Saturday, July 6, 2013

HELP! Classroom Behavior Chart

Well, I found one of our dogs playing with something out in our backyard the other day.  I couldn't tell what it was (my eyesight isn't the best-I should be wearing my glasses).  Anyways, I casually walked over to him, leaned over to see what it was.  It took me a minute and then I realized that it was a .........SNAKE!!!!!  YUCK!!  Thought, I'd share the pictures.  :-)


 
We live at the edge of town and there is a river just a little ways from our house.  So, we sometimes come across these lovely critters in our yard.  :-(
 
OK now on to school stuff.  In the past, I have had a frog theme in my classroom.  My behavior chart was frogs that hopped on leaves if they broke a rule.  Each leaf would have a consequence on it that they would have to do if they moved his/her frog.  Last year, I decided to go with the clip chart that many are now doing (in the picture below).  On this chart, students can move up for positive behaviors and move down for breaking rules.  I liked that it had a positive to it as well as the consequence.  I felt though that I wasn't as consistent with it as I was with my frogs hopping in the past.  With this chart, I also had a hard time with the moving up on it. I used it often, but I didn't like that I knew that some students may have been doing the same positive thing that I had another student move up for and I may have not seen them.  

 
 
I have seen some blogs where they were going to switch to this type of chart, but decided not to and they just added a positive to their existing behavior chart.  So, I need help from anyone who has used this type of behavior management or if you have added a positive to your behavior chart.   What have you done?  How do you use it?  If you use this type of chart, what things did you look for to have them move up on it?  How many steps do you have on it?  I would really love to have feedback on this because I'm trying to figure out if I will still use it next year and if so I need to determine how I will use it so that I am more consistent with it.   Thanks for all the ideas!



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9 comments:

  1. DesireeJuly 6, 2013 at 11:32 AM

    I use the clip chart in my classroom too. And like you sometimes I wasn't as consistent with it as I should have been. But overall it worked great for my room. I would move up students who were following the rules and even have the whole table move their pin up. At the end of the day I would color in their star on their chart the clip chart color. At the end of the week I would "add", really just guesstimate and the kids could pick out of the treasure box depending on how their week was. This year I might try Gold Tags from A Teeny Tiny Teacher with clip chart as an added incentive. But just allow the kids to earn tags for each positive color they landed on each day and maybe tie in Fun Friday. Check out her post. I hope that helps.
    Kinders on the Block

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    1. Teaching Little MiraclesJuly 8, 2013 at 1:40 PM

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    2. Teaching Little MiraclesJuly 8, 2013 at 1:44 PM

      Thanks for your ideas and sharing with me. I'm glad that I'm not the only one that wasn't consistent as I should have been with it. Maybe the second year of using it will be better. I like the idea of using the tags to earn Fun Friday. I will check out the gold tags. Thanks!

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  2. Amber O.July 6, 2013 at 12:00 PM

    You can read how I use my rainbow chart here
    Basically, I utilize the top half of the chart for Daily 5 ONLY, so I essentially just have a traffic light system with a reading block incentive. My fear was that I would be biased or inconsistent with which/how students move up and this kept me honest....and my reading block QUIET! I also incorporate Teeny Tiny's gold tag system. You should definitely click on Desiree's link & read about it! Good luck!

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    1. Teaching Little MiraclesJuly 8, 2013 at 1:41 PM

      I like the idea of using it extra during Daily 5. Thanks for the ideas!

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  3. KristyJuly 6, 2013 at 6:07 PM

    I use the clip chart with the positive and negative. I let them clip up anytime I see them doing something good when the rest of the class may not be (walking quietly, listening, waiting quietly for instructions, writing name on paper, etc). Each child also has a card. If they get to the top of the chart, they get a sticker. 10 stickers earns a prize. It works pretty well!
    Teachin' First

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    1. Teaching Little MiraclesJuly 8, 2013 at 1:44 PM

      Thanks for sharing and giving me ideas. I like that you use it to catch those doing what the other class isn't doing. Thanks!

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  4. StephanieJuly 8, 2013 at 10:38 PM

    Hi! So I just found your blog and saw this post and thought I could add my thoughts...This past year was my first year using this system of both positive and negative sections and I LOVED it!! In the beginning of the year I clipped children's names up and down - however, once I was certain the kids could read their own names (I teach Kindergarten) I had the kids move their names up and down.

    I moved kids names up for lots of different reasons - being well behaved/following directions when others aren't, setting a good example, doing a good deed, improving their own behavior. Names were moved down for various offenses - breaking a class rule, making a poor choice, disrupting the class, etc. I used my judgement for some students. For example I had a student who struggled with staying still all year, so whenever he was quite or still, even if it was for a short time I would have him clip his name up to show him I noticed the positive change in his behavior!

    At the end of each day the children colored in a calendar I had so the parents could see what color they were on. This was the biggest surprise - the parents knowing how well their child was behaving (or unfortunately not behaving) helped to improve their behavior! In the beginning if your name was on the top two spots you got a prize or a sticker.... by the end of the year I moved away from rewards like that and changed to printed certificates. The kids LOVED them. If their name was on the "top of the chart" they got a certificate, if their name was "off the chart" meaning they continued to do good and I took their clip and put it on my shirt they also got a certificate. I was amazed at how well they children reacted to the certificates - they all wanted them!

    For the negative side of the chart - it depended on why their name was clipped down... if they were just not paying attention and being disruptive then I just talked to them. If they did something more serious (hit, talked back, etc.) then a note went home.

    I hope I helped!! Can't wait to see what you decide to do!
    Stephanie
    MaMa Goose’s Kindergarten

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  5. Teaching Little MiraclesJuly 10, 2013 at 5:46 PM

    Thanks so much for sharing! I like the idea of the certificates. It is amazing how those things can get the kids so excited! Thanks!

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