel like it's kind of unsanitary and gross and I don't feel comfortable about that either. I do have obvious, reasonable restrictions for the purpose of the lesson - if it's 15 mintues before or after the bell it's school wide policy and that's reasonable. If it's during important teacher-led instruction, then you gotta just hold it in for a bit. Often I'll stand between the doorway and the class, if there is student-centered stuff going on, and watch the student walk down the hall (since we typically have a washroom in sight of all classes). And if I do refuse, and they come back at me and explain an extenuating circumstance as to why they did not have an opportunity to go earlier - in a MATURE, reasonable, adult-like manner - I'll give them a mature, reasonable adult-like response (Sure, go quick.) I teach my students to be reasonable with me. If it's a recurring thing where the student leaves for 15 minutes at a time, I would discipline and "check in" with the parent about what is happening.
I want to add also that I am new, and if I had tougher classes with much more chronic bathroom goers that are clearly unable to be "mature, reasonable,"etc about it, I can't say I wouldn't swing towards a style more like yours.
Long story short - depends on the students. Any good group I can be reasonable with through rapport and by building an environment where we are respectful, professional, accountable, and reasonable
I do the "if you finish up to this point on your assignment you can go" and the "ask me again in five minutes" things. Students are never allowed to leave for water because they are allowed to bring it to class. I give four restroom passes each nine weeks. It's pretty generous, but I have some intestinal issues and know what it's like to have to use the restroom suddenly. Our principal has a rule that students may not go to the restroom during 1st period or 5th period, which is right after lunch. We are told to use our judgment, though. When the kid who never asks to leave the class is dancing in his seat and raising his hand, I let him go.
It’s so annoying when I have to go to the bathroom and my teacher won’t let me go then I start fidgeting and they ask me if I’m okay and I say no I have to go to the bathroom and it’s just so annoying
Sorry that happens to you. This tactic is for fun for kids that abuse the bathroom pass not for the students who don’t or it’s obvious that they need to go. If I’m in the middle of instruction time, I tell them right after X you may go.
When a student asks me to go to the toilet I generally let them and rarely need to wait unless we are in the middle of explaining something. I this these strategies are more for those students who ask every time, all the time. But as a student I remember being very frustrated if a teacher just had a blanket "no" response.
I just gave it to my students straight and told them when I laid out class procedures that first day that a) I need five minutes quiet time at the start of class and b) whenever I am lecturing about something they can’t ask to go. I gave them a big dramatic example about how teachers HATE when they are lecturing for fifteen minutes about fractions or the Roman Empire and there is that one kid in the back wildly waving his hand. You call on him thinking he wants to talk numerators or Julius Cesar and he asks: can I go to the bathroom? Aaaah, it’s like a stab in the heart and I did a dramatic stabbing motion. The kids remember and they respect that lecture. I also phrased as a insider tip that wouldn’t just work for me but for most teachers.
I knew a kid who left for the bathroom every day for certain classes. I only knew he was faking it because I overheard a conversation between him and his friend. He usually took no more than two minutes (normally came back in one) and it was at different times so the teachers always let him go. We're family friends, so I knew there was nothing wrong, but the kid truly needed just some time to calm himself down. The certain classes he asked were what he hated/found hard and he just needed to breathe and move around. He was a pretty good student, made up everything; he just couldn't take the pressure without a break. If his friend was at lunch he would see and come into the bathroom and calm him down. If a student leaves for over 5 minutes repeatedly, you may need to take care of it, but if it's just for a minute for a quick walk break/refresher, I think you should let them go for at least the one minute. (if you have the ”only one person out” policy I can see how this might be a problem though.)
Positively Pre-K The funny thing is just like with everything else in the world sometimes people hear what they want to hear. That being said I do appreciate the grace people have with me even if they disagree with what I've said 😊
What worked for me last year was on the first day, I told my high school students that they are all big people. If they have to step outside to take a walk to the bathroom, either because they have to go or because they need to clear their head, they can just take the hallway pass and go without even saying anything to me. If too many students start going more than once per class, then I announced that I would post a sign out sheet by the door to keep track of how often students step out. Students barely ever went to the bathroom. I'll try again this year, hope it works this well again! Your advice is golden and I absolutely love your channel ❤
I teach 2nd and 3rd graders in my school’s after-school program and I have regular students that asks to use the restroom when I know they are using it as an excuse to leave my classroom. I allow them to go, but I tell them that I will set a stopwatch and that they will be timed. I tell them that how ever long it takes for them to return, they will owe me that time later during their free time. They really value their free time, so usually they either change their minds, or they leave and return in a matter of seconds.
I know my daughter is one of the bathroom offenders. She always ask to go to the bathroom when she's bored. She's so bad about it that one of her teachers was concerned that she might have a bladder infection. I explained to her that if she's engaged, she has an iron bladder. It's hard to keep all the children engaged all the time.
Going to the bathroom is a human right. I usually ask if they can wait for the key instruction but if they can't, I let them go. I disagree with your advice to say no. But I do like the magic 8 ball advice for other things just not the bathroom. If you have kids sign out and you see a pattern that a child leaves the class often, that's a conversation for later. Maybe with a parent. Missing instruction whatever. If they are out for a long time, this is another problem. Is there a medical reason why they have to leave so often? I think if a kid asks, you let them go and respect this right.
+Vivian Yee These are not hard and fast rules. I believe you have to know your students. At the beginning of the year I let kids go when they ask, I learn their behaviors and I can tell who's abusing it and whose not. I say no to the kids who are abusing it and I say yes to the kids who don't abuse it or I know that have health related issues or just truly need to use the bathroom. I NEVER stick with a hard and fast NO. The video was more about my creative ways to weed out the ones who just want to leave the classroom or don't really need to go.
These conversations are great. Glad we can look at kind of opposite views and realize we aren't really that opposite. Really comes down to knowing your students - respect is a given, trust is earned. As I stated, I had a student that abused washroom privileges, but we later learned that he also had IBS. So he was leaving because he wanted to visit his friends in food prep and was failing and generally disengaged in the learning environment, but he also suffered from acute IBS and GENUINELY needed to be hitting that olde porcelain throne sometimes a couple times per class. It's important to be flexible and just use your best judgment, and not be too convicted/ hardheaded about that judgment. As someone who teaches law we focus on reasonable thinking and reasonable problem solving (it's how we assess the law and what is just). We use reasonable thinking to determine whether or not someone is complying with our legal expectations and traditions - I extend this idea to going to the washroom (lol, stay with me here). Is it reasonable for you to be asking me to go to the washroom right now (maybe it is, maybe it isn't in all honesty)? (30 seconds after the bell ring is not reasonable, so it is reasonable for me to say no). Is it reasonable for me to say yes (or no)? Depends on the situation. If you're in court or in a business meeting or appointment, you try to hold it in best you can, and if you need to slip out and duck back in for whatever reason, do it respectfully. If you're ducking out when you probably shouldn't be, at least give me the respect to come up with a politely framed, well articulated reason (dare I say, even if it's a fib). I can also assess the bathroom going behaviour in the learning skills we assess in Ontario, like self-regulation (ha- no pun intended), responsibility, etc., but if there is a student abusing it, I really try to investigate the best I can before judging. Because it's an awful feeling to treat a student like they're doing a shitty thing (pun, sorry not sorry) when they're actually suffering through something and too shy / use humour to cover it up.
I think your ideas are creative and brilliant and appeal to humour instead of anger to deal with kids who frequently want to leave the classroom. And, from watching your past videos I think that you are an outstanding teacher who cares about kids and wants to make a difference in the world. I just worry that teachers with less experience might take "just say no" when a child asks to use the bathroom without really thinking about the child. Like the other person who commented, (student with IBS) I know a grade 8 boy who had an accident and refused to return to school. He was traumatized. It's better to err on the side of letting a kid go. Just a caution. And I really admire you..the fact that you interviewed 'black girls teach' make you just cool in my eyes. Peace.
Honestly, I think that the “just say no” rule applies to students who you know leave to “use the bathroom” every day when they don’t have to. I had students last semester who would ask for water or to go to the bathroom and go do whatever they wanted. So in those cases, adopting a “just say no” attitude would’ve benefitted me and would’ve cut down on skipping class.
Hi, this is interesting. We as workers have to wait for breaks to go to the bathroom and I think one of our roles as teachers is to build an understanding of responsibility. I teach high school and think that saying No is just fine. If there is a medical reason for needing to go, or for female students who have need to go, the student will come up and sort it out.
We have a yellow slip that needs to be filled out when a student leaves. So they get the slip, fill it in including the time, then I sign it and they go. When they return they have to put the time on it. If they don't really need to go, they often cannot be bothered. All on them. I often say no as well.
I am watching this to get ideas about how to deal with my teenage son who is a great guy but it's just good to have some other techniques. You are a really caring teacher and your ideas and experiences are very helpful. Thanks!
Just remember, if a girl comes up to you and says she needs to go to the bathroom, LET THEM. Cause girl problems will not wait. And you don’t wanna be stuck in that awkward situation where they tell you “Girl problems”. Please please do not be that teacher who refuses and then that student gets in a very embarrassing situation. Edit: I’m not trying to offend anyone just giving a little warning to teachers who may not be aware of that problem😂
Ikr I’m a girl and had my problems and asked the ELA teacher to use the bathroom she said why didn’t you go at lunch I said idk she said there’s 20 minutes left of class go sit down
In my country it is not allowed to not let kids to the bathroom and I thinks it is right. If you do that with girls you have to do it with boys too. You can never know what a person is going through I remember when I was at 8th grade I had a problem, I needed to go to the bathroom every 10 minutes. And it would have been really akward if I had to explain my problem to the teacher even if I am a male.
At my school, mostly one out of three things happen 1. The teacher is explaining, and you wait till they're done 2. The teacher is explaining, but you really need to go, so you raise your hand to ask for permission. 3. When I'm doing individual work, i just walk up to the teachers desk, ask for permission, and quietly leave the classroom
I love this video. At the clubs I run I allow kids to go to the bathroom so long as 1. They ask first. 2. My team are not teaching. If a child asked for the toilet and they aren't known to have a bladder issue, I will often tell them they should have gone before they came into the room, I ask them how much they have had to drink today and that is usually a good distraction as they don't know so I tell them to sit back down. I had a lot of trouble with the boys at one of our clubs on a Saturday morning always needed the toilet so I addressed the issue with them all publicly by asking for a show of hands as to who had done a poo that morning. (I am working with 5 to 11 year olds) To start with they were horrified that I was asking this, until the couple of gigglers raised their hand and then I explained to them that if they don't do a poo regularly it presses on their bladder and it makes them think they need a wee, and that if they come back next week and can't tell me they had had a bowel movement that morning, then they better not ask to go to the bathroom. Worked amazingly! Suddenly no one needed any longer. It hasn't been an issue since. Don't get me wrong, if a kids is desperate, I will always let them go to the toilet as I have no desire to send them home wet or mop the floor!
