Let’s get right into something every elementary teacher should have in their toolkit – a strong individual behavior management system. It’s your secret weapon for addressing students’ specific needs and it is one part of the 3 behavior management systems every teacher needs. I’ve got a little secret to share: it doesn’t have to be fancy, costly, or complex to work like a charm. In fact, it’s often the simplest things that do the trick.
Keep It Simple, Keep It Consistent
First things first, let’s toss out the notion that we need complex systems to keep our students motivated. The key to success is keeping it simple and staying consistent, especially when teachers already have so many tasks to juggle. Those bells and whistles might look appealing, but trust me, simplicity can be your best friend.
Stickers- Who Knew They Could Be So Powerful?
I’ve experimented with many individual behavior management systems during my 6 years of teaching, but one eventually won my heart: the humble sticker and sticker book. Yes, you read that right. It’s not a groundbreaking or revolutionary concept, but that’s precisely what makes it so effective.
Here’s how it works: Whenever your students follow expectations, reward them with a sticker. But the crucial element is providing specific feedback during the process. For example, “Molly, I noticed you in your seat, working quietly at a voice level 0, and you’ve shown your work on every single math problem!” This goes way beyond a simple “good job!” because now Molly knows exactly what she did right, and the rest of the class does too. This specific feedback drives motivation, and you can bet that more students will strive to be in their seats at a voice level 0 and show their work on all of their math problems. Of course, that’s if they have buy-in!
The Magic of Buy-In
Student buy-in is the real game-changer. Stickers are already a hit with the kids, but to truly get them onboard, you need to involve them in the excitement. In my class, we made it a monthly tradition. I’d ask three students to come up with an idea for a sticker pack theme, whether it was flowers, cupcakes, dogs, or something else that sparked their interest. Then, all students would vote on which new pack they wanted for the month. Because they got to choose the stickers, this gave them more motivation to want to earn them. Obviously a kid is going to be more excited about a dinosaur sticker they voted on versus an old school sticker that says “WOW!” You can read more about how my students vote here!
The Collection
Kids love to collect and cherish their accomplishments. It’s not about reaching a specific number of stickers for a prize; it’s about the collection itself. That’s the magic of this brilliantly simple system.
To make it even more special, I created a sticker book. Each page features positive affirmations, with space for 16 stickers. It’s a little treasure chest of their achievements. Here are some sticker pack suggestions that students will love:
So, that’s the beauty of keeping it simple, staying consistent, and engaging your students with something as unassuming as a sticker and a sticker book. Who would’ve thought that the simplest things could have the most significant impact?
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