You otter see this!
Making Books!
Hi Bloggy Friends! I have something wonderful to share with you all today. I received a comb binding machine and wanted to share with you how much fun my girls and I have had with it. I can't wait to use it with my class. I have 1001 ideas already! First, it is super easy to use. Pull it out of the box and you are ready to go. It's lightweight so it was easy to pull out of the box and set up. It has nice suction cupped feet so there's no slipping and sliding! 
It has a super sharp blade so it easily cut through 10 sheets of paper at once. After you punch your paper, slide on a plastic binding comb, and pull down the handle. There's a small button on the far right side of the handle that locks the binding machine open so you can use both hands to line up your paper and easily slide it into the plastic comb. (They have plastic combs in many colors. Don't you love this blue? It was my daughter's favorite!)
Here's her first official book! She was so excited! She writes hundreds of books and has used everything from staples to string and anything else that she can find to bind it. With the comb binding machine, she said she finally got to make a real book. (It's going to be hard to get it away from her and take it school!)A few things that I love about this binding machine:
1. It's lightweight, yet very durable.
2. It's so easy to use, my 6 year old daughter can use it.
3. It has a large paper tray that collects all of the paper pieces from the punches. It removes and replaces easily. (No smacking, yelling, or ugly words required!)
4. You can easily slide the little dial on the bottom of the binder to change the standard paper size. No more guessing if it's going to be centered.
 |
| paper tray |
 |
| dial that adjusts for different paper sizes |
 |
| My daughter making another book all by herself! (Yes, she had constant supervision!) |
So, how am I going to use this in my classroom? Here's a few ideas:
1. Students write and publish their own books on anything and everything.
2. Personal word walls.
3. Handwriting practice books.
4. Daily morning work for the week/month.
5. Weekly/monthly homework.
6. Parent communication notebook that I send home daily for parents to sign.
7. Writing/reading journals.
8. Math journals.
I could keep going, but I bet you have 1001 ideas too! So. how are you going to use yours in your classroom?
Really Good Stuff Blog Contest
Hi Blogging Buddies! My blog is one of the finalist for The Really Good Stuff Blog Contest. Voting begins 12:00am Monday, June 18 and ends on Friday, June 22. If you have a minute, I would love it if you gave my blog a vote! Click HERE to vote! Click on the Special Education tab and vote for Life in Special Education! You may only vote once per category or all of your votes will be disqualified.
Thanks Blogging Buddies!
School district budget forums showcase half-truths, contempt for the public
By Laurie H. Rogers
Around $700 billion (from all sources) is now spent per year on K-12 education. About $15.6 billion in state appropriations is spent in Washington alone (in the link provided, select "Public Schools" for the "agency"). Spokane Public Schools spends about half-a-billion dollars in operating, capital projects, debt service and other costs for 28,000+ children. The per-student cost could easily pay for private schools for all. Yet, this financial largesse fails to properly educate most students. That’s because most districts refuse to do what needs to be done.
In January, 2012, a coalition sued the state, claiming that school districts weren’t being properly funded. Some districts used taxpayer dollars to help pay the legal fees. The coalition won the lawsuit, and a new committee (see page 26) will figure out how to squeeze taxpayers for more. The court retained jurisdiction over the case, further muddying the separation between judicial and legislative. And that new money is unlikely to help the children because districts will still refuse to do what needs to be done.
If you think education expenditures are ridiculous now, wait until the bill arrives for the federal government’s Common Core initiatives (the national standards, tests, and curricula in all subjects, plus a data system that’s designed to share student information across states and agencies without parent knowledge or consent). That money squeeze will be – to borrow from the president – unprecedented.
Last week, Spokane Public Schools (SPS) held two forums on its budget. They did do three things right.
