I read a post on here and I think I am going to try it this year! I am trying to stay away from "treasure boxes" and give more "meaningful" rewards such as free time, more computer time, extra recess, etc. One teacher on here uses something called "lunch bunch" cards. If she catches a student doing things he/she should be doing, she will give them a "lunch bunch" card. The child puts his/her name on the card and will put the card into the "lunch bunch" jar. Every Friday, the teacher picks 5 students from the jar to eat lunch with her. So, the more cards they have in the jar, the better their chances of eating with the teacher. Of course, you can change this into any type of reward you want, but kids love to eat lunch with the teacher (especially first graders).
I usually do a group goal, last year we did behavior bingo. In year's past I have done a marble jar. Anyway, when we reach our goal I usually let the kids vote. Usually I have four choices, two of which I let the kids have a say. We then vote for our choice. Some of the popular ones have been:
Sundae party
Lunch in the room
Read-in
Math game time
Game morning
Extra recess
Movie (usually from a book we have read)
Pajama Day or other dress up day
Team game outside (kickball, big parachute from the gym)
Ooh..I forgot. For a class reward system that I did last year, I used a marble jar. Before starting, we made a goal (i.e. if we fill this jar up by such and such a date, then we can do this...I give them 4-5 choices). Last year, my kids chose a pizza party. It was a good system because they had to work together as a class to fill up that jar. It was fun to see them "remind" each other of what they were supposed to be doing so they could get marbles in the jar.
I have a treasure box and I let kids go that have displayed random acts of kindness, or listened, or helped a friend, or shared a story... things like that. Also, we have a spelling test on Friday and if they get all of their spelling words correct or only miss one I let them go.
For a group reward we do Fun Friday. At the end of the day they get to do free choice centers for 30 minutes on Friday. However, there is a catch... on Monday I draw a box in the top corner of my white board. If I'm interrupted while I'm teaching I'll put a tally mark there or two or three. Each tally represents a minute taken off of Fun Friday. I tell them at the beginning of the year... "If you take MY time, I"ll take yours!" It really works well because if they start getting noisy all I have to do is head to the white board and pick up an Expo and they quiet down and they tell their table buddies to stop because I'm gonna take their time. Occasionally, however, I do have to take my time back. On Friday before they get Fun Friday I set the timer for how many minutes they lose and they have to rest with their heads down until it goes off, then we can have free centers. If they get to 15 tallies then Fun Friday is called off because thats 1/2 their time and way to long for them to have to sit.
I also do lots of stickers. We aren't allowed to reward with candy/treats anymore in our county. I used to have a little apple container with kisses in it and if I saw them doing something nice I'd tell them they made me so happy I wanted to give them a KISS, they knew that meant to go get a chocolate kiss.
Instead of Fun Friday, Goteacher, we call it Friday Fun! And, oh do they look forward to it!
I write Friday Fun on the white board and erase a letter starting with the letter "n" in Fun if they "take my time". With this system, every letter is worth 2 minutes--they learn to count by twos quickly!
As far as the random acts of kindness or whatever....so many kids will kick or walk right over a marker or pencil or big old scrap of paper...when I see someone take the time to pick it up and take care of it I make a GREAT BIG DEAL and give them a Tootsie Roll. All of a sudden you get 20 kids telling you what they picked up, right? So sorry....I only hand out a tootsie to the first one! Maybe next time!
I"m sure treats will be outlawed soon enough in our schools, too....besides I have a MAJOR peanut allergy kid coming into my classroom in the fall.
I like your idea about erasing the letters. I might try that next year because your right it'll help reinforce counting by twos... or I'll just make my tallies worth 2 minutes. We have to teach tally counting and this was yet another way I do it.
Everyone was upset about the no candy policy. We have this list of things that we can give them... goldfish, fruit snacks (certain brand). However, if the parents provide the candy/goodies we are allowed to serve or give it to the students. It's just the teachers are not allowed anymore. So, I'm sure you can see how some people "abused" that... "my parents gave me the candy!"
You'll have to be extremely careful next year! I haven't had that situation yet. I have had a child who was allergic to latex. I do a brain pop each morning with a balloon (a fact of some kind) and he couldn't touch it, fortunately the smell didn't effect him. We had to have special band-aids for him. Now my school nurse only purchases latex free ones.
