Case
Shy

I have a female ESE student who seems to get extremely shy every time I call on her for and answer. I will give her a lot of time to respond. I will restate the question in a few different ways. I make every attempt to involve her in the lesson, but she only responds once and a while. How do I ease her anxiety?

Posted on: 10/10/16 | Views: 1553
Solution #1
Top Solution
I think there are two ways to approach this. Maybe checking her work before the class discussion, assuring her that her answers are correct will ease her anxiety and fear of being wrong in front of everyone. Set her up for success in this manner. If it is an issue of simply talking in front of people, maybe you can do some activities where the student speaks to you a smaller group, such as during centers / small group work. Work her up to where she is comfortable to answer in front of everyone.

I would do this if I were in this situation. She may just have a fear of being wrong or talking inf ront of people. It is important to get to the bottom of the shyness and help ease her anxiety.

I think this is a great solution, checking the students work to make sure they have an understanding of what you are doing is important!

This is a terrific solution.

i agree with setting her up for success or doing small group work.

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Solution #2
Positive reinforcement can go a long way with students who are shy. Assuring her that her answers and her opinions about a subject are correct might ease her stress and anxiety when she is called on to answer a question. Maybe having another student answer first and see if she agrees or has another answer will allow her to see that its okay to answer questions out loud
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Solution #3
I would try checking her work before calling on her for the answer. If she knows that her answers are correct she may be less shy in sharing. Be very positive the first few times she participates more, this positive reinforcement will make her want to share more correct answers in the future.
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Solution #4
Having problems up on the board and having the children all answer them going in line of where the students are sitting, is a great way for her to think about her answer and watch other students talk about theirs before it gets to be her turn. This can ease her anxiety a little more.
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Solution #5
Maybe allow the students to work together and take turns answering the questions. Students sometimes feel pressured, even when they know the answer. In a classroom that I observed in, the teacher placed students in groups of two and had them take turns answering questions.
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Solution #6
I would offer some type of incentive to promote her participation in the classroom activities.
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Solution #7
I think if you mention to her, hey today we are going to be discussing such and such, I really enjoy hearing what you think, and the class benefits from everyone participanting. I think that some people are quieter and more reserved, That should be respected and worked with.
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Solution #8
I think you can talk to her and let her know that you support her 100%. It doesn't matter if the answer that she gives you is wrong but you appreciate her participation. I think she needs to trust you and know that you will never make fun of her and if someone makes fun of her you will discourage that behavior. Then after you talk to her let her know that you will give her a sign before you call on her so she can prepare. She can also put her thoughts in writing and she can read it to the class.
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Solution #9
Maybe offering other ways for everyone to respond other than taking would help. Let them show examples with writing or acting it out our possibly showing in any other way that the student is confident in. Sometimes letting them talk to peers about it will help them feel more comfortable and also letting a friend stand up with them during the response could help.
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Solution #10
I would not call on the student to answer a question in front of the classroom. This may make them feel uncomfortable. I would start by having the students talk to small groups or buddy/partners. The student may feel more comfortable in a small group setting. This also may help boost her self-esteem and make her more confident to answer in front of the whole class.
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Solution #11
You have to give her time. ESE students go through a silent stage that she will most likely grow out of in a couple of months. Also, try to boost her confidence by telling her she is doing a good job when she is. Admire her efforts often as well.
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Solution #12
You can try different methods of making the student feel more prepared and comfortable when called upon. For example, you could let the student know that every time you will call on her, you will be standing in front of her desk. You could ease your way into the question and make the desired question to be answered the first one asked. This way, the student will not have as hard of a time focusing on and deciding the appropriate answer (not to mention, more confidence).
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Solution #13
Keep trying to work with this student. Find different ways for the student to show what they know. Maybe they do not do well with speaking in front of others, but they may do better at writing or draw what they know.
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Solution #14
Repetition. Continue trying to allow the student to answer. As she continues to learn what is expected from her and sees others student answering out loud hopefully it will become more natural and familiar.
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Solution #15
I don't think there is an easy way to have her respond in front of the class if she does not feel comfortable doing so. I very much understand wanting to ensure she's engaging in the academic material, so I would instead check with her during activities and the like, when the classroom attention isn't on her. The performance of being put on a platform in front of the class is not going to be a boon in regards to keeping her engaged, so instead look for more one on one methods.
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Solution #16
I would consult the student and ask them why they are behaving in this way, and see if there is anything I could do to remedy the problem.
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Solution #17
This will take some time. When students are shy they just need to feel some trust and community with you as the teacher. She could maybe have a partner in the class who may help her come out of her shell. Otherwise it will just take time. Keep working with her and you will see benefits. Another option is implementing a reward system for the students. This can get them more motivated and content to participate and do their work.
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Solution #18
It is always best not to force a shy person to speak during a discussion as it can often go south. Instead of asking them for a full-length response give them guided questions with expected answers or simple yes or no questions. That way the student does not have to think a whole lot about their answer.
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Solution #19
I would say instead of calling on her for an answer, wait until she feels comfortable enough to raise her hand and respond on her own. This way she does not feel the pressure of being on the spot in front of everyone.
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Solution #20
I would try to incoroprate more group or partner activities in my lesson plans. Allowing her to work with other students may ease her nerves and help her come out of her shell.
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Solution #21
I can relate to this student, I was shy in classes and still am. Maybe since this student is labeled as "ESE" she is simply shy and worried that if her answer is wrong or right.
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Solution #22
Anxiety cannot always be eased. Try speaking with the student independently and identifying what would make her more comfortable / what makes her uncomfortable. If she is not comfortable speaking aloud, try working with her and finding alternatives to answering for assignments. You could also hold online discussion boards so the student does not have to speak in person but can still participate.
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Solution #23
One activity to help this student come out of her shell is to have students pair up in small groups of about four or five. The teacher will a pick a subject and topic, then present questions one by one. For each question, the groups will have about 3 minutes to discuss and find their answer. Each student from each group will take turns presenting their answer. This will feel like a game and bring out the students confidence to participate and speak in class.
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Solution #24
I would try to partner her up with the outgoing students in the class that may help you open up more. I would try and give group work and have each student give an answer from the group to get her to talk more maybe.
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Solution #25
Try to show her that you are there for her emotionally and educationally.
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Solution #26
allow her to answer over a whiteboard where she can write the response and hold up the sign
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Solution #27
I don't think their is anything else you can do. I think you should just keep doing what you are doing and eventually she will get used to it.
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Solution #28
Maybe you could let the student know when you are going to call on her, so she has more time to prepare. She could also write down her answer ahead of time and then share her answer by reading it off her paper. This might make her feel less nervous.

This is a good idea to allow her to be prepared before actually calling on her.

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