As a special education teacher, I’m very familiar with “If/Then” and “First/Then” Statements. If you ____ (behave this way) then ____ (will happen/consequence) or first _____ (complete this task) then ______(you can have/do).
From my 7 years of experience with using these statements, I’ve learned that we use them to teach students to do one task at time and to understand that if they meet the expectation then they will be able to do a desirable task. An example would be, first math then recess, or first puzzle then music class. If you do your math sheet, then you can have free time. This also helps with transitioning students from one class or task to the next. It is less overwhelming when they can see their daily schedule as completing one task at a time instead of a long task/to-do list.
I’d say it’s the same for us as adults. I wonder, if we begin to see our days as a series of first/then statements (one task at a time), then just maybe our daily goals will become more attainable. When I am able to break tasks down to do them one at a time, my anxiety decreases and my sense of accomplishment and confidence increases.
Godspeed,
SimplyAriRenee
💭shoutout to Pinterest for the background image
Comments