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Showing posts with label pride. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pride. Show all posts

5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement

I'm not a big fan of rewards. 

5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.

I feel rewards teach children to expect a payoff every time they put effort into something. Rewards often lead to a sense of entitlement, which isn't what the real world is about. 

HERE is a blog post I wrote a while ago that goes into details about WHY I don't like rewards.
5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.

I know what you're thinking... 
but how do we motivate children to complete work?
 

How do we motivate children to learn?


Well, I have a few tricks up my sleeve. 
The idea is to get children to take pride in their accomplishments.
5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.
It just so happens I've had a gazillion beanies in my basement from when my daughter was younger. She was just at the right age when they became popular, and people kept giving them to her! (If you ask around, I'm sure you could find someone who has a ton of these that they'd love to get rid of!)

No, they don't get to keep the beanies, but they get to keep them on their desk for the day! I'll bet you're thinking...don't the kiddos play with them all day?

Well, no, because I'm pretty strict about that. 
If they play with the beanies, they lose the beanies. 

Every morning the children are invited to put a beanie on their desk to keep them company for the day. They can earn more throughout the day by asking thoughtful questions, showing perseverance, helping classmates, and a variety of "above and beyond" behaviors that I want to emphasize.

Since it's not a thing they get to keep, it's not about greed. 
 

It's about pride. 


5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.

I also have a collection of flags, including many from different countries. I admit, the American flags are the most popular, but once they figure out the other countries, those become popular, too! The flags are rewards, similar to the beanies, but on a higher level. I'll give flags for effort, success on math facts, handwriting awards, or remembering to show their work in math.  Again, they don't get to keep the flags, but it is a source of pride.
5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.

Kids do need to play. Personally, I'd love to see them get a whole lot more recess, but that's not something I can control. But if the group gets their work done in a reasonable amount of time, and they put effort into that work, they can earn some play time. One of their favorites is time to play with the math manipulatives! They also enjoy time with clay, painting, and we even spent some time making paper airplanes! These group rewards serve several purposes: they encourage the children to work as a team, and they get along amazingly well at these times! When it's time to pick up, they're good sports because they know they want to earn this "play time" again! Another thing... giving them specific play time with manipulatives helps them NOT play with them when using them as math tools. 
5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.

Yes, you read that right! When my class brainstormed ideas for things they could earn with good behavior and hard work, science experiments was one of the first things on the list! (Don't tell the kids, most of these science experiments are things I'd do with the children anyway, but when it's used "as  a reward", it's very motivational!)
5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.
Lego Abe has been an important part of my classroom for several years now. I think he was part of a "Happy Meal" toy or something like that, but he's been a big hit!

Every day, Lego Abe gets to sit on the desk of one of my cherubs. It's announced in my daily morning letter, and he always goes to someone who has been a good role model or showed exceptional effort or perseverance. This is clearly stated in the "morning letter announcement." At the end of the day, Lego Abe takes his "Gettysburg Address" back to his "log cabin" to sleep for the night.

You may not have your own Lego Abe, but I'm sure you've got something the children might cherish as much as mine cherish Lego Abe.

Have you noticed a theme? NONE of these rewards are given for being "smart" or "talented." They are given for effort and hard work! Plus, NONE of these rewards are things the children get to keep. They are simply a recognition for a job well done, and encourage children to take pride in what they do.

These rewards don't encourage entitlement, they encourage children to work. Isn't that what we want?

5 Rewards that don't lead to Entitlement - here are 5 ideas that can be used to encourage children to take pride in their work, but not feel entitled to rewards.

Ten Ways to Motivate Students

Today's post is all about motivating students.

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!


These are ten of the ways I motivate students:

Pride!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

Luckily, there are some students who take pride in themselves and just plain want to do well. They want to make the teacher happy. Don't you love these kids? Don't you wish there were more of these? Unfortunately, there are a lot of kids who don't have pride in themselves, or just don't have enough. (This is something we can work on!) Therefore, we need the other nine.

Stickers! 

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
Children love stickers. A hefty supply is necessary for most teachers of little ones. Personally, I usually only give out stickers for homework, but many teachers give out stickers for daily work. My students work pretty hard for one sticker for homework each day! On special occasions, I'll pull out the scented stickers!

Working with a partner! 

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
Kids are social, and the idea of working with another child is super motivating. Let them choose their own partner, and you'll be their hero! They can read with a partner, write a story with a partner, or practice math facts. There's a whole world of possibilities.

Let them earn an extra recess!
Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

I think this is a "win-win". We know that kids need to run and exercise and burn off steam. The promise of being able to do what they need to do is motivating for the kids to work! 

Inspire them!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
I find if I say a few words about a book, the children all want to read that book. If I show them a sample of my writing, they want to try a similar piece of writing. If I make something look interesting or fun, they want to try it. I could never sell cars, but I sure can sell a book to a kid!

Let them put something cool on their desk for a while!  