I love your ideas! I think they’re super creative. Clearly lots of people in these comments didn’t watch the entire video. I believe that If you’ve been working with these students for a while, then you truly know them, and when they truly have to go. Anyways, great video!
Thanks so much for saying that. This is one of the only videos I get a hard time with, but like you said it really takes knowing your students. My best to you this year! Peace.
A couple years ago one of my teachers had a yard stick with a giant picture of his face taped to it as the hall pass. So if someone had to use the bathroom they would have to carry it with them.
Cassidy Miller oh man, I wish I could use that! Our students have a passport in the back of their school-issued agendas, and that's what they have to use in order to leave the room.
I've worked out my own method to avoid being interrupted while I'm teaching.... Students know that if they want to go to the toilet they must raise their hand in a different way... basically they must put their hand in a "victory-like" position (don't know if that makes sense). So they don't even need to speak and I know that this particular person doesn't want to answer one of my questions but they just want to go out. This way I can decide whether to just let them go or ignore them until I'm done with my explanation. If they see I'm ignoring them, they'll just try later if they really need to go. They also know I will not allow more than 3 people in a row.
Prevention is always the best cure. I teach fourth grade and I build bathroom breaks into our day. For example, when we come in from recess I take the whole class to the bathroom and tell them to also get a drink if they need one. Also, if we've been sitting for a long stretch I'll say anyone who needs to use the restroom or get a drink may do so now. However, if a student needs to use the restroom during class they don't have to ask, they just put the pass on their desk so I know where they are. The key thing is that they are responsible for anything they miss while out of the room. If they didn't have enough time to finish work because they spent ten minutes goofing off in the halls, then they have to make that up. If they miss instructions, I'm not repeating them, ask a friend. If a student abuses the privilege (most won't) then I deal with it like I deal with other behavior issues.
My freshman physics teacher was really nice and she let us go whenever we needed. I barely used this privilege because my anxiety trained my bladder to not have to go during school. But one time my friend just started her period in drivers we which had a no bathroom policy during her lunch period. She didn't have enough time to go during the passing period, so she free bled for two hours by the time our teacher let her go.
We had a restroom in the main office right near the Dean’s door. That was the only bathroom we were allowed to use during class. Everyone was scared of the Dean so if you asked that means you really had to go!
Another solution for younger grades, is to issue a certain amount of restroom tickets each day (3-5 tickets depending on their grade level and physical needs). They can only go to the restroom if they have a ticket. The tickets don't roll over to the next day they get the same amount of tickets each day. This way students are less likely to waste their ticket on playing in the restroom because they know once all their tickets are gone for the day they can't go to the restroom. Also, you could include a reward for the students that don't use up all of their tickets before a certain time of the day (like maybe 10-20 minutes before dismissal if they still have at least 1 ticket left they can pull from the treasure box, the snack box, or have free time). You could even make it a class job where a responsibile student passes out the tickets each day (all students should know how many tickets they are to get each day so they can be sure they have the right amount if tickets). Children with 504s that require them to go to the restroom frequently can participate too. With them you can up the amount of tickets or keep their tickets the same amount as everyone else but when they run out send them to the nurse instead of the restroom. Most school nurse's offices have restrooms. You may want to get the school nurse on board with this so she will just let them go in her office. You can also fill those students parents in on it. So they will know why their child is being sent to the nurse instead of the restroom. This way the 504 students that have to use the restroom frequently will get what they need without being singled out. Oh I almost forgot. The tickets are for their individual trips to the restroom. If the class has 1 or 2 whole classroom breaks during the day don't have them lose tickets for this. Instead strongly advised them to use the restroom during these times so they won't have to lose their restroom tickets.
I think, as a teacher, you can't let yourself get completely taken advantage of by kids who are clearly just trying to abuse the right to go to the bathroom. And, I really never want to deny a kid from going to the bathroom when they really need to go, and I didn't hear Reynolds advocating for a strict "don't let them go" policy here. I notice with my kids that when one kid asks it tends to set off a chain reaction and they all want to go at once. (Especially in my classes with 8-10 year olds.) So, I started using a policy of everyone can go whenever, BUT we only go one at a time. So you gotta wait til the person who is out comes back. This accomplishes a couple things: 1) The social environment stays in the classroom. 2) It's easy to monitor how long someone has been gone, and the other kids in line start to get annoyed too when someone abuses it. Ultimately, I want to see if I can get the kids to start self-organizing/policing a little bit more. Last week, a child was gone for about 10+ minutes and clearly abused it, and when she came back I did two things: 1)Told the girl waiting to go next to tell the student who was gone a long time how she felt having to wait for her. 2) Asked the girl where she went besides the bathroom. Surprisingly, she was honest and told me that she went to another class for a few minutes to see her brother. I asked her why she didn't ask me if she could do that, and she was once again very honest, "because I knew you would say no." I kind of laughed and said, "Well, you're right about that, but the only problem now is that I can't trust you when you ask me to go to the bathroom. And you can't go by yourself now." Would love to hear any reactions/opinions or related experience to this approach. I definitely don't think I'm doing it perfectly, but I think it sends the wrong message to kids to let them get away with lying and manipulation. Gotta be some middle ground.
This is actually pretty helpful...I have a certain student who asks to go to the bathroom every single lesson (she's in 2 of my classes) and she takes ages. Frustratingly, though, because she's a girl, my school says I have to let her go. So getting a magic 8 ball though.
+Shocking Teaches that is really frustrating. Have you tried giving her a time limit or letting her know she can only go during the first or last 5 minutes of the period?
I love your ideas. It's interesting to me how age doesn't affect the bathroom dilemma. I teach Firsties and have the same issues. We take scheduled class breaks throughout the day right before major subject area transitions (math, writing, reading) so that they're all refreshed and ready to focus on the lesson at hand and also first thing in the morning and after recess, lunch, and special class. The students then can also ask individually throughout the day when it's independent work time and it's reasonable to go right then. We use sign language so as not to interrupt anyone's work time and for privacy. You learn pretty quickly who is abusing the privilege. I also don't let several go at the same time to have a potty party. Our restrooms are down the hall and around the corner where you can't see them, so it's better to limit the size group that goes at the same time. If a student asks to go within a short time of us just having a break, I speak with that child to assess if they used the group break time wisely, let them go, and then keep track to see if this becomes an issue because then they're probably playing around and not taking care of business. Life would be so much easier if we didn't have to deal with bodily functions! LOL! Thank you for sharing! ❤️ and hugs!
For Middle School I have done 2 things for the Bathroom: 1 I have a green light (or green paper) and a red light. When you are allowed to go to the bathroom the green light (or paper) is visable. Only one person can leave at a time. When it is red, you are not even allowed to ask. 2. one year I gave bathroom tickets. 3 a week to each student. They had to use them wisely because those tickets were for my two classes (ELA and SS) and for the Other teacher (math and Science) the only downside is kids who NEVER have to go sometimes gave tickets away.
I have a sign-in/sign-out book. The rule at our school is no passes the first or last 15 minutes of class so that leave only 60 minutes of time for passes. Only one student can go out at a time so they have to wait if someone is out already. Then, I only allow 4 passes per quarter. Once they have used those up, they have to come back for lunch detention for whatever amount of time they were out of the room.
When i was 10 I was the type of student that never raised my hand to even leave my seat. The one time I asked to go and was told no... I peed myself in my seat. I was mortified. I went home.
Hi Samarria. I’m really sorry that happened to you. It would crush me if that happened to a student. Are you a teacher? How do you handle that now? I’d really love to know. You could email me as well at realrapwiththereynolds@gmail.com
I had a college professor who always gave this little speech in the first class of the day. Mind you, it's college, so students don't eed to ask permission, we just up and go if we have the need. Anyway, she would always start her little speech by giving the disclaimer that she is a history teacher, not a science teacher, but has asked and received confirmation from the biology faculty on this subject. The bladder is an amazing organ that has the capability to hold more pee, even after you think you have to go. At this point she would draw a bladder (not the best drawing but clear enough) and draw a line about half way or three-quarters up. She'd then point to the line and say "when your urine level gets to here, your body tells you it needs to go pee, but there is still all this space to fill up, you don't really have to pee until your urine level gets to the top." She'd then go on to say that she won't stop us from going out since we're not children, but to please be respectful of her instruction and try to minimize any disruptive exits to absolute emergencies. Side note, she also had a box of tissues or packets of tissues at the front for students with runny noses to use so that they didn't have to leave the room. Her speech was amusing, but got the point across that it is disruptive to leave the room, and usually not necessarily in a 90 minute class. I think I left in the middle of class maybe three times (over the course of two semesters with her). Another cool teacher gave us a 5-10 minute break halfway through the class time (45 or 50 minutes into a 90 minute class). While I disliked his class/teaching style, I did like the breaks he gave us. Gave time for bathroom breaks, water bottle refilling, or just to recharge the brain for more new information.
Knowing that I'll be going from graduate school to the high school again, the first thing I noticed was, "oh bathroom is kind of a privilege now." I understand the realities of kids abusing it, I do, but many it's such a switch because in college, eh who cares if you go (and I'm a science major so my classes were always small).
It's such a weird topic, because on the one hand I have teenagers asking IF they can use the bathroom. What I really am trying to do is minimize the times that kids use the bathroom as an escape because they can't do the work.
I think our biggest fears as teachers (or at least mine) is not to let a kid go and they really have to and parents get upset or young ladies nees to take care of feminine issues, we deny them, and once again, parents are upset. I even feel bad at times because I can't even maneuver the hallways to the bathroom and get back on time during a 3 min passing period. Thoughts?
Parents upset, but also the students themselves. It's a tough issue because I do feel like denying access to the washroom is a weird form of control and dare I say abuse.
jjjjjjjj Exactly. A human (student or otherwise) who truly needs to go to the bathroom should not be denied that basic right. That’s cruel. 🙁 And, yes, I know there is some time between classes. But it was only 5 minutes when I was in school - and that was spent getting to my locker and running to my next class across the campus. And trying to fit in a bathroom break somehow in there. But human bladders and colons don’t always run on school class schedules - no matter how much we’d like them to.