Of five board directors, only Bob Douthitt attended both forums. Directors Jeff Bierman and Rocky Treppiedi attended neither. No one in the Spokane TV/print media appears to have attended, and there has been zero media coverage of concerns expressed there. The president of the Spokane Education Association didn’t attend, and the only local legislator or candidate I saw was John Ahern.
This district is the city’s largest employer, the state’s second-largest district, manager of a half-a-billion-dollar budget, caretaker and (alleged) educator of 28,000+ children, and also is under investigation by the Public Disclosure Commission for possible violations of state law. The lack of interest in citizen concerns – coupled with the district’s defensive and combative responses to citizens – reflects a dismal level of caring about the public’s best interests. It appears that district leaders really don’t give a rip.
At these two forums on the budget, it was astounding to see the amount of information that the leadership didn’t appear to know about the budget, such as how much is spent on the classroom or on the Department of Teaching and Learning (T&L). They couldn’t say, didn’t have it with them, couldn’t find it, or would answer by diverting to what other districts do. There was little interest shown in the public’s inherent right to know details of expenditures. Had I jumped up and dissented every time I heard something I knew to be wrong; that didn’t answer the question; that was shaded in favor of looking better or worse than the truth, or that told just part of the truth, I would hardly have sat down at all.
The June 4, 2012 budget forum:
At the June 4 forum, Citizen A said SPS’s school board budget was nearly $1 million (a figure not provided in any district presentation I’ve ever seen). And still the board overspent it by more than $66,000. If the board can’t stay on budget, the citizen asked, “how are they ever going to balance the budget for the rest of us?”
The answer to that lies in the district’s F-195 reports on OSPI’s Web site. Increasingly, Spokane Public Schools’ budgets are higher than anticipated revenue. This year, the district expects to get $308 million in revenue. They said a “maintenance” budget will cost $310 million. Yet, they’re proposing to spend $317 million, taking the extra from their Fund Balance.
About that million-dollar board budget, Associate Superintendent Mark Anderson said the state requires districts to charge legal services, elections, and auditing costs to the board budget. Who knew? The district doesn’t note those sub-categories in its Financial Report or itemize them separately.
Also according to the Financial Report, the budget category of “Instruction” includes the sub-categories of the Department of Teaching and Learning (T&L), with its $100,000+ salaries; the principals, with their $100,000+ salaries; counseling and health services; and other categories. The district's budget presentations don’t mention these, so the public has little idea of how “Instruction” is calculated or how it’s enlarged by administrative bloat. Other categories also have their own unmentioned sub-categories.
Anderson, Douthitt and Director of Finance Linda McDermott said they “can’t” report these details about expenditures because the format of the F-195 report is “prescribed.” They said this earnestly and emphatically (and with an air of finality), as if a) OSPI’s prescribed format means citizens can’t get something more expansive; b) that’s the end of the discussion; and c) taxpayers should just accept not being able to know how our dollars are spent.
If it did occur to administrators that they could build a different, more-detailed report for taxpayers, they’ve obviously rejected that idea. McDermott invited Citizen A downtown to talk about the budget – a seemingly helpful, friendly idea – but actually an inefficient, ineffective, and expensive way to handle public disclosure. How does that inform anyone else?
How absurd that at a budget forum, administrators and the board president refused to entertain the concept of providing taxpayers and voters with easy access to critical pieces of budget information.
On June 5, I emailed McDermott to ask for a breakdown of the sub-categories. Citizen A had been offered budget details if she went downtown and got them, but McDermott said I would have to file a Public Records Request (PRR) for the same information. (Please recall the district’s public and legislative attacks on certain public records requestors, including yours truly.)
I questioned this, and McDermott sent an email on June 6 saying she would need time to pull records and that I had the option to file a PRR. I didn’t realize from her email that she had changed her position. I decided to ask about this at the June 7 forum the next evening.
Also at the June 4 forum, McDermott said there would be “pretty significant curriculum adoptions that we will be purchasing in the next few years. You may or may not have heard about the Common Core State Standards initiatives.” She said the first phase “will start in the 2012-13 school year.”
