As a future kindergarten teacher it is important to have my students understand what is expected of them. Kindergarten is the foundation of learning in school and aside from learning the ABC's and 123's, there is a lot to learn in regards to social skills. Respect, following directions, bathroom etiquette, recess etiquette, play centers, lining up, transitioning, nap time, dismissal etiquette..... The list can go on and on. Just like great grades deem positive reinforcement and rewards, great behavior should also be rewarded. Not only is important to have the rules and procedures clearly illustrated throughout the classroom, I as a teacher need to make sure that I reinforce these rules and procedures with good and bad consequences. The consequences via good or bad have to be consistent. So that all of my students clearly understand the tone of the classroom. This will also help me make sure that my classroom runs as smoothly as possible.
" Students’ accomplishments can be rewarded not only with high grades, but also
with verbal praise, public recognition (hanging examples of good work for public
display, describing accomplishments in the school newspaper), symbolic rewards
(stars, happy faces, stickers), extra privileges or activity choices, or material rewards
(snacks, prizes)." (p. 127)
In my classroom positive behavior and great grades will always get rewarded. I would reward the individual, the group and the entire class. Rewarding students can be tricky because you have to create a balance with material things vs. verbal praise. Students have to take pride in both. I will always give out high fives, and say positive things such as "Great job, Or I love the way you are thinking. I will just make sure to reiterate what they did to my positive phrase. There are also chants that I will use for good jobs. The infamous "Good Job chant. (" You know you did a good job, so say you did a good job. Good job (3x clap) good job (3x clap) G- double O- D -J-O-B Good Job Good Job!") There are tons of positive chants that I will use, and many of these incorporate movement so this will be great for my students. TI will also get involve parents, taking pictures of a student doing great work and emailing it to the parent helps. Also good phone calls/texts/emails to parents are helpful. I can also opt by sending home cards that show their child did well today.
Positive reinforcement doesn't always have to be material things, but in kindergarten I feel it helps to have them. I hope to be able to use an owl theme for my first Kindergarten class. I will have a mascot owl name "Owl-lie"! Every time the class as a group does something great( transition quietly, walking in the hall quietly, lunchroom etiquette, or if a teacher or staff member comments on their good behavior) they will earn Owl-lie points. These points will earn an reward on a weekly basis. I will have a chart with stickers of "Owl-lie" and the goal will be to earn 10 points per school week to get a special treat. I will offer some options for the prize of the week. These options can be from a special cartoon on Friday, a dance party, glow stick party, special snack( Dunkin' Donuts munchkins... my favorite), whatever. The students on Monday will decide on what the reward will be for Friday.


Let's face it, for as much I would love to have the well behaved classroom I have to be realistic. We are all human and we all have good days and bad days. I am dealing with little people who are just learning how to control their bladders let alone their emotions. It will be my job to reinforce the good behavior that I want in the classroom. If you don't follow the rules there will be consequences just like in life.



These are just some tactics that I plan to use to reward and reinforce positive behavior in my classroom. I am still learning so I look forward to learning about any other helpful tactics to have a safe, positive and engaging class.
Here is a flow chart of some of the tactics:
Here is the link: https://www.lucidchart.com/invitations/accept/5f6e5a57-7c6f-47fc-8a4e-1254173e618d
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