This is a good point. It could be a school structural thing - one of our breaks is actually so so short (5 minutes), some students are traveling from one end to the other. Even as a teacher you can't even move to the next class let alone get set up for the lesson, AND if you're lucky, get to use the bathroom (ooh, luxury lol). What I found myself thinking as a newer teacher on some of my first days was how and why students put up with this.... BULL. A bell goes, they subconsciously just sit down and stare at the front of the room. I go with it as do they, but think about it - is that not messed up? Someone tells them they can't release fluid that is about to come out of their body, and they comply and sit down. And yet they seem to think it is so unfair and unjust. Maybe it is. And so where are the letters of protest? Where are the petitions? Clearly their system isn't working for them if they're demanding to go to the washroom, BEGGING LITERALLY, and are being told no. BEND THE KNEE, CHILDREN!!! lol
That said, our dear mentor Reynolds is dealing with some chronic goers, and I do not believe he is committing any wrongdoing by employing strategies that work great for his group of students! He's brilliant and I love all the ideas that are coming from the topic and strategies he's suggested
jjjjjjjj True. But I don’t want new or learning teachers to think his way is set in stone. If his kids are such that these methods are necessary, it’s what he needs to do. However, I’ve been that student who desperately needs to go really, really badly, and I’ve been told I’m not allowed to. But, the thing is, I can guarantee that no learning happened during that time. It’s impossible to focus on learning when your bladder is hurting. So any teachers watching this video need to be sure they’re understanding that this way is what works in HIS classroom with his students. Please don’t think it’s a universal thing. Your students may not be such that you need to restrict them. It’s just kinda upsetting to know that someone could say “no” to going to the bathroom. I just had surgery to have a kidney stone removed 2 weeks ago yesterday. Until it was out, I was having horrible urinary issues - including the need to go to the bathroom constantly. I’m sitting here teary at the thought of being in that situation as a student - and having the teacher deny me the use of the bathroom. 😢
That mannequin head idea is genius! Also the red light / green light comment. I might have to try those out for different periods and see which one works best! This year I’m trying out the tickets/tokens idea, with the strategy that when they run out of tickets, they can still go but have to take an unexcused tardy (tip from another video). Mostly because the policy at our school is that we aren’t allowed to deny kids the right to use the restroom outside of the first/last 10 mins. Which I understand, but sucks.
I had a teacher in middle school who would respond back to the initial question of, "can I go to the bathroom?" With, "I dont know. Can you?" And they would always respond that way until we figured out the question should be, "may I go to the bathroom. " once we figured that out he'd then change his response to, "what's the difference between 'can I' and 'may I'. When we could answer that, then we could go to the bathroom.
We had a kid who needed to use the bathroom and he said to the teacher “it will only take 2 minuets” and the teacher said “2 minutes is a long time, you couldn’t be in a microwave for 2 minuets” 🤣 But no I appreciated the teachers who respected as a girl I wanted to be able to slip out and use the restroom without it causing a big convo. But that respect was important, I didn’t abuse it.
i am in love with the magic 8 ball so I'm definitely going to do that next semester. i am having the hardest time with kids always wanting to go to the bathroom that i had to implement a weekly limit where if they exceed that its a referral....
I teach primary and one of the things I have done is give students 3-4 popsicle sticks. These are there RR passes they hand one in when they need to go. A helper distributes them every morning. I also use the goal marker- do this much work and then you can go. I love, love, love the 8 ball idea(especially for the wanderers)I am getting. It’s so cool- it takes it out of your hands. Thanks!
I work subbing which makes it harder for me, different schools, different grades, different rules. The 4 and 5 year olds are the ones who try to convert the bathroom pass into a bathroom fest...
I see it as more of a time management issue. Of course there are bathroom emergencies, but overall I see it morph into an “I’m bored” response when students are working independently. My 8th grade team uses student agendas and allows each class 5 passes per quarter. Some teachers give extra credit, but I do not. I was considering using a bathroom pass that is a safety vest that says “I like to potty all the time” on the back, but since this is my first year as a middle school teacher, I opted against that idea. Trying to discourage bored potty visitors. Although, my students thought the idea was awesome. I do like the Magic 8 Ball idea and happen to have one already.
Great tips! I'm gonna store that Magic 8 Ball idea for later. I've got something that works for the class I have right now, but I can see the Magic 8 Ball working great for other classes of younger kids (but not for this particular class I have right now lol). I think they'd find it really fun!
I am a substitute teacher and i am teaching at high school ....i created the "one minute rule" among my students . when they see me coming to the class they would ask me before class get started for a one minute break ....it works so well since they go back in a hurry to join the class . I also use the five minutes startegy and yes indeed ! It's magical !! They always forget about their question haha
Kids always want to go to the “good” drinking fountain after PE while in the locker room. It’s outside the room and down the hall. I make the first student do one push up to go. Then it’s 2. Then 4, 8, 16. The bell always rings on the kid doing 32 push ups.
I tell the student to ask when we’re done with whatever the activity is. If there are less than 15 minutes left in class, I ask if they can wait (they usually can). For the ones who really push me on it, I give them a pass on a lanyard (so they don’t touch it in between using the bathroom and washing their hands lol). If it’s just that they’re bored or restless, the kids know there is only one bathroom pass so they are incentivized to go fast and not waste time because their classmates who also have to go to the bathroom will get pissed if they take too long 😂 And if there’s only one pass, I don’t forget and accidentally let more than one kid go at a time. Ideally they’re not so bored they are making up excuses to leave, but if it’s the last class of the day or a Friday, antsiness is just unavoidable.
At my school (middle school) we're not allowed to say no, and the kids play it. A few years back a kid's mom told him to pee in the classroom if the teacher told him "no", so he did. Ever since then we've been told to let them go, and so lots of them ask to go in every class. They're constantly in the halls. All we can do is say "in a minute." I like to answer the inevitable questions with "eventually" and then watch them ask one another what the word means. "But I need to go." I'll be in the middle of a lesson and ask a question to see if they are getting the content. Five hands go up and every one of them wants to go to the bathroom. Makes me feel like I'm wasting my time.
I have my high schoolers stand by where my hall passes instead of verbally asking. Then if I'm giving directions, I'm not interrupted by someone who I think has a question, but really just wants a drink.
I teach middle school. My bathroom pass is an "I Love Justin Beiber" folder with pages inside where they write their name and time. They HATE THIS FOLDER!!! But it does keep my bathroom disruptions down to a minimum.
I teach high school Spanish so my kids have to ask in Spanish or I just ignore the question . . . They get the point really fast. And I only let one person out at a time, a habit from my subbing days due to getting caught in a fire drill I didn't know was planned. I don't let anyone go during the first or last 10 minutes and I don't let anyone go who was more than 5 minutes late for class (they should have gone then).
I tell my students at the beginning of the year that if it’s a true emergency and they need to go immediately to just get up and go... even if I had asked them to wait a min or if a sub told them no. It’s only ever been needed a few times the past several years and I’ve never had a student abuse it yet. For regular bathroom trips, I may ask them to wait until instructions are over etc... but I never deny. I just can’t. I’ve been there as a student.
I teach 8th grade english, and I was in the middle of reading the novel we are studying, and this student asked to go to the restroom. They know I said on the first day, and I have been pretty consistent, that unless it is an emergency, NO ONE leaves the classroom while I am delivering direct instruction or otherwise teaching/reading. If we are doing a whole class activity together, no one leaves. She kept asking me, and after the second time, I told her to give me 5 minutes to finish this chapter. Her friend, who sits a whole row away from her, started to encourage her to just get up and go. Then she asked if this was my first year teaching and I said yes, to which she replied "yeah, that's obvious," and she was just being super hostile toward me with comments and accusations of "sexism." I had a chat with her in the hall -- not sure why I didn't send her to the office. Me telling the other girl no had nothing to do with her. Sorry for the rant -- but does anyone have any suggestions for how to handle this? This is my first teaching job out of college. I just started a few weeks ago, midyear, so maybe that has something to do with it? Like they don't see me as their teacher yet?
I think just having a sign out sheet is the best way, kids should be able to go whenever I think. Obviously it does get abused but there a lot of reasons why a kid would need to go to the bathroom or step out for a minute. If they do worse in class due to abusing bathroom breaks, that’s on them.
Agreed. The magic 8ball is reserved for those few who abuse the class bathroom system. It’s a fun way to deal with the repeat offenders. I’ve found that due to not really needing to go they actually listen to it. It then defuses any teacher/student power struggle.
Hey Reynalds. Yesterday I was just thinking about this issue. I've noticed kids ask to go to the bathroom not only because they want a break from your class, but also because they want to use their phones. I loved the ideas you showed on this video: Ken's head and the Magic 8 Ball. As I'm not American, do kids really care about its answers?
I shit my pants in class once because the teacher refused to let me go to the bathroom. It was one of the worst experiences of my life and 20 years later it's still a horrible vivid memory. Thanks for not letting them go. I hope you at least have enough experience to be able to look at them and know if they really truly have to go.
Sorry that happened to you. Yes, I do. If you watched to the end of the video I address that the magic 8ball is a tactic for the students in my class that I know well and know they are abusing the pass.
I teach 6th grade girls. I givem 2 passes for each half of the year. They can use them any time they want. No questions asked. I also say they can come up to 2 minutes late of they need the bathroom before class. And I accommodate emergencies. Things in my class move quickly and generally the girls want to be there. And they know I care. Those last 2 factors are really key. I'm not saying this always works but almost always.
Hey Reynolds, I've just started university, have you got any tips for solving procrastination? I've struggled with it my whole academic career and really need to get out of this bad habit! thanks :))
I had a rule that if you threw something you had to pick up ten pieces of trash and if you needed to use the bathroom pick up 10 pieces of trash first. Kids would ask to go to the bathroom, I'd say "ok you have to pick up ten pieces of trash" and then they'd say they'd just wait till break. For girls I take them out of the classroom in a group and teach them a little hand signal they can give me if they're having a feminine emergency.
I use a behavior/ lesson platform in my room called Classcraft. I give students three free passes per nine weeks, after that they have to spend pseudo currency from the game to purchase up to two additional passes each nine weeks. It could also work with Class Dojo.
At the beginning of the year, I have them ask me when we’re finished with xyz. By Christmas, I say yes every time. They learn quickly that they don’t want to miss learning time. They’ll typically wait until individual work time to go. Them knowing the answer is yes takes the pressure off. And if they just need to have a break? I mean, go for it. I get it. Sometimes I need a break too but mine are built into the day. They have their passing periods but they might not have to go at that point. I’m not about to tell a high school kid they can’t do bodily functions! Again, that’s once our classroom norms have been established.
my senior english teacher has a rule that if you want to go anywhere that's not the nurses office or a scheduled guidance appointment you have do an assignment to match the crime. to go the bathroom for 5 minutes you have to fix one sentence, if you want to go and you know you're gonna take more than that, you have to fix 5 sentences. if you want to go to guidance for whatever reason, you have to write a paragraph with one of her paragraph prompts, and if you just need a break, you have to read a couple pages of a book, then if you still need that break, you can go to the library with said book.
Makes sense, if you're missing class you need to make up for what you missed for whatever a reasonable amount of work would get accomplished while you were away. So you could even time the kids gone - if they're gone 3 minutes, no biggie. If they're gone 10, they need to write a solid half-page paragraph because that's what they could've completed during that time. I think that's actually pretty reasonable and probably the best curriculum-friendly response.... good idea.... creates more work for the teacher to give out those prompts, but it could be instituted in a class where there are chronic issues
We discuss it in class meetings. I believe no one should ask permission to use the toilet but should let me know where they're going. We discuss the dangers of playing in the toilets.