Clearly they’re planning to buy Common Core curricula. I asked Superintendent Nancy Stowell why they would set aside millions of taxpayer dollars for curricula that are untested, unproved, unfunded, and unseen. (Stowell said T&L director Tammy Campbell did go to DC to view some part of it. But Campbell doesn’t have a math background.) Stowell said they’re just setting aside money and aren’t yet ready to buy, thus contradicting what the budget presentation, the school board and her own administrators already indicated.
I asked if we would at least get rid of reform math and excessive constructivism, and Stowell did not say “yes.” She said, “None of those materials will go away, but there needed to be some additional materials.” Not only will Spokane taxpayers have to pay for the unproved CCSS, we won’t even get rid of Investigations in Number, Data, and Space and the even-worse Connected Mathematics – two of the worst math programs on the face of this planet.
That pretty much reflects the trend across the country. Districts that had escaped reform hell are facing a new round of it because of the Common Core, while Spokane students never even got a breather.
The June 7, 2012 forum:
Before the June 7 forum began, McDermott handed me a list of sub-categories containing sparse financial data. I didn’t know what to make of it. During the forum, I asked why I had to file a records request to obtain information that every taxpayer and voter should have. I was astonished when she said she’d already told me I didn’t need to file a records request (that was news to me), claimed she’d already provided the information I requested (obviously not, since I don’t have all of it), and appeared to excuse herself by telling the room that I didn’t answer her June 6 email.
Other citizens argued for their need and right to have budget details, but the leadership didn’t budge. Douthitt said the district doesn’t have time for this kind of disclosure, that expenditure detail was just a “quirky little thing” that Laurie Rogers wanted, and that if I got it, it would only make four or five of my friends happy. “It isn’t going to happen,” he stated. At some point, the superintendent cut off the discussion.
I asked how much is spent on the Department of T&L. There was a moment of silence. They looked at each other. Director of the Budget Craig Skillestad began rifling through his briefcase. I waited – staring at Stowell, Anderson, McDermott, Campbell, Douthitt and Skillestad – while noting another absurdity. At this budget forum – with about a million dollars worth of salary, standing right there – no one seemed to know how many taxpayer dollars are spent on Teaching and Learning. The forum eventually ended, and they all left without ever giving me an answer.
Stowell claimed on June 7 that 62 cents of every dollar goes directly to the classroom. But on June 4, McDermott said it was 60 cents. I doubt it’s even that high. It all depends on what they stick in their definition of “classroom.” I’d like to see them prove either number. Hey, if citizens had a breakdown of the budget by sub-category, we’d all know how much it is. (Perhaps that’s why they don’t provide it.)
In response to a question about the children’s free-meals program, Stowell said only children are fed with it. However, the evidence suggests that the district purposefully solicited adults to eat for free so they could reach a 70% level of participation.
Rep. Ahern asked why the district needs 110 people each making more than $100,000 per year, and Anderson answered by saying the district spends less than other districts and so “we’re efficient.” (This is neither a logical argument nor an answer to Ahern’s question.) I repeated Ahern’s question, and Stowell answered by saying the district needs to spend that kind of money to get the best people. (This argument is not well supported by the evidence, nor does it answer the question of “why so many?”)
At both forums, administrators continually responded like this – by diverting or by pointing to what other districts and other states do – instead of actually answering the question.
In their presentations, Anderson and McDermott said SPS has extra money and is figuring out new ways to spend it. I asked why they wouldn’t just give that money back to taxpayers, but no one answered that. When another citizen persisted in his line of questioning, the superintendent openly laughed at him. Anderson also told that citizen, “No, you’re not thinkin’ right.” “I’m not thinking right?” the citizen asked. “No, you’re not,” Anderson replied. “We can sit down and explain it to you. I’m not taking ... You’re not gettin’ it,” and he pointed to his own head, perhaps to show the citizen where a brain might be.
