Throwback Thursday

It's Thursday!  And you know what that means.  It's time for another edition of...

Many of you have already headed back to the classroom to start another school year.  Seriously...where did the summer go?!  I'm ALL about building relationships in my classroom and while I definitely think that's the most effective way to manage behavior, I also love fun little ways to reward my kids.  Sure...kids should be intrinsically motivated...and I know that's our goal.  But it's still fun to "earn" little things here and there for good behavior.  

Here's a little post I wrote last year about a fun little behavior management idea I tried with my class.  This didn't last us all year long because I really do like to mix it up and try new things, but my kids loved it while we did!  And I have to say, those little kinder cuties were on their best behavior!!!  

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Originally posted on September 20, 2012

In any given (school) day, my kids probably hear my say, “You’re knockin’ my socks off!” no less than 25+ times :)  I usually say this when somebody has a bright idea that really blows me away, but more often you’re likely to hear me utter this phrase when I see kids that are on task and working responsibly.  At the beginning of the year, it can be challenging to get Kindergarteners to realize they can do *hard* things, so lots of praise and positive reinforcement are a must…for me, anyway. 

To keep my kids on track and encouraged to do their best, I decided I needed a visual to go with my whole, “You’re knockin’ my socks off!” phrase.  Last year I used my Bravo Board…which I ADORED….but I wanted to try something a little different this year.  And I’m SO glad I did!  So far, it works like a charm :)

My visual is displayed at the front of my classroom on my white board.  I just took a strand of jute and wrapped it around 3 magnets.  I have 5 tables in my classroom, so I clipped 5 clothespins to the strand.  Each clothespin is labeled with my classroom table numbers.  Then I made some little reward coupons, tucked one into the sock, and when I catch my friends “knockin’ my socks off”, I move the coupon filled sock to that table’s clothespin.

I’m moving the clothespin many times throughout the day so that my kids can see who’s makin’ my heart smile.  At the end of the day…whichever table has the sock…wins and gets the prize inside.  The reward coupons are super simple, easy, and for the most part, free.  Since the reward changes every day, the kids are always excited to see what they will *win*….extra computer time, free choice, writing with markers, warm fuzzies, sweet treat, etc.  I can honestly say…for the most part…they really are on their best behavior!!! 

You can grab my little reward coupons by clicking on the pic below!  These are nothing fancy, but they get the job done ;)  You’ll see some rewards in there that may not be applicable to you or your kids, but I *tried* to include rewards I’ve used in the past.  I’m sure I won’t use all of these rewards this year, but I know that my kids LOVE the ones I’ve used so far!

Wanna share a "throwback" post from the past?! Even if it was only a few weeks ago, go on ahead and link up! I'm looking forward to reading about everything I've been missing!!!