Well here goes . . .
I usually don't have to ask too many students to move a clip, but sometimes there are students who need continuous monitoring as well as daily parental communication. In these cases I may use a sticker chart taped to the student's desk. A sticker is earned each time the goal is accomplished (such as staying on task, completing work, or any other area of difficulty the student is trying to overcome). In more severe and continuous cases I have Daily Checklists I send home with the student. The checklist is broken down into subjects/segments of the day. We usually focus on 2-3 goals. This checklist is discussed with the parents and it is up to the parent to check and sign the Daily Checklist each evening. The parent is also to discuss the checklist with the student and determine small incentives and consequences for meeting or not meeting goals. If the student achieves his/her goal of smiley faces (given for each segment of the day for each area of focus), the parent will reward the student with the incentive they agreed upon (special time with mom/dad/friend, computer time, trip to the dollar store, etc.). If the goal is not met, it is up to the parent to follow through with the agreed upon consequence (early bedtime, loss of a privilege, etc.). It's a lot of work, but it does work for some students. It holds them accountable AND it makes the parents take a more active role in the behavior issues, following through up at home.
Thanks for joining my linky party Mel!
ReplyDelete♥Jenaya
Lesson Plan Diva
I teach Special Ed students with mild to moderate disabilities. My class is most commonly known as resource. I don't have my kids all day but in segments throughout the day. However, I do monitor them in their general ed classrooms. For that reason I wanted to come up with a way they could be rewarded in my room for their behavior and academics throughout the school. I use what I call a "warm fuzzy jar" because I get warm fuzzies when people say good things about my kids. Basically it is a glass jar (medium size) the I fill with small yellow pom poms. Every time I notice a good thing the student earns a warm fuzzy. If another teacher compliments the student they earn a warm fuzzy. I let my students put the fuzzies in the jar themselves and of course I make a big deal about it. The point of filling the jar is to earn a big reward. Our first reward was a coke & popcorn day. Of course the rewards got bigger as we went on such as coke float day, cupcake day, etc. Because I don't have all my kids at one time I pick rewards that each student can have during their class time with me but you can do whatever appeals to your kids. To make the reward system something they wanted to work for I gave them a list of options and they got to rate their 1st, 2nd, & 3rd options.
ReplyDeleteTo encourage all kids I did tell them each time they put in a warm fuzzy I check their name on the list. If their name wasn't on the list they didn't get to have the reward.
There were also times I had to tell some students to remove their warm fuzzies due to repeated or more severe offenses. It wasn't my goal to use the system that way but boy did it hit home with the one kid I had to ask to do that.
I had a large number of 5th grade "tough" boys this year and I was stunned at how much they bought into this reward system.