Yeah, I should start a whole new post about allergies! Hard to imagine raising a child like that--I'd be so worried sending him/her to school!
I had a mildly allergic girl this past year. Her mom was in helping all the time and told me what her daughter could handle and what she couldn't.
But this new child coming up had a sibling at our school quite a few years ago (more than 7--I've been there 7 years) who DIED in kindergarten because of (I think it was a girl) her allergies....oh wait, I don't think the exposure happened AT school--and she didn't have the reaction at school. Still, it is so sad and think of the legal ramifications....
Holy cow....sounds like a good case for home schooling! I won't have a treat of ANY KIND in my room if that's the case...and that mom will FOR SURE be in charge of planning our classroom parties so that the food is SAFE.
Oh--we work on tallies, too. That would be another good post--how do people incorporate that skill into their school days?
OH my goodness, that's so sad! I know it makes you feel even more careful. Good idea about having that parent as your party planner/room mom! It will probably make her feel better as well.
I hand out class money and each month I have a "store" and the kids can purchase things. Makes for a good money lesson too! Besides the usual trinkets, they can purchase "sit by a friend" and I put the two desks together for a day. They can also purchase hw passes. Another hit is renting the "comfy cushion" for the day - a big pillow they get to cart with them wherever we go. They can even purchase a coke in class (very popular) during movie time and this year I tried - they can reserve the teacher desk for the day and they loved it!!! I love using class money and we even change money every other week to help with their math skills.
When I have done the marble jar I used a baby food jar. It holds quite a few. I also took away if I needed to, so the kids worked really hard to keep it full.
Hey there and G'day. I had a MAJOR egg allergy kid in my class PLUS a peanut allergy kid (if ingested) last year and I sure learned quickly.
Fortunately, no incidents, but if you need more info- eg a website for it to learn more, here's a link! Good luck. I know how you feel.
When I did the marble jar, I used a pickle sized jar. I also had them take a marble out, if they needed "reminders." The kids tried real hard to fill it up and keep it full so they could get their reward. I think I might try it again this year. I was also thinking of using the card system as more of an individual behavior system, but I really am not too keen on the idea. Oh well. I will probably just wait and see how these kiddos are, and base my decisions on them!
Whole class:
Behavior BINGO- I have a laminated 100 chart and the #'s 1-100 cut up in a jar. For good behavior I draw numbers and color them in on the 100 board using a dry erase marker. When they get a "BINGO" (a straight line) we have a small treat. (popsicles, free time, extra 10 min recess, etc.) Some reasons to draw numbers--
whole class following directions/working quietly etc. = 2-3 numbers
compliment in hallways or in special classes=3 numbers
perfect daily attendance (everyone is present and on time)=5 numbers
And the big one? THIRTY numbers for a good report from a sub. I rarely have a bad report from substitutes!
I like behavior BINGO because the kids never know how long it will take to get a BINGO. When I used the marble jar, the kids were really motivated when the jar was mostly full, but was not as effective when the jar was emptied after a party. Also, I use it for teachable moments when I have time. "I drew a number between 20 and 30 that has a 4 in the ones place. What number did I draw?" or "My number is greater than 12, less than 15 and it is an even number." It teaches the kids to find patterns on the 100 chart as well.
Team rewards:
I give tallies for teams that are on task/working quietly/polite/etc. The team with the most points at the end of the week gets to draw from the pencil box. Points can be taken away for team misbehaviors.
Individual:
I use a ticket system. The kids get 1 ticket for being at school on time. They also get tickets for being on task/discussion participation/kindness/following directions etc. On Fridays the kids can trade 20 tix for a trip to the treasure box. (although I think this year I might have different "priced" items that they can use to "spend their tickets.)
Its my favorite behavior plan because it's so simple - no record keeping, easy to manage, cheap. I use a small plastic peanut butter jar. It's full when I can't do up the lid. I've even found kids who won a bingo game love to put a marble in as their prize. And those who got their sight word list all correct on Thursday......we fill it very quickly at the beginning of the year, and need it much less in the second half.
07-16-2007, 03:45 PM
Occasionally, however, I do have to take my time back. On Friday before they get Fun Friday I set the timer for how many minutes they lose and they have to rest with their heads down until it goes off, then we can have free centers. If they get to 15 tallies then Fun Friday is called off because thats 1/2 their time and way to long for them to have to sit. 
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