I teach the fourth grade, some classes can be excessive about the bathroom. A few of my boys like to go more than necessary. I do many of the same things you do .I just say, "no you're not going to the bathroom." I also say you have to finish a certain amount of work before I'll let them go. The eight ball is a very creative idea! This year my class is very talkative. The mornings are great, but afternoons they are so.... chatty. What do you do for excessive talking?
I teach at an alternative school, so most or our kids have ADHD, so what I say is, "do you need to use the restroom or do you need to get out of the class?" most times they just need to get out, step away. So, we'll go outside for 10 mins. I have a Nerf football (hoola hoop), they have 10 mins. Then they have to focus when we get back in class...also we stop by the bathroom as a group on the way back in, so no more bathroom breaks.
I tell my students they can go during independent work times, unless it's an emergency (tummy troubles and now that I have 4th and 5th grade girls, female issues). They have to use the hand signal and I say yes. For one, it tells me if they really need to go and it keeps it quiet. It never fails that when one needs to go, they ALL need to go. I also build group bathroom breaks into the day. We leave a little early for specials. After lunch, they bring their silent reading books and read while we wait.
I love the hand signal because it avoids the annoying bathroom conversations. I just feel like even talking about it (your reason, my response) is a waste of time.
Been in a class where a student peed themselves because a teacher told them they could wait until the bell. Obviously you might need a strategy to keep students from just leaving but I personally wouldn’t discourage students who need the bathroom from going. Unless the lesson was nearly over. Then I’d let them know the lesson was nearly over, state exactly how much longer was left, ask them if they were able to hold it that long, then tell them they could go if they arranged with another student (who agrees to it) first to take notes and share them with them so they didn’t miss anything (I’ve not tried that but I imagine having to get another student who has to stay in class to take notes for them while they’re gone might make some students think twice about leaving for too long or leaving unnecessarily in future). If I thought students were abusing the bathroom break during the middle of the lessons and we were covering something significant, I think I might still tell them they had to recruit someone to take notes and inform them of anything they miss, and the knowledge they have to get another student to stay behind and take notes they otherwise might not have had to take might actually motivate the student to get back sooner, I’d think. Supposedly that social pressure is supposed to be a strong motivator for high school students. I’d specify that the other student needed to agree to it so that I wouldn’t have students giving other students work to pick on them while they went out and chilled instead of working. If we weren’t covering anything too significant then I’d probably just let them go, warn them to be quick, and tell them next time to go during the break. If they did it regularly or took too long regularly then they’d lose my approval and be told why, having been privately warned prior that I wouldn’t keep saying yes if they were going to abuse that. If they take a bit longer than expected once then I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt the first time. Maybe it was bowel issues? Idk. In fact, maybe I should let them know I might call their parents if they’re having this many toilet troubles. If it’s just them ditching class, that might spook them a bit. If they have an undiagnosed condition, that might help them. In general, I think I’d rather try my best to make classes engaging and, if they really just want to leave for a bit and lie about needing the bathroom, I’d rather tell them to be quick than have them piss themselves, be humiliated, and blame me. If they’re already that disengaged then I feel like they probably aren’t learning much from staying so a five minute break might be all they want. If students started abusing that then I might change my mind for those students, but that’s my current stance. I’m very new to teaching. I don’t actually have experience implementing these things. I just know I’d rather give the student the benefit of the doubt. Maybe I’m being naive. I just have such clear memories of the student in one of my classes when I was in school peeing himself and being shamed for it because the teacher told him to hold it, and I don’t want to risk that happening in my own classes. Even ignoring the student’s wellbeing and potential disability discrimination, I’d not want to deal with the..mess.
The magic eight ball is a tactic or strategy, not an overall rule. It’s for students you already know, and they are your repeat offenders, not students who actually need to go. I agree if a student persists and tells you they need to go, you let them go.
@@CJReynolds I get that. I’ve seen your replies to other comments and I’m sure these strategies work for you and that’s good. I was just sharing my own perspective, as requested. I’d at this extremely early stage in my career probably still lean toward giving the benefit of the doubt even for the repeat offenders. Maybe they’ve got an undiagnosed condition. Maybe they even have a less directly related condition, like sensory issues, nobody’s yet aware of and they just needed a break. Sure, that probably doesn’t apply to most but I personally would still rather not risk it. I’ll see how my answer changes in a couple years though lol. So far I’ve not had an issue with people abusing bathroom privileges so I guess I’ll see how I actually respond when I get there.
@@CJReynolds Come to think about it, I’ve only had experience so far teaching in a visual art classroom and I’ve been told before that students are less eager to leave art classes. As important as subjects like math, PE, history, etc are, I can easily imagine that students abusing bathroom breaks might be more of an issue in those classes, so maybe I’m just not realising the extent of the issue in other classrooms yet.
I remember in the beginning of the days I would be so thirsty and drink a whole bunch of water. I would hold it in literally all day because I was always a good student and never wanted to miss anything important. However one day it hit me really bad to the point I had to leave. I asked my teacher to use the bathroom he said can you wait a few minutes. I said no because I seriously had to go that bad. He said I’m sure you can so go sit down. Then some other students in the class started blowing up my phone with water emojis and water sound effects. Some would even pass a note having to do with water. I went up asked him again and he said no. Luckily by then the principal walked in and let me use the bathroom and the teacher got suspended.
I remember having sudden, major cramps once in class. We had a sub who refused to let me leave. I was a meek, quiet kid. I never got into trouble or did anything wrong. And I was in, literal, tears at being in so much pain. What surprised me was that the guys in the class were very angry on my behalf. They all told me to just leave and go to the bathroom. They would leave with me and go to the principal’s office to let him know what had happened. I was scared to do that, but it was so sweet that I had the other students’ support.
Please be careful with saying “no” - while it makes sense with those who’d abuse the privilege, it may also terrify those who truly need to leave. Not all of your students are trying to put something over on you; sometimes, a student really needs to go.
DottyGale8 agreed, this video was mostly for the kids that abuse the bathroom or ways to weed them out from the ones that really need to go. Sorry you had a teacher who didn't recognize your need! I actually did that to a female student the first yr I taught and learned a valuable lesson on how to gauge the bs bathroom needs from the real deal!
DottyGale8 100%
@DottyGale8 I'm sorry that happened to you. Those years can be tough on a kid at times. I obviously wasn't there in that classroom with you but IF it's any consolation, subs are often in a tough spot in that they basically get the phone call at 5:00 AM to come in and outside of that, get little, if any direction other than what classrooms to go to and when. It's stressful and frustrating (yes, I'm speaking from experience, here) and the only reason I'm telling you this is because it's POSSIBLE (again, I wasn't there so I won't speak in absolutes) that that sub wasn't trying to be a jerk to you or anything; he or she just might have simply been overwhelmed and/or honestly just didn't know what the hell to do.
@Marysol Alvarez Agreed. Maybe this is just me, but at some point, I learned that the best way to be a sub is just be low key (because, as you point out, you don't "know the system") and if any students are a particular problem, leave a note for the regular teacher and leave it at that.
Love the classroom comraderie.
When I was a substitute teacher, I used the "ask me again in five minutes" strategy all the time and it worked wonders! Any student that truly had to go would ask again, but 9 times out of 10, students wouldn't remember. It was perfect for subbing, since I didn't know which students were trustworthy.
Noone thinks about girls
I teach at the elementary school level and I buy a large desk calendar. If the students need to use the bathroom, then they need to write their name on the calendar. If I see that the same students are using the bathroom constantly, then I contact the parents via telephone or a letter to let them know that I am concerned about their students. That is a subtle way of taking care of the situation.
Great idea , especially as a visual reminder and it reduces the argument of how often a student is going! Thanks for sharing it!
Yep. This year I’m keeping a sign-out sheet and analyzing it every couple weeks
John Lopez when I was in fourth grade during silent reading( which was right after lunch) the bathroom pass would be passed around the room from table to table. Their were two, an it took pretty much the entire period for everyone to go.
@@slk678 If it is related to their period then you’d probably see the pattern and the telephone call would also probably lead to you getting a better idea. Maybe not the wisest strategy for high school
I am not a teacher yet, but I remember that back in high school one of my teachers would give us 3 restroom passes per semester and if by the end of the semester we didn't use the passes we could use it as extra credit or to be invited to a pizza party during lunch. I really liked that because I know I wasn't the best student and that I was going to need that extra credit at the end of the semester lol
I was about to comment this exact thing, but i only got 2 passes per semester
Nora Ramos Bathroom passes are life!!! 😂😂😂
NaturallyNiani especially when there is pizza involved 😂😂 lol
I really don't agree with giving extra credit for students who don't use the bathroom! But I like the idea of limiting the number per semester.
if I did that my 6th graders would literally pee their pants lmao
I love how he gets his students involved in his channel. It warms my heart. 😊
Thanks Mahogany! It’s not hard. They are always asking to be on. 😂😂
@@CJReynolds August '20 will be my first time in the classroom as a Career Switcher. Can I ask what kind of legal releases your students/parents need to sign in order to be filmed and put on public RUclips? I want to obtain a video recorder to record my lessons for me to look back on and improve, but I don't know if I will be allowed to. Also as a (hopeful) Theatre teacher, I would like to use video to record rehearsals for the students to reflect on their own performances. Thanks in advance.
My civics teacher in High School issued a punch card every semester to each student. If I remember correctly, it had 10 trips that could be punched and that's all you got for the entire semester. For every punch you had left at the end of the semester, he would give you extra credit points. When your bathroom trips are basically converted to a currency, it makes you less likely to waste them. Most of the kids in my class cashed in full punch cards.
It was the best teacher Jedi mind-trick I've ever seen.
I had a teacher that did that. I was failing the class for other reasons. But one day, I had to go REALLY bad. I knew, tho, if I used up my passes, I wouldn't have all my bonus points. I eventually peed myself. Luckily, I have epilepsy, so I made up the excuse that I had a seizure. The last seizure I had was years before that. But it was an excuse to cover up peeing myself in middle school
Natalie Euley in fourth grade math class someone had an epileptic seizure.
Scariest day of my life
I explain my procedures at the beginning of the year. Kids are allowed to ask to go to the bathroom when I’m not giving direct instruction. If they are working independently or with a group, they can asked to use the restroom. Or right at the beginning of class before the bell rings, they can ask and I usually tell them yes they just need to try and hurry to be back on time. I find that kids respect this when they know that you will let them go if they really need to go. But if I see that they’re asking to go all the time, I ask them if they really need to go or if they just need a quick break. When they admit to that I usually tell them to hold off five minutes and they can go get a drink of water for them to come back quickly. I love the idea of a magic eight ball or Ken. I have a giant poster of Shakespeare on my door, and when kids start to tattle to me (you know, silly kid stuff), I tell them to go let Shakespeare know. They either realize that it is dumb to talk to a poster and sit down, or they go have a talk and feel better. 😂
Those passing periods are awesome. I also love the Shakespeare poster!
