and so on that do not deter from the lesson but that motivate the student to
learn. Starting with simple choices that lead to immediate and positive consequences
for the student (e.g., choice of where to sit or stand, rewards, food, partner
to work with), the student learns the skills needed to make more complex
and difficult choices regarding future events (e.g., choosing to work for a
reward later in the day or week). Teachers can support the development of
choice making (as an early step toward self-determination) by relinquishing
some control to the student. In other words, instead of giving materials to a student
to work with, the teacher can present several options to the student and
then honor the one(s) chosen. The student needs to learn that choices he makes
will be honored by those around him, thus empowering him to make other,
more complex decisions. By starting this practice in the early years of preschool
and continuing to build on these skills as the student progresses through each
grade, students leaving high school should have considerable practice honing
these skills to be used as adults.