Why Fair Sticks Aren’t Fair (and What to Do Instead)

It’s common to see a cup of popsicle sticks sitting in an elementary classroom. After all, fair sticks are a go-to classroom management tool. Unfortunately, fair sticks really aren’t as fair as they might seem.

What Are Fair Sticks?

Fair sticks (also known as equity sticks, name sticks, or pick me sticks) are a set of popsicle sticks with a student's name written on each one. The sticks are then put into a can, cup, or jar that the teacher pulls from whenever they want to call on a student. 

There are several reasons why teachers like to keep a set of fair sticks on hand in the classroom:

• Give All Students a Chance to Participate: We all know that it’s easy to get into the habit of calling on the students who are eager to participate. Fair sticks ensure that all students take a turn.
• Encourage Students to Pay Attention: When students know that their name could be drawn from the jar to answer a question or participate in the activity, they are more likely to pay attention to what’s going on in class.
• Prevent Hurt Feelings: When multiple students volunteer to read or answer a question, the fair sticks can become the neutral third party that makes the decision. This prevents students from feeling like the teacher has favorites. (A daily classroom helper can also prevent this when it comes to choosing someone to run a classroom errand.)

A jar of fair sticks can seem like a logical classroom management tool that makes the day run more smoothly. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case.

The Problem with Fair Sticks

Fair sticks really aren’t fair for all of the students in the classroom. In fact, there are drawbacks that directly relate to all three of the benefits mentioned above.

Force All Students to Participate

Giving all students the chance to participate at random intervals throughout the day really isn’t as fair as it might sound. As teachers, we know that some students are more confident in certain subject areas than others. We also know that some students need more processing time before answering questions. By using fair sticks, you are taking away the opportunity to choose students to participate based on who would be successful in answering that question. 

For example, you know that Johnny might struggle to give the first response in a classroom discussion, but he might be ready to provide the third response after having time to process. When you just pull his name out of a cup at random, you won’t be able to create that opportunity for him.

Put Students on High Alert

Yes, fair sticks can encourage students to pay more attention during classroom activities and discussions. However, it also puts some students on high alert for the duration of that activity. When my teacher used to reach into that cup of sticks and randomly choose a student to call on, I was filled with anxiety.  I hated being put on the spot (even if I knew the answer).

When stress levels are high, students are less likely to truly attend to what’s happening in the classroom. This can have a negative effect on how much they learn and remember from the discussion, which is the opposite of what teachers are trying to accomplish with fair sticks.

Create Resentment

When a student doesn’t want to volunteer to answer a question or run an errand, there is usually a reason. Pulling their name from a cup isn’t the way to encourage them to participate. In fact, it could create some resentment when the teacher has multiple volunteers to choose from, but they pull a student’s name from the cup instead.

An Alternative to Equity Sticks

With so many unintended consequences of using fair sticks, it’s a good idea to look for other ways to encourage students to participate in the classroom. One of my favorite alternatives to equity sticks is the turn and talk method. This is when students are asked to share their answer to a question with the person sitting next to them. 

There are many reasons why this is such a beneficial alternative to using fair sticks:

• All Students Participate: You don’t have to keep track of whether or not you’ve called on someone, because all students are participating at the same time. Yes, you will need to monitor to ensure that students are using the turn and talk time appropriately. However, this is a great way to ensure that all students get a chance to answer the question you’ve posed to the class. 
• Encourages Attention With Less Anxiety: When students know they will be asked to share their thoughts with a neighbor, they are more likely to pay attention to what you’re discussing. Plus, sharing with a peer feels much safer for students than being put on the spot in front of the class.
• Gets Discussion Moving: Once the class has had a chance to share their thoughts with a partner, it will likely take very little effort to get the whole-class discussion moving. Students will be more confident in sharing their thoughts with the class, so you won’t have to avoid calling on the same handful of students to participate.

These are just a few of the reasons why turn and talk can be much more effective than using fair sticks. I know that it can significantly improve classroom participation without increasing student anxiety.

More Kindergarten Classroom Management Resources

If you’re looking for ways to help your classroom run more smoothly all year long, you’ll definitely want to check out the Kindergarten Behavior Blueprint. This self-paced video course is full of tips to help you create a foundation for successful classroom management. It also includes over $500 of printable resources to help you implement what you learn in the course.

Just click below to take a closer look at everything included in the Kindergarten Behavior Blueprint.

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