Hey Reynolds! Was one of your students back in the Camden academy days . Now I work there as a science teacher! A great bathroom technique I use is a tap light mounted on the wall. Light On= Someone is out don’t ask. Light off= You can go (no need to ask but I may still stop you because I’m King!)
I was subbing in a grade-7 class today and I tried the Magic 8-Ball trick. It backfired hilariously. The kids thought it was so cool that they were practically lining up to ask the 8-Ball if they could go to the bathroom so I had to nix it. I might bring it back when I become a regular teacher (so that the novelty wears off), but it really doesn't work on a one-day basis.
Anthony that’s hilarious! 😂😂😂😂 I’ve never heard of anyone having that response! Great work man! You are probably the most memorable sub those kids have ever had.
It's hard to say no. Especially for girls. I realize you're in an all boys school and are male yourself, so it might not have occurred to you. But while I agree that there are kids who are playing you and just want to go and socialize, with girls there are genuine emergency situations that will come up at exactly the strangest moments. We know when stuff is getting real down there. My personal policy is to just let one person (per gender) at a time go. That way if a kid is taking his/her time, kid #2 can't go until kid #1 returns. It gives them a bit of social shame as kid #2 will razz kid #1 for taking his/her time. If there's a genuine emergency, then they tend to show the panic on their faces and I relent.
For sure. When I taught girls I would let all of them go almost every time unless I caught on to your game.
Before I read any of the comments, I'll give my own take on this. I actually really like your ideas and I completely respect your style of just saying... NO sometimes. Some kids need that. I also like the idea of making light of the situation. It builds a classroom environment where your individual actions affect the opportunities of the entire group (working as an individual in the community). However, I've always been a proponent of considering the use of a washroom a right rather than a privilege. It makes me very uncomfortable refusing anyone the washroom. They may be asking because they don't actually have to go to the bathroom, and half the time, it's not. But so long as you're being safe, doing what you need to do to "refresh" yourself (a five minute refreshment break is what I like), then it's none of my business. It might be because they need to send a text to their mom who is freaking out on them for not texting them back in class (yes this happens), to get a break from the environment, get up and walk around, it might be because they legitimately drank 2 cups of coffee and have to pee so badly and can't think about anything else until they "take a leak" (as your students put it), even for five minutes. But we don't know, and we never will know for sure. I had a student who was a real goofball but he had irritable bowel syndrome. Teachers refused to let him go to the washroom and we needed a meeting with his parents and principal to reveal his condition, which he found very embarrassing. Might seem like an extreme example but there could be anxiety, depression, period stuff (not a boys only school haha), lots of stuff going on. Yes, my dear goofball boy with IBS should use his time more productively in class, but he still needs to use the washroom. On the other side of things, I do feel like students play this "bathroom game" out of tradition and with my style, I actually remove it as a game. I say, "Sure. See you in a few minutes," they kind of self-regulate and use it responsibly. If I find out they're doing something they're not supposed to be doing, or going somewhere they aren't supposed to be, I have them stay at lunch (or some other form of discipline), but I don't take away their right to use the washroom. It's just something I feel strongly about. The hall pass is a good idea but I feel like it's kind of unsanitary and gross and I don't feel comfortable about that either. I do have obvious, reasonable restrictions for the purpose of the lesson - if it's 15 mintues before or after the bell it's school wide policy and that's reasonable. If it's during important teacher-led instruction, then you gotta just hold it in for a bit. Often I'll stand between the doorway and the class, if there is student-centered stuff going on, and watch the student walk down the hall (since we typically have a washroom in sight of all classes). And if I do refuse, and they come back at me and explain an extenuating circumstance as to why they did not have an opportunity to go earlier - in a MATURE, reasonable, adult-like manner - I'll give them a mature, reasonable adult-like response (Sure, go quick.) I teach my students to be reasonable with me. If it's a recurring thing where the student leaves for 15 minutes at a time, I would discipline and "check in" with the parent about what is happening.
I want to add also that I am new, and if I had tougher classes with much more chronic bathroom goers that are clearly unable to be "mature, reasonable,"etc about it, I can't say I wouldn't swing towards a style more like yours.
Long story short - depends on the students. Any good group I can be reasonable with through rapport and by building an environment where we are respectful, professional, accountable, and reasonable
I do the "if you finish up to this point on your assignment you can go" and the "ask me again in five minutes" things. Students are never allowed to leave for water because they are allowed to bring it to class. I give four restroom passes each nine weeks. It's pretty generous, but I have some intestinal issues and know what it's like to have to use the restroom suddenly.
Our principal has a rule that students may not go to the restroom during 1st period or 5th period, which is right after lunch. We are told to use our judgment, though. When the kid who never asks to leave the class is dancing in his seat and raising his hand, I let him go.
Bridget Derbyshire good judgment is everything. Good work Teach. 😊
That makes no sense to me. it is precisely after lunch that we need to use the toilet.
It’s so annoying when I have to go to the bathroom and my teacher won’t let me go then I start fidgeting and they ask me if I’m okay and I say no I have to go to the bathroom and it’s just so annoying
Sorry that happens to you. This tactic is for fun for kids that abuse the bathroom pass not for the students who don’t or it’s obvious that they need to go. If I’m in the middle of instruction time, I tell them right after X you may go.
When a student asks me to go to the toilet I generally let them and rarely need to wait unless we are in the middle of explaining something. I this these strategies are more for those students who ask every time, all the time. But as a student I remember being very frustrated if a teacher just had a blanket "no" response.
I just gave it to my students straight and told them when I laid out class procedures that first day that a) I need five minutes quiet time at the start of class and b) whenever I am lecturing about something they can’t ask to go. I gave them a big dramatic example about how teachers HATE when they are lecturing for fifteen minutes about fractions or the Roman Empire and there is that one kid in the back wildly waving his hand. You call on him thinking he wants to talk numerators or Julius Cesar and he asks: can I go to the bathroom? Aaaah, it’s like a stab in the heart and I did a dramatic stabbing motion. The kids remember and they respect that lecture. I also phrased as a insider tip that wouldn’t just work for me but for most teachers.
I knew a kid who left for the bathroom every day for certain classes. I only knew he was faking it because I overheard a conversation between him and his friend. He usually took no more than two minutes (normally came back in one) and it was at different times so the teachers always let him go. We're family friends, so I knew there was nothing wrong, but the kid truly needed just some time to calm himself down. The certain classes he asked were what he hated/found hard and he just needed to breathe and move around. He was a pretty good student, made up everything; he just couldn't take the pressure without a break. If his friend was at lunch he would see and come into the bathroom and calm him down.
If a student leaves for over 5 minutes repeatedly, you may need to take care of it, but if it's just for a minute for a quick walk break/refresher, I think you should let them go for at least the one minute. (if you have the ”only one person out” policy I can see how this might be a problem though.)
I think a bunch of people missed the part where you said they ask to go to the bathroom (without having to actually go) to take a break.
Positively Pre-K The funny thing is just like with everything else in the world sometimes people hear what they want to hear. That being said I do appreciate the grace people have with me even if they disagree with what I've said 😊
You don't always know who needs to go and who doesn't.
I often use strategy #2 and #3. I LOVE the magic 8 ball idea!
What worked for me last year was on the first day, I told my high school students that they are all big people. If they have to step outside to take a walk to the bathroom, either because they have to go or because they need to clear their head, they can just take the hallway pass and go without even saying anything to me. If too many students start going more than once per class, then I announced that I would post a sign out sheet by the door to keep track of how often students step out. Students barely ever went to the bathroom. I'll try again this year, hope it works this well again! Your advice is golden and I absolutely love your channel ❤
I teach 2nd and 3rd graders in my school’s after-school program and I have regular students that asks to use the restroom when I know they are using it as an excuse to leave my classroom. I allow them to go, but I tell them that I will set a stopwatch and that they will be timed. I tell them that how ever long it takes for them to return, they will owe me that time later during their free time. They really value their free time, so usually they either change their minds, or they leave and return in a matter of seconds.
I know my daughter is one of the bathroom offenders. She always ask to go to the bathroom when she's bored.
She's so bad about it that one of her teachers was concerned that she might have a bladder infection. I explained to her that if she's engaged, she has an iron bladder.
It's hard to keep all the children engaged all the time.
Going to the bathroom is a human right. I usually ask if they can wait for the key instruction but if they can't, I let them go. I disagree with your advice to say no. But I do like the magic 8 ball advice for other things just not the bathroom. If you have kids sign out and you see a pattern that a child leaves the class often, that's a conversation for later. Maybe with a parent. Missing instruction whatever. If they are out for a long time, this is another problem. Is there a medical reason why they have to leave so often? I think if a kid asks, you let them go and respect this right.
+Vivian Yee These are not hard and fast rules. I believe you have to know your students. At the beginning of the year I let kids go when they ask, I learn their behaviors and I can tell who's abusing it and whose not. I say no to the kids who are abusing it and I say yes to the kids who don't abuse it or I know that have health related issues or just truly need to use the bathroom. I NEVER stick with a hard and fast NO. The video was more about my creative ways to weed out the ones who just want to leave the classroom or don't really need to go.
These conversations are great. Glad we can look at kind of opposite views and realize we aren't really that opposite. Really comes down to knowing your students - respect is a given, trust is earned. As I stated, I had a student that abused washroom privileges, but we later learned that he also had IBS. So he was leaving because he wanted to visit his friends in food prep and was failing and generally disengaged in the learning environment, but he also suffered from acute IBS and GENUINELY needed to be hitting that olde porcelain throne sometimes a couple times per class. It's important to be flexible and just use your best judgment, and not be too convicted/ hardheaded about that judgment. As someone who teaches law we focus on reasonable thinking and reasonable problem solving (it's how we assess the law and what is just). We use reasonable thinking to determine whether or not someone is complying with our legal expectations and traditions - I extend this idea to going to the washroom (lol, stay with me here). Is it reasonable for you to be asking me to go to the washroom right now (maybe it is, maybe it isn't in all honesty)? (30 seconds after the bell ring is not reasonable, so it is reasonable for me to say no). Is it reasonable for me to say yes (or no)? Depends on the situation. If you're in court or in a business meeting or appointment, you try to hold it in best you can, and if you need to slip out and duck back in for whatever reason, do it respectfully. If you're ducking out when you probably shouldn't be, at least give me the respect to come up with a politely framed, well articulated reason (dare I say, even if it's a fib). I can also assess the bathroom going behaviour in the learning skills we assess in Ontario, like self-regulation (ha- no pun intended), responsibility, etc., but if there is a student abusing it, I really try to investigate the best I can before judging. Because it's an awful feeling to treat a student like they're doing a shitty thing (pun, sorry not sorry) when they're actually suffering through something and too shy / use humour to cover it up.
I think your ideas are creative and brilliant and appeal to humour instead of anger to deal with kids who frequently want to leave the classroom. And, from watching your past videos I think that you are an outstanding teacher who cares about kids and wants to make a difference in the world. I just worry that teachers with less experience might take "just say no" when a child asks to use the bathroom without really thinking about the child. Like the other person who commented, (student with IBS) I know a grade 8 boy who had an accident and refused to return to school. He was traumatized. It's better to err on the side of letting a kid go. Just a caution. And I really admire you..the fact that you interviewed 'black girls teach' make you just cool in my eyes. Peace.