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
Personally, I use a collection of beanie babies that I've saved since my daughter was little. They can keep it on their desk for the day. If they do something quite spectacular, I let them keep a little flag on their desk for a week. They are mighty proud of these, and they can tell you what each little trophy is for!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
A few desk decorations in my classroom!

Play a game!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
There are so many possibilities for games. There are group games like Around the World, Scoot, and variations of Jeopardy, Hollywood Squares, and Family Feud. Then there are partner games, centers, and activities. Sometimes they have so much fun, they don't even realize they're learning!

Group Projects!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
When there is a product and a "performance" involved, the kids get moving! Most kids love working in small groups putting together some sort of project, then others are super motivated by the thought of standing in front of their class. They really remember these group projects for years to come.

Have a dance party!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

This works well for my group. You can work out the details, but if they reach a certain point, just stop for the moment, and turn on the music. My kids love this, as it happens to be a group that really responds to music and movement. It only takes a few minutes of the day, and they've had their exercise and burned off some steam. That makes a dance party another "win-win"! Other forms of this type of group reward can be a pizza party or a make-your-own ice cream party. (The dance party is cheaper, though!)

Special recognition!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!
Single out a student for spectacular work. I often read examples of good work, or hold up examples of good effort on handwriting. I have a Super Improvers Wall, where they get stickers and work their way up the ladder when we notice they have improved at something - it can be anything from remembering to pass in homework, to improvement in behavior, to improvement in knowing math facts. One of my students said moving on the improvement board was even better than earning a flag for a week!  See HERE for more about the Super Improvers Wall!)

This is just a small sampling of the possibilities for motivating students.  

Here are a few other posts that might interest you!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

How do you motivate your students?

Ten Ways to Motivate Students: ten ideas to get the children to WANT to learn, without having to rob a bank!

September 11, 2001

What do you remember about this day so many years ago?

September 11, 2001: What do you remember? This post compares my experience in 2001 to another experience, way back in 1963.  What do you remember about this horrendous day?
 

This is one of those events where people would always remember where they were, and what they were doing. (Again, brain research tells us that memories are associated with strong emotions!) 

I remember where I was when Kennedy was shot. (Yes, I really am that old!) I was 8 years old in my third grade class.  The principal got on the intercom and told us to pray. She didn't tell us why, she just told us to pray. (Yep, Catholic School!)

I got home that afternoon to find my mother watching the TV, talking on the phone and crying. I watched a little bit of the TV to find out what was happening. I saw that clip in Dallas of the famous motorcade, with President Kennedy falling over and Jackie reacting... I saw that over and over. 

I sensed the huge sadness of the event, said something like "aw, that's too bad", and went out to play with my friends.

Almost 40 years later: One beautiful September morning, I was in my second grade classroom. My student teacher was about to have her first evaluation by her supervising teacher, and one of my students was about to get a baby sister. 

One of the teacher assistants in our school stopped into the classroom and said she'd cover the classroom, both my student teacher and I should go to the office. She quickly whispered something to me about a plane crash.

I went to the principal's office to find several teachers watching the TV. Some were crying, some looked quite shaken. The first tower had just collapsed. They kept showing the second plane hitting the second tower over and over. Then the second tower collapsed. It was surreal. Teachers came in and out to find out what was going on.

We decided not to tell the children. They were rather young to "get it", and this was the sort of thing that was best coming from parents. Before going back to class, I stopped into my daughter's classroom and gave her a big hug. (I never did this! I tried very hard to stay out of the way of my daughter's class, so she was quite surprised... but her teacher understood.) I told her, "I just needed to give you a hug today."

We took the kids out for an extra long recess that day. The teachers all huddled together, trying to stay strong. The kids all played on that beautiful September day in New England. A couple of children were dismissed early that day. We gave them all a break from homework that night.

When I got home, I told my daughter about what had happened.  I watched it on the news over and over. I called my sister and we talked and cried. My daughter went outside to play. History repeats itself. 

What happened over the next few weeks was interesting. Flags flew everywhere. People were warmer to each other, even total strangers. Patriotism became stronger. People were proud of their country. 

About a week later, I was at a local apple orchard listening to blue grass music and celebrating fall on yet another beautiful fall day in New England. I remember one man pointing to the sky and saying, "a plane". The crowd was silent. Seeing a plane in the sky wasn't unusual, but this was the first one we'd seen since September 11th.  We all watched the plane go by silently, then turned and smiled at each other. They were hopeful smiles. 

Fast forward to the present. Right now is one of the roughest times our country has been through that I can recall in my many, many years. People are angry. Unemployment is high and morale is low. People are doubting the strength of our government. People are doubting the strength of our economy. People are scared.

But I still believe. Maybe it's that Catholic school upbringing in the 60s or living through the Vietnam war protests of the 60s and 70s. Or maybe it's something that my parents taught me. But I believe in my country. I believe we will work out all the problems and be a stronger country in the long run. And I'm still proud to be an American.

No matter how many times I hear this song, I'll end up weeping by the end: 



What do you remember?

September 11, 2001: What do you remember? This post compares my experience in 2001 to another experience, way back in 1963.  What do you remember about this horrendous day?


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