Consequences and Rewards

After some trial and error with my first class of students this year, I think I have found a consequence hierarchy that my students respond to and that works well when used consistently. The numbers below represent the number of times I have had to speak to a certain students about off-task or inappropriate behavior.

1. Warning

2. Sit out of a Fun Activity (usually just a couple of minutes)

3. Note for Parents (I will write a short note in a student's agenda, the parent will initial after reading, and I will check the next day at school. I usually call or email about unsigned notes.)

4. Think Sheet (Here is a think sheet from Ms. Winston's class site)

5. Sign the Red Binder (Every class in my school has a red discipline binder. It is primarily to track behavior data, but students respond to it as a consequence. Parents will be notified if a student needs to sign the binder.)

I have tried out many different reward systems this year for individual and class behavior. Next year I plan to have a Star Student Binder. At the end of each day, students who haven't received a warning at all for that day will find their page in the binder (with a 5x4 grid) and put a star in a box. When a student has 10 stars they get to choose a reward. When a student has filled their entire grid (20 spaces) I will sign the certificate on the back and it will go home with them to celebrate their success.

Some rewards that students will be able to choose for earning 10 stars might be:

-sitting at my desk for a day

-switching desks with a friends

-calling students to line up for a day

-walking on the other side, with me, in the hallway (instead of in line)

-sign up for lunch bunch (I will wait until I have 4-5 students and then have a small lunch bunch with them)

-playing a Promethean game with a friend during Daily 5

-having free computer time in the morning after unpacking or afternoon before dismissal

-picking a weekly job first

Some of the ideas I have used to promote class behavior as a whole are:

-I bought a 30 pack of hot chocolate pouches for $3.00 from Big Lots. Every time everyone is on task I add a pouch to our jar. When we get all 30 packs in the jar (I have 30 kids) we will have a hot chocolate party. My kids are super excited about this and try to elicit hot chocolate packets for everything.

-Miss Kindergarten recently posted about this great Behavior Bingo game.

I would be thrilled to hear about any ideas, consequences, or rewards that you use in your classroom.  Please leave a comment below and feel free to link to your blog post. I will be constantly editing my posts to add links to other blogs as references.