Honestly, I think that the “just say no” rule applies to students who you know leave to “use the bathroom” every day when they don’t have to. I had students last semester who would ask for water or to go to the bathroom and go do whatever they wanted. So in those cases, adopting a “just say no” attitude would’ve benefitted me and would’ve cut down on skipping class.
Hi, this is interesting. We as workers have to wait for breaks to go to the bathroom and I think one of our roles as teachers is to build an understanding of responsibility. I teach high school and think that saying No is just fine. If there is a medical reason for needing to go, or for female students who have need to go, the student will come up and sort it out.
We have a yellow slip that needs to be filled out when a student leaves. So they get the slip, fill it in including the time, then I sign it and they go. When they return they have to put the time on it. If they don't really need to go, they often cannot be bothered. All on them. I often say no as well.
I absolutely LOVE your classroom and attitude! Thank you for these videos.
Thank you for the kind words and for watching!
I am watching this to get ideas about how to deal with my teenage son who is a great guy but it's just good to have some other techniques. You are a really caring teacher and your ideas and experiences are very helpful. Thanks!
Just remember, if a girl comes up to you and says she needs to go to the bathroom, LET THEM. Cause girl problems will not wait. And you don’t wanna be stuck in that awkward situation where they tell you “Girl problems”. Please please do not be that teacher who refuses and then that student gets in a very embarrassing situation.
Edit: I’m not trying to offend anyone just giving a little warning to teachers who may not be aware of that problem😂
Ikr I’m a girl and had my problems and asked the ELA teacher to use the bathroom she said why didn’t you go at lunch I said idk she said there’s 20 minutes left of class go sit down
In my country it is not allowed to not let kids to the bathroom and I thinks it is right. If you do that with girls you have to do it with boys too. You can never know what a person is going through I remember when I was at 8th grade I had a problem, I needed to go to the bathroom every 10 minutes. And it would have been really akward if I had to explain my problem to the teacher even if I am a male.
At my school, mostly one out of three things happen
1. The teacher is explaining, and you wait till they're done
2. The teacher is explaining, but you really need to go, so you raise your hand to ask for permission.
3. When I'm doing individual work, i just walk up to the teachers desk, ask for permission, and quietly leave the classroom
I love this video. At the clubs I run I allow kids to go to the bathroom so long as 1. They ask first. 2. My team are not teaching. If a child asked for the toilet and they aren't known to have a bladder issue, I will often tell them they should have gone before they came into the room, I ask them how much they have had to drink today and that is usually a good distraction as they don't know so I tell them to sit back down. I had a lot of trouble with the boys at one of our clubs on a Saturday morning always needed the toilet so I addressed the issue with them all publicly by asking for a show of hands as to who had done a poo that morning. (I am working with 5 to 11 year olds) To start with they were horrified that I was asking this, until the couple of gigglers raised their hand and then I explained to them that if they don't do a poo regularly it presses on their bladder and it makes them think they need a wee, and that if they come back next week and can't tell me they had had a bowel movement that morning, then they better not ask to go to the bathroom. Worked amazingly! Suddenly no one needed any longer. It hasn't been an issue since. Don't get me wrong, if a kids is desperate, I will always let them go to the toilet as I have no desire to send them home wet or mop the floor!
Love seeing Mosquitoland on your wall--one of my favorite books!
I love your ideas! I think they’re super creative. Clearly lots of people in these comments didn’t watch the entire video. I believe that If you’ve been working with these students for a while, then you truly know them, and when they truly have to go. Anyways, great video!
Thanks so much for saying that. This is one of the only videos I get a hard time with, but like you said it really takes knowing your students. My best to you this year! Peace.
Also, thank you to the kids for your cameos!!!!
A couple years ago one of my teachers had a yard stick with a giant picture of his face taped to it as the hall pass. So if someone had to use the bathroom they would have to carry it with them.
Cassidy Miller oh man, I wish I could use that! Our students have a passport in the back of their school-issued agendas, and that's what they have to use in order to leave the room.
That's really funny. Don't wanna know what students did to that face though while unsupervised. Picturing the snapchat videos now....
jjjjjjjj I thought the same thing. 😂😂😂
I've worked out my own method to avoid being interrupted while I'm teaching.... Students know that if they want to go to the toilet they must raise their hand in a different way... basically they must put their hand in a "victory-like" position (don't know if that makes
sense). So they don't even need to speak and I know that this particular person doesn't want to answer one of my questions but they just want to go out. This way I can decide whether to just let them go or ignore them until I'm done with my explanation. If they see I'm ignoring them, they'll just try later if they really need to go. They also know I will not allow more than 3 people in a row.
I like that idea. I appreciate that it helps to differentiate weather they are participating or not. 👍🏽☺️
Why am I watching this as a student 😂
Prevention is always the best cure. I teach fourth grade and I build bathroom breaks into our day. For example, when we come in from recess I take the whole class to the bathroom and tell them to also get a drink if they need one. Also, if we've been sitting for a long stretch I'll say anyone who needs to use the restroom or get a drink may do so now.
However, if a student needs to use the restroom during class they don't have to ask, they just put the pass on their desk so I know where they are. The key thing is that they are responsible for anything they miss while out of the room. If they didn't have enough time to finish work because they spent ten minutes goofing off in the halls, then they have to make that up. If they miss instructions, I'm not repeating them, ask a friend. If a student abuses the privilege (most won't) then I deal with it like I deal with other behavior issues.
My freshman physics teacher was really nice and she let us go whenever we needed. I barely used this privilege because my anxiety trained my bladder to not have to go during school. But one time my friend just started her period in drivers we which had a no bathroom policy during her lunch period. She didn't have enough time to go during the passing period, so she free bled for two hours by the time our teacher let her go.
We had a restroom in the main office right near the Dean’s door. That was the only bathroom we were allowed to use during class. Everyone was scared of the Dean so if you asked that means you really had to go!
😂 That’s a good solution!
Another solution for younger grades, is to issue a certain amount of restroom tickets each day (3-5 tickets depending on their grade level and physical needs). They can only go to the restroom if they have a ticket. The tickets don't roll over to the next day they get the same amount of tickets each day. This way students are less likely to waste their ticket on playing in the restroom because they know once all their tickets are gone for the day they can't go to the restroom. Also, you could include a reward for the students that don't use up all of their tickets before a certain time of the day (like maybe 10-20 minutes before dismissal if they still have at least 1 ticket left they can pull from the treasure box, the snack box, or have free time).
You could even make it a class job where a responsibile student passes out the tickets each day (all students should know how many tickets they are to get each day so they can be sure they have the right amount if tickets).
Children with 504s that require them to go to the restroom frequently can participate too. With them you can up the amount of tickets or keep their tickets the same amount as everyone else but when they run out send them to the nurse instead of the restroom. Most school nurse's offices have restrooms. You may want to get the school nurse on board with this so she will just let them go in her office. You can also fill those students parents in on it. So they will know why their child is being sent to the nurse instead of the restroom. This way the 504 students that have to use the restroom frequently will get what they need without being singled out.
Oh I almost forgot. The tickets are for their individual trips to the restroom. If the class has 1 or 2 whole classroom breaks during the day don't have them lose tickets for this. Instead strongly advised them to use the restroom during these times so they won't have to lose their restroom tickets.
I think, as a teacher, you can't let yourself get completely taken advantage of by kids who are clearly just trying to abuse the right to go to the bathroom. And, I really never want to deny a kid from going to the bathroom when they really need to go, and I didn't hear Reynolds advocating for a strict "don't let them go" policy here. I notice with my kids that when one kid asks it tends to set off a chain reaction and they all want to go at once. (Especially in my classes with 8-10 year olds.) So, I started using a policy of everyone can go whenever, BUT we only go one at a time. So you gotta wait til the person who is out comes back. This accomplishes a couple things: 1) The social environment stays in the classroom. 2) It's easy to monitor how long someone has been gone, and the other kids in line start to get annoyed too when someone abuses it.
Ultimately, I want to see if I can get the kids to start self-organizing/policing a little bit more. Last week, a child was gone for about 10+ minutes and clearly abused it, and when she came back I did two things: 1)Told the girl waiting to go next to tell the student who was gone a long time how she felt having to wait for her. 2) Asked the girl where she went besides the bathroom. Surprisingly, she was honest and told me that she went to another class for a few minutes to see her brother. I asked her why she didn't ask me if she could do that, and she was once again very honest, "because I knew you would say no." I kind of laughed and said, "Well, you're right about that, but the only problem now is that I can't trust you when you ask me to go to the bathroom. And you can't go by yourself now."
Would love to hear any reactions/opinions or related experience to this approach. I definitely don't think I'm doing it perfectly, but I think it sends the wrong message to kids to let them get away with lying and manipulation. Gotta be some middle ground.
This is actually pretty helpful...I have a certain student who asks to go to the bathroom every single lesson (she's in 2 of my classes) and she takes ages. Frustratingly, though, because she's a girl, my school says I have to let her go. So getting a magic 8 ball though.
+Shocking Teaches that is really frustrating. Have you tried giving her a time limit or letting her know she can only go during the first or last 5 minutes of the period?
Real Rap With Reynolds No, I haven't tried that yet, but I will give that a go this week and see how it works.
I love your ideas. It's interesting to me how age doesn't affect the bathroom dilemma. I teach Firsties and have the same issues. We take scheduled class breaks throughout the day right before major subject area transitions (math, writing, reading) so that they're all refreshed and ready to focus on the lesson at hand and also first thing in the morning and after recess, lunch, and special class. The students then can also ask individually throughout the day when it's independent work time and it's reasonable to go right then. We use sign language so as not to interrupt anyone's work time and for privacy. You learn pretty quickly who is abusing the privilege. I also don't let several go at the same time to have a potty party. Our restrooms are down the hall and around the corner where you can't see them, so it's better to limit the size group that goes at the same time. If a student asks to go within a short time of us just having a break, I speak with that child to assess if they used the group break time wisely, let them go, and then keep track to see if this becomes an issue because then they're probably playing around and not taking care of business. Life would be so much easier if we didn't have to deal with bodily functions! LOL! Thank you for sharing! ❤️ and hugs!
For Middle School I have done 2 things for the Bathroom: 1 I have a green light (or green paper) and a red light. When you are allowed to go to the bathroom the green light (or paper) is visable. Only one person can leave at a time. When it is red, you are not even allowed to ask. 2. one year I gave bathroom tickets. 3 a week to each student. They had to use them wisely because those tickets were for my two classes (ELA and SS) and for the Other teacher (math and Science) the only downside is kids who NEVER have to go sometimes gave tickets away.
