I'm new to 5th grade...not to teaching. I've always taught primary grades. Anyway, I'm looking for some reward ideas for 5th graders. What type of things do they like in the treasure box? I plan to use homework passes but what else? Can't use candy.
Student of the Week-Gets a certificate, name & picture on bulletin board, name on homework sheet, and a homework pass.
Student of the Month-Recognized in front of the entire school, name on homework sheet, and has a free lunch with the principal. This is a schoolwide program.
Recess - when the entire class behaves very well.
Cookies, Doughnuts, or Cupcakes- when the entire class behaves extremely well or does extremely well in their work.
Movie & Popcorn Party- when we finish reading a class novel. Usually the movie is the novel.
Birthday Treat- On their birthday they receive a sticker, certificate & pencil wishing them a Happy Birthday.
Pizza Hut Certificates-At the end of each month when they turn in their bookreports, each student receives a certificate for a free pan pizza. They can be used from October through May. If you are interested I believe the website is www.bookit.com.
Coldstone Certificares-awarded for excellent behaviour, effort, citizenship, completion of homework, or consistent good grades.
I didn't have a treasure box since I started teaching fifth grade because I thought it might be too childish, but I have changed my mind. I plan to have one next year. I plan to include the following as gifts:
Hello to all. When I started teaching fifth grade I thought that rewards would be too babyish, but trust me they are not. They like to earn things just as much as the little ones. In my reward box I have many different things from oriental trading. Things like balls, pencils , pens , erasers , stickers. They love it too! I hope you enjoy the fifth grade. It is a great grade to teach a bit challenging but always fun !!
I've always used coupons as rewards for my 5th graders. I have coupons for things like: write in print all day, first in line, first in bathroom, sit with a friend at lunch (at their own private table), 15 minutes of computer time at the end of the day, switch classroom jobs with a friend, draw during Handwriting time, a no shoe day, etc. Some of the coupons I have were actually ideas submitted by my 5th graders. When I tell them about coupons and how to earn them at the beginning of the year, I let them know that I am open to suggestions re: new coupons--all they have to do is submit it in writing. The no shoe and drawing during handwriting were both student submissions. Coupons are great--CHEAP!
Last year, I bought a ton of stuff from the Target Dollar Bins that my kids LOVED. Things like funky pens, post-its, travel games. The things that went over the best were slinkys!
I also went to the dollar store and found these foam bulletin boards that were in the shape of puzzles. My students have lockers and they loved them so much I had to go back and buy the place out!
Other things I've had in my treasure box are:
pop-a-point pencils (Oriental Trading)
hackey sacks (Oriental Trading)
A set of three juggling balls
those flexible frogs that are jelly like (I don't know what they like them or what they do with them, but I can't keep them in stock)
homework passes
certificates for lunch with the teacher
sit where you want for a day certificates
Surprisingly, when I taught 5th they still liked the little toys! I had bouncy balls, fancy pens, Oriental folding fans, tattoos, gliders, etc... Just buy a few things, and then do one of two things (or both):
1. Ask the kids what types of trinkets they would like to see in there (trust me....they'll tell you!)
2. Have that as a volunteer job for parents who want to help but who work full-time. It's on my list of volunteer jobs that I send home and have out at Open House. I almost always have a parent(s) who would buy things from Oriental Trading when their child tells them we're getting low.
Thank you all for the wonderful ideas. I'm getting tons from you all. Keep them coming. I have been teaching kindergarten so moving up to 5th is a huge change.
My class favorite was lunch/movie/popcorn in the classroom at lunch time (Mondays only). This was great because it didn't cost hardly anything and still allowed me to do work during lunch - the kids were quiet. I could also reward several students from the previous week at a time this way.
Another thing the kids liked was for me to buy them a soda or other treat from the teacher vending machine. That was a bit more expensive.
You could also just buy them an ice cream from the cafeteria. For me that's about .25
I didn't do free homework passes.
Allowing someone first dibs on a classroom job is a great idea. I think I'll use that next year.
Everyone here has already posted such wonderful ideas and I agree, Oriental Trading is a great place. My students have always loved those little plastic bookmarks that are in animal shapes like a monkey, dolphin, gecko, etc. (Now I can't remember if I got those from Oriental Trading or Highlights).
You can also go to the 88 cent section at Walmart for some fun stuff. My kids always love the slinkys, glow-in-the-dark balls, and sticky hands! Other things that I add are free promotional-type things like keychains, small rulers, etc. I received a bunch of things like that from our local Army National Guard unit!
I also ask Burger King and McDonald's for free kids meal coupons to donate, but I save those for my end-of-the-week rewards!!!
The Happy Meal type toys were the biggest hits in my classroom. I used the need for rewards as an excuse to get a hamburger and french fries I also had friends and family save them for me.
These were their favorite "free" prizes
"Sit wherever you want during read-aloud time" (next to a friend, on the floor, in the teacher's chair, etc.)
"Bring a non-water drink to class" (we're allowed water in class, but with this prize they got to bring in any non-red drink for the day - anything from Jamba Juice to Pepsi)
"Choose whether the a/c is on or off for the afternoon"
"Choose if we have lights on or off for the afternoon"
"Bring any snack for nutrition break" (got to have a brownie instead of fruit, for example)
We aren't allowed to have any candy or sweets either. I use a lot of what has already been posted. I also get prizes from Party City. They will have little toys pretty cheaply and the kids love them. They also like to earn extra computer time, early recess time, swapping seats for a day, skipping morning work, etc. I also put "used" books in the treasure chest. These are books that may have been donated to me or I have lots of copies of or are just dogged. I also use my bonus points to get "free book" coupons through Scholastic.
exactly how i will run my prizes. In first grade i always handed out tickets when they were doing a good job. Then on Friday's we had a raffle and about 6 kids got to pick if they had a good week.
For 5th I'm trying to decide if I keep the same system or have some that they can try to raffle and then some prizes they need to save up their tickets for?
I have class cash that they can earn for things such as turning in HW on time, following the rules, etc. Sometimes I give them out at random for staying on task, or pick a "secret student" where I write a name on the back of a $5 or something and watch that person in line going to specials, recess, lunch, or whereever. They don't know what student I picked until we get back! They also get paid every Friday for doing their jobs. Anyway, they save their money to go "shopping" on Fridays. I have a price list, so things from the prize box are usually $30. They can buy other things like a HW pass, or study buddy pass, which cost around $50. I have the price list at school so I can't remember everything off the top of my head.
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07-13-2007, 06:15 PM
My students have always loved those little plastic bookmarks that are in animal shapes like a monkey, dolphin, gecko, etc. (Now I can't remember if I got those from Oriental Trading or Highlights).
