This week we’re looking at the first of the ABCDEs of Learner Needs: Autonomy. It’s something we crave at all ages. Nobody really likes being told what to do. We want to have a say in what happens to us! But this feels like a big ask in school where the expectation of the teacher is to ensure students learn certain things in certain grades well, on time, and in preparation for the learning that comes next. Where can students find choice within those constraints?
The good news is, choices don’t have to be huge to meet this need. They just have to be real and regular. Creating opportunities for students to reflect on how they are growing their autonomy is also an important part of building their confidence as learners. Here are 10 small ways to get that growth started.
- Classroom Agreements: Ask students what they need from the class as a whole to succeed. Give students the task of organizing these into agreements they will all share and hold each other accountable to. (Check out this Classroom Constitution activity for more ideas.)
- Partners – A clear, well-structured, and tightly timed assignment can be completed by pretty much any pair.
- Texts / Materials – Where possible, choosing from a range of texts or materials can tap into students’ interests and preferences.
- A Subset of the Whole – Giving students 10 possible questions to answer and letting them pick 5 helps give them some say in where they devote their time and energy but will still give you the information you need about their overall learning.
- Classroom Warm Ups – Once students know a range of warm-up activities, let them choose and lead them themselves.
- Classroom Closing – Once students know a range of closing activities, let them choose and lead them themselves.
- How to Call the Room to Attention – Do you snap? Do you clap? Do you use a call-and-response? Something else? Once students know a range of attention getters, you can tap different students and let them choose their own approach when you need to call the class back together.
- Classroom Feel – Lights on or off? Background music or quiet? Desks in a circle or desks in groups? Windows open or closed? Look for reasonable details students can have input on; this uses their voices to build their sense of connection to the space.
- Classroom Playlist – Invite students to recommend songs for a playlist you have going when they enter the classroom. (Provide parameters to ensure the songs they suggest are ones you can play.)
- Regular Sharing – No matter what grade or subject you teach, students love choosing and bringing in things from their lives to share. Institute a regular sharing practice; items can relate to classroom content or just be focused on building connection and belonging. A few students can share per week if you don’t have time for everyone to go at the same time.
2026 ABCDE Resource of the Week
Autonomy Reflection Sheet and Community Builder
This reflection sheet and community-building activity can help your students start thinking about building their own autonomy. Empowering students with an understanding of this important need will help them build their courage in growing independence and learn more about how they and their peers experience autonomy already.
Hooray For Monday is an award-winning weekly publication of Center for Inspired Teaching, a social change nonprofit organization that champions the power of curiosity and is dedicated to transforming the school experience from compliance-based to engagement-based. Inspired Teaching provides transformative, improvisation-based professional learning for teachers that is 100% engaging – intellectually, emotionally, and physically.