My 5th graders ...will be using this tip
I loved these tips thanks
I have a sign-in/sign-out book. The rule at our school is no passes the first or last 15 minutes of class so that leave only 60 minutes of time for passes. Only one student can go out at a time so they have to wait if someone is out already. Then, I only allow 4 passes per quarter. Once they have used those up, they have to come back for lunch detention for whatever amount of time they were out of the room.
When i was 10 I was the type of student that never raised my hand to even leave my seat. The one time I asked to go and was told no... I peed myself in my seat. I was mortified. I went home.
We wernt doing anything important.
Hi Samarria. I’m really sorry that happened to you. It would crush me if that happened to a student. Are you a teacher? How do you handle that now? I’d really love to know. You could email me as well at realrapwiththereynolds@gmail.com
I had a college professor who always gave this little speech in the first class of the day. Mind you, it's college, so students don't eed to ask permission, we just up and go if we have the need. Anyway, she would always start her little speech by giving the disclaimer that she is a history teacher, not a science teacher, but has asked and received confirmation from the biology faculty on this subject. The bladder is an amazing organ that has the capability to hold more pee, even after you think you have to go. At this point she would draw a bladder (not the best drawing but clear enough) and draw a line about half way or three-quarters up. She'd then point to the line and say "when your urine level gets to here, your body tells you it needs to go pee, but there is still all this space to fill up, you don't really have to pee until your urine level gets to the top." She'd then go on to say that she won't stop us from going out since we're not children, but to please be respectful of her instruction and try to minimize any disruptive exits to absolute emergencies.
Side note, she also had a box of tissues or packets of tissues at the front for students with runny noses to use so that they didn't have to leave the room.
Her speech was amusing, but got the point across that it is disruptive to leave the room, and usually not necessarily in a 90 minute class. I think I left in the middle of class maybe three times (over the course of two semesters with her).
Another cool teacher gave us a 5-10 minute break halfway through the class time (45 or 50 minutes into a 90 minute class). While I disliked his class/teaching style, I did like the breaks he gave us. Gave time for bathroom breaks, water bottle refilling, or just to recharge the brain for more new information.
Knowing that I'll be going from graduate school to the high school again, the first thing I noticed was, "oh bathroom is kind of a privilege now." I understand the realities of kids abusing it, I do, but many it's such a switch because in college, eh who cares if you go (and I'm a science major so my classes were always small).
It's such a weird topic, because on the one hand I have teenagers asking IF they can use the bathroom. What I really am trying to do is minimize the times that kids use the bathroom as an escape because they can't do the work.
I think our biggest fears as teachers (or at least mine) is not to let a kid go and they really have to and parents get upset or young ladies nees to take care of feminine issues, we deny them, and once again, parents are upset. I even feel bad at times because I can't even maneuver the hallways to the bathroom and get back on time during a 3 min passing period. Thoughts?
Parents upset, but also the students themselves. It's a tough issue because I do feel like denying access to the washroom is a weird form of control and dare I say abuse.
jjjjjjjj Exactly. A human (student or otherwise) who truly needs to go to the bathroom should not be denied that basic right. That’s cruel. 🙁 And, yes, I know there is some time between classes. But it was only 5 minutes when I was in school - and that was spent getting to my locker and running to my next class across the campus. And trying to fit in a bathroom break somehow in there. But human bladders and colons don’t always run on school class schedules - no matter how much we’d like them to.
This is a good point. It could be a school structural thing - one of our breaks is actually so so short (5 minutes), some students are traveling from one end to the other. Even as a teacher you can't even move to the next class let alone get set up for the lesson, AND if you're lucky, get to use the bathroom (ooh, luxury lol). What I found myself thinking as a newer teacher on some of my first days was how and why students put up with this.... BULL. A bell goes, they subconsciously just sit down and stare at the front of the room. I go with it as do they, but think about it - is that not messed up? Someone tells them they can't release fluid that is about to come out of their body, and they comply and sit down. And yet they seem to think it is so unfair and unjust. Maybe it is. And so where are the letters of protest? Where are the petitions? Clearly their system isn't working for them if they're demanding to go to the washroom, BEGGING LITERALLY, and are being told no. BEND THE KNEE, CHILDREN!!! lol
That said, our dear mentor Reynolds is dealing with some chronic goers, and I do not believe he is committing any wrongdoing by employing strategies that work great for his group of students! He's brilliant and I love all the ideas that are coming from the topic and strategies he's suggested
jjjjjjjj True. But I don’t want new or learning teachers to think his way is set in stone. If his kids are such that these methods are necessary, it’s what he needs to do. However, I’ve been that student who desperately needs to go really, really badly, and I’ve been told I’m not allowed to. But, the thing is, I can guarantee that no learning happened during that time. It’s impossible to focus on learning when your bladder is hurting.
So any teachers watching this video need to be sure they’re understanding that this way is what works in HIS classroom with his students. Please don’t think it’s a universal thing. Your students may not be such that you need to restrict them.
It’s just kinda upsetting to know that someone could say “no” to going to the bathroom. I just had surgery to have a kidney stone removed 2 weeks ago yesterday. Until it was out, I was having horrible urinary issues - including the need to go to the bathroom constantly. I’m sitting here teary at the thought of being in that situation as a student - and having the teacher deny me the use of the bathroom. 😢
*that intro though* I’m dying omg x,D
That mannequin head idea is genius! Also the red light / green light comment. I might have to try those out for different periods and see which one works best!
This year I’m trying out the tickets/tokens idea, with the strategy that when they run out of tickets, they can still go but have to take an unexcused tardy (tip from another video). Mostly because the policy at our school is that we aren’t allowed to deny kids the right to use the restroom outside of the first/last 10 mins. Which I understand, but sucks.
I had a teacher in middle school who would respond back to the initial question of, "can I go to the bathroom?" With, "I dont know. Can you?" And they would always respond that way until we figured out the question should be, "may I go to the bathroom. " once we figured that out he'd then change his response to, "what's the difference between 'can I' and 'may I'. When we could answer that, then we could go to the bathroom.
We had a kid who needed to use the bathroom and he said to the teacher “it will only take 2 minuets” and the teacher said “2 minutes is a long time, you couldn’t be in a microwave for 2 minuets” 🤣
But no I appreciated the teachers who respected as a girl I wanted to be able to slip out and use the restroom without it causing a big convo. But that respect was important, I didn’t abuse it.
My mom always used to tell me “ I trust you until you give me a reason not to trust you.” That works for me.
i am in love with the magic 8 ball so I'm definitely going to do that next semester. i am having the hardest time with kids always wanting to go to the bathroom that i had to implement a weekly limit where if they exceed that its a referral....
I teach primary and one of the things I have done is give students 3-4 popsicle sticks. These are there RR passes they hand one in when they need to go. A helper distributes them every morning. I also use the goal marker- do this much work and then you can go. I love, love, love the 8 ball idea(especially for the wanderers)I am getting. It’s so cool- it takes it out of your hands. Thanks!
I work subbing which makes it harder for me, different schools, different grades, different rules. The 4 and 5 year olds are the ones who try to convert the bathroom pass into a bathroom fest...
I remember I always used to ask to go to the bathroom and just walk down the hallway to take a break everyday
I see it as more of a time management issue. Of course there are bathroom emergencies, but overall I see it morph into an “I’m bored” response when students are working independently. My 8th grade team uses student agendas and allows each class 5 passes per quarter. Some teachers give extra credit, but I do not. I was considering using a bathroom pass that is a safety vest that says “I like to potty all the time” on the back, but since this is my first year as a middle school teacher, I opted against that idea. Trying to discourage bored potty visitors. Although, my students thought the idea was awesome. I do like the Magic 8 Ball idea and happen to have one already.
No. 1 doesn't work, but I like your enthusiasm. Parents would have a field day writing emails to VP.
Great tips! I'm gonna store that Magic 8 Ball idea for later. I've got something that works for the class I have right now, but I can see the Magic 8 Ball working great for other classes of younger kids (but not for this particular class I have right now lol). I think they'd find it really fun!
If You Give a Teacher a Classroom the Magic 8 ball works for so many things, not just the bathroom!
I am a substitute teacher and i am teaching at high school ....i created the "one minute rule" among my students . when they see me coming to the class they would ask me before class get started for a one minute break ....it works so well since they go back in a hurry to join the class . I also use the five minutes startegy and yes indeed ! It's magical !! They always forget about their question haha
Kids always want to go to the “good” drinking fountain after PE while in the locker room. It’s outside the room and down the hall. I make the first student do one push up to go. Then it’s 2. Then 4, 8, 16. The bell always rings on the kid doing 32 push ups.
So good! I can't stand when my students ask to go to the bathroom! They just want a break to waste time outside of classroom.
I tell the student to ask when we’re done with whatever the activity is. If there are less than 15 minutes left in class, I ask if they can wait (they usually can). For the ones who really push me on it, I give them a pass on a lanyard (so they don’t touch it in between using the bathroom and washing their hands lol). If it’s just that they’re bored or restless, the kids know there is only one bathroom pass so they are incentivized to go fast and not waste time because their classmates who also have to go to the bathroom will get pissed if they take too long 😂 And if there’s only one pass, I don’t forget and accidentally let more than one kid go at a time.
Ideally they’re not so bored they are making up excuses to leave, but if it’s the last class of the day or a Friday, antsiness is just unavoidable.
Poor Ken, RIP...😂😂😂😂
At my school (middle school) we're not allowed to say no, and the kids play it. A few years back a kid's mom told him to pee in the classroom if the teacher told him "no", so he did. Ever since then we've been told to let them go, and so lots of them ask to go in every class. They're constantly in the halls. All we can do is say "in a minute." I like to answer the inevitable questions with "eventually" and then watch them ask one another what the word means. "But I need to go." I'll be in the middle of a lesson and ask a question to see if they are getting the content. Five hands go up and every one of them wants to go to the bathroom. Makes me feel like I'm wasting my time.
Ha! I've also got a bathroom procedures video that I'm uploading next week too!!! How funny! I love seeing the different procedures in HS.
Perfect ... I’ll try this one
I have my high schoolers stand by where my hall passes instead of verbally asking. Then if I'm giving directions, I'm not interrupted by someone who I think has a question, but really just wants a drink.
I teach middle school. My bathroom pass is an "I Love Justin Beiber" folder with pages inside where they write their name and time. They HATE THIS FOLDER!!! But it does keep my bathroom disruptions down to a minimum.
I teach high school Spanish so my kids have to ask in Spanish or I just ignore the question . . . They get the point really fast. And I only let one person out at a time, a habit from my subbing days due to getting caught in a fire drill I didn't know was planned. I don't let anyone go during the first or last 10 minutes and I don't let anyone go who was more than 5 minutes late for class (they should have gone then).
I tell my students at the beginning of the year that if it’s a true emergency and they need to go immediately to just get up and go... even if I had asked them to wait a min or if a sub told them no. It’s only ever been needed a few times the past several years and I’ve never had a student abuse it yet. For regular bathroom trips, I may ask them to wait until instructions are over etc... but I never deny. I just can’t. I’ve been there as a student.
Haha! Best video on RUclips, Reynolds! 😂
I teach 8th grade english, and I was in the middle of reading the novel we are studying, and this student asked to go to the restroom. They know I said on the first day, and I have been pretty consistent, that unless it is an emergency, NO ONE leaves the classroom while I am delivering direct instruction or otherwise teaching/reading. If we are doing a whole class activity together, no one leaves.
She kept asking me, and after the second time, I told her to give me 5 minutes to finish this chapter. Her friend, who sits a whole row away from her, started to encourage her to just get up and go. Then she asked if this was my first year teaching and I said yes, to which she replied "yeah, that's obvious," and she was just being super hostile toward me with comments and accusations of "sexism." I had a chat with her in the hall -- not sure why I didn't send her to the office. Me telling the other girl no had nothing to do with her.
Sorry for the rant -- but does anyone have any suggestions for how to handle this? This is my first teaching job out of college. I just started a few weeks ago, midyear, so maybe that has something to do with it? Like they don't see me as their teacher yet?
I think just having a sign out sheet is the best way, kids should be able to go whenever I think. Obviously it does get abused but there a lot of reasons why a kid would need to go to the bathroom or step out for a minute. If they do worse in class due to abusing bathroom breaks, that’s on them.
Agreed. The magic 8ball is reserved for those few who abuse the class bathroom system. It’s a fun way to deal with the repeat offenders. I’ve found that due to not really needing to go they actually listen to it. It then defuses any teacher/student power struggle.
Hey Reynalds. Yesterday I was just thinking about this issue. I've noticed kids ask to go to the bathroom not only because they want a break from your class, but also because they want to use their phones. I loved the ideas you showed on this video: Ken's head and the Magic 8 Ball. As I'm not American, do kids really care about its answers?
Hey man! They do! But only because I ask them to do it while having a straight face. I make believe it’s real so they have no choice.
I love the 8 ball I idea! I must use this technique this year. I have 5th grade. 💪🏾🤣
I shit my pants in class once because the teacher refused to let me go to the bathroom. It was one of the worst experiences of my life and 20 years later it's still a horrible vivid memory. Thanks for not letting them go. I hope you at least have enough experience to be able to look at them and know if they really truly have to go.
Sorry that happened to you. Yes, I do. If you watched to the end of the video I address that the magic 8ball is a tactic for the students in my class that I know well and know they are abusing the pass.
I teach 6th grade girls. I givem 2 passes for each half of the year. They can use them any time they want. No questions asked. I also say they can come up to 2 minutes late of they need the bathroom before class. And I accommodate emergencies. Things in my class move quickly and generally the girls want to be there. And they know I care. Those last 2 factors are really key. I'm not saying this always works but almost always.
Hey Reynolds, I've just started university, have you got any tips for solving procrastination? I've struggled with it my whole academic career and really need to get out of this bad habit! thanks :))
I had a rule that if you threw something you had to pick up ten pieces of trash and if you needed to use the bathroom pick up 10 pieces of trash first. Kids would ask to go to the bathroom, I'd say "ok you have to pick up ten pieces of trash" and then they'd say they'd just wait till break. For girls I take them out of the classroom in a group and teach them a little hand signal they can give me if they're having a feminine emergency.
I use a behavior/ lesson platform in my room called Classcraft. I give students three free passes per nine weeks, after that they have to spend pseudo currency from the game to purchase up to two additional passes each nine weeks. It could also work with Class Dojo.
At the beginning of the year, I have them ask me when we’re finished with xyz. By Christmas, I say yes every time. They learn quickly that they don’t want to miss learning time. They’ll typically wait until individual work time to go. Them knowing the answer is yes takes the pressure off. And if they just need to have a break? I mean, go for it. I get it. Sometimes I need a break too but mine are built into the day. They have their passing periods but they might not have to go at that point. I’m not about to tell a high school kid they can’t do bodily functions! Again, that’s once our classroom norms have been established.
my senior english teacher has a rule that if you want to go anywhere that's not the nurses office or a scheduled guidance appointment you have do an assignment to match the crime. to go the bathroom for 5 minutes you have to fix one sentence, if you want to go and you know you're gonna take more than that, you have to fix 5 sentences. if you want to go to guidance for whatever reason, you have to write a paragraph with one of her paragraph prompts, and if you just need a break, you have to read a couple pages of a book, then if you still need that break, you can go to the library with said book.
Makes sense, if you're missing class you need to make up for what you missed for whatever a reasonable amount of work would get accomplished while you were away. So you could even time the kids gone - if they're gone 3 minutes, no biggie. If they're gone 10, they need to write a solid half-page paragraph because that's what they could've completed during that time. I think that's actually pretty reasonable and probably the best curriculum-friendly response.... good idea.... creates more work for the teacher to give out those prompts, but it could be instituted in a class where there are chronic issues
I loved the magic ball and I guess I m going to try it 😀
It’s the best! You’ll love it ❤️
I teach high school. I tell them to ask me in the last 10 min. By that time most kids forget and only genuine ones ask again
I had a middle school summer school teacher who wouldn't let us go to the bathromm cause she got in trouble for it but that wasn't the students fault
I needed this video so bad!
We discuss it in class meetings. I believe no one should ask permission to use the toilet but should let me know where they're going. We discuss the dangers of playing in the toilets.
I teach the fourth grade, some classes can be excessive about the bathroom. A few of my boys like to go more than necessary. I do many of the same things you do .I just say, "no you're not going to the bathroom." I also say you have to finish a certain amount of work before I'll let them go. The eight ball is a very creative idea! This year my class is very talkative. The mornings are great, but afternoons they are so.... chatty. What do you do for excessive talking?
these are hilarious! love it!
I teach at an alternative school, so most or our kids have ADHD, so what I say is, "do you need to use the restroom or do you need to get out of the class?" most times they just need to get out, step away. So, we'll go outside for 10 mins. I have a Nerf football (hoola hoop), they have 10 mins. Then they have to focus when we get back in class...also we stop by the bathroom as a group on the way back in, so no more bathroom breaks.
When the kids said I gotta go to the bathroom I immediately had to pee!
Students and I agreed at the beginning of the year that the explanation time is sacred, toilet only after explanation
Awesome!
Thanks!
I tell my students they can go during independent work times, unless it's an emergency (tummy troubles and now that I have 4th and 5th grade girls, female issues). They have to use the hand signal and I say yes. For one, it tells me if they really need to go and it keeps it quiet. It never fails that when one needs to go, they ALL need to go. I also build group bathroom breaks into the day. We leave a little early for specials. After lunch, they bring their silent reading books and read while
we wait.
I love the hand signal because it avoids the annoying bathroom conversations. I just feel like even talking about it (your reason, my response) is a waste of time.
Dude That was The BEST!!!!
Thanks!!
Been in a class where a student peed themselves because a teacher told them they could wait until the bell. Obviously you might need a strategy to keep students from just leaving but I personally wouldn’t discourage students who need the bathroom from going. Unless the lesson was nearly over. Then I’d let them know the lesson was nearly over, state exactly how much longer was left, ask them if they were able to hold it that long, then tell them they could go if they arranged with another student (who agrees to it) first to take notes and share them with them so they didn’t miss anything (I’ve not tried that but I imagine having to get another student who has to stay in class to take notes for them while they’re gone might make some students think twice about leaving for too long or leaving unnecessarily in future).
If I thought students were abusing the bathroom break during the middle of the lessons and we were covering something significant, I think I might still tell them they had to recruit someone to take notes and inform them of anything they miss, and the knowledge they have to get another student to stay behind and take notes they otherwise might not have had to take might actually motivate the student to get back sooner, I’d think. Supposedly that social pressure is supposed to be a strong motivator for high school students. I’d specify that the other student needed to agree to it so that I wouldn’t have students giving other students work to pick on them while they went out and chilled instead of working. If we weren’t covering anything too significant then I’d probably just let them go, warn them to be quick, and tell them next time to go during the break. If they did it regularly or took too long regularly then they’d lose my approval and be told why, having been privately warned prior that I wouldn’t keep saying yes if they were going to abuse that. If they take a bit longer than expected once then I’ll give them the benefit of the doubt the first time. Maybe it was bowel issues? Idk. In fact, maybe I should let them know I might call their parents if they’re having this many toilet troubles. If it’s just them ditching class, that might spook them a bit. If they have an undiagnosed condition, that might help them.
In general, I think I’d rather try my best to make classes engaging and, if they really just want to leave for a bit and lie about needing the bathroom, I’d rather tell them to be quick than have them piss themselves, be humiliated, and blame me. If they’re already that disengaged then I feel like they probably aren’t learning much from staying so a five minute break might be all they want. If students started abusing that then I might change my mind for those students, but that’s my current stance.
I’m very new to teaching. I don’t actually have experience implementing these things. I just know I’d rather give the student the benefit of the doubt. Maybe I’m being naive. I just have such clear memories of the student in one of my classes when I was in school peeing himself and being shamed for it because the teacher told him to hold it, and I don’t want to risk that happening in my own classes. Even ignoring the student’s wellbeing and potential disability discrimination, I’d not want to deal with the..mess.
The magic eight ball is a tactic or strategy, not an overall rule. It’s for students you already know, and they are your repeat offenders, not students who actually need to go. I agree if a student persists and tells you they need to go, you let them go.
@@CJReynolds I get that. I’ve seen your replies to other comments and I’m sure these strategies work for you and that’s good. I was just sharing my own perspective, as requested. I’d at this extremely early stage in my career probably still lean toward giving the benefit of the doubt even for the repeat offenders. Maybe they’ve got an undiagnosed condition. Maybe they even have a less directly related condition, like sensory issues, nobody’s yet aware of and they just needed a break. Sure, that probably doesn’t apply to most but I personally would still rather not risk it. I’ll see how my answer changes in a couple years though lol. So far I’ve not had an issue with people abusing bathroom privileges so I guess I’ll see how I actually respond when I get there.
@@CJReynolds Come to think about it, I’ve only had experience so far teaching in a visual art classroom and I’ve been told before that students are less eager to leave art classes. As important as subjects like math, PE, history, etc are, I can easily imagine that students abusing bathroom breaks might be more of an issue in those classes, so maybe I’m just not realising the extent of the issue in other classrooms yet.
I remember in the beginning of the days I would be so thirsty and drink a whole bunch of water. I would hold it in literally all day because I was always a good student and never wanted to miss anything important. However one day it hit me really bad to the point I had to leave. I asked my teacher to use the bathroom he said can you wait a few minutes. I said no because I seriously had to go that bad. He said I’m sure you can so go sit down. Then some other students in the class started blowing up my phone with water emojis and water sound effects. Some would even pass a note having to do with water. I went up asked him again and he said no. Luckily by then the principal walked in and let me use the bathroom and the teacher got suspended.
😂 😂 I'm totally going to get a magic 8 ball now.
The daggone Doctor’s notes!!!!