It was a shocking display of obstruction, weak arguments, unsupported claims, mocking disrespect for the audience, lack of concern for transparency, and willful non-disclosure.
The Spokesman-Review, which seems not to have sent anyone to either forum, has printed PR pieces before and after the forums to assure us all that Spokane Public Schools is spending our money wisely. I’m loath to call this “media coverage.”
So, this is what we have. A stunning abdication of responsibility for informing the public, insufficient transparency or accountability, little substance or logic, zero media investigation, no consequences, barriers against the public, and no apparent shame for a refusal to properly educate the children.
We aren’t losing control of this school district; we’ve already lost it. Please care about that, folks. The future of your children and grandchildren is on the line.
“As long as he keeps the bad people rich and the good people scared, no one'll touch him. ... What chance does Gotham have when good people do nothing?”
- The Rachel Dawes character in “Batman Begins”
How much does it cost to educate a child? Has anyone in education EVER answered this question? I’ve asked around, and nobody provides a number, but they’re all certain they need more money.
Districts keep saying K-12 education has suffered massive cuts. This stunning deceit is winning hearts and minds – largely because media lapdogs refuse to investigate. Repeat after me: There is no money shortage in K-12 public education. There are very few bottom-line cuts. Money has been shifted – away from classrooms and toward adults. Various groups complain about each other, but they’re all to blame.Around $700 billion (from all sources) is now spent per year on K-12 education. About $15.6 billion in state appropriations is spent in Washington alone (in the link provided, select "Public Schools" for the "agency"). Spokane Public Schools spends about half-a-billion dollars in operating, capital projects, debt service and other costs for 28,000+ children. The per-student cost could easily pay for private schools for all. Yet, this financial largesse fails to properly educate most students. That’s because most districts refuse to do what needs to be done.
In January, 2012, a coalition sued the state, claiming that school districts weren’t being properly funded. Some districts used taxpayer dollars to help pay the legal fees. The coalition won the lawsuit, and a new committee (see page 26) will figure out how to squeeze taxpayers for more. The court retained jurisdiction over the case, further muddying the separation between judicial and legislative. And that new money is unlikely to help the children because districts will still refuse to do what needs to be done.
If you think education expenditures are ridiculous now, wait until the bill arrives for the federal government’s Common Core initiatives (the national standards, tests, and curricula in all subjects, plus a data system that’s designed to share student information across states and agencies without parent knowledge or consent). That money squeeze will be – to borrow from the president – unprecedented.
Last week, Spokane Public Schools (SPS) held two forums on its budget. They did do three things right.
- They held the forums.
- They answered some questions about district operations.
- They stayed late at the June 7 forum because questions were still being asked.
Of five board directors, only Bob Douthitt attended both forums. Directors Jeff Bierman and Rocky Treppiedi attended neither. No one in the Spokane TV/print media appears to have attended, and there has been zero media coverage of concerns expressed there. The president of the Spokane Education Association didn’t attend, and the only local legislator or candidate I saw was John Ahern.
This district is the city’s largest employer, the state’s second-largest district, manager of a half-a-billion-dollar budget, caretaker and (alleged) educator of 28,000+ children, and also is under investigation by the Public Disclosure Commission for possible violations of state law. The lack of interest in citizen concerns – coupled with the district’s defensive and combative responses to citizens – reflects a dismal level of caring about the public’s best interests. It appears that district leaders really don’t give a rip.
At these two forums on the budget, it was astounding to see the amount of information that the leadership didn’t appear to know about the budget, such as how much is spent on the classroom or on the Department of Teaching and Learning (T&L). They couldn’t say, didn’t have it with them, couldn’t find it, or would answer by diverting to what other districts do. There was little interest shown in the public’s inherent right to know details of expenditures. Had I jumped up and dissented every time I heard something I knew to be wrong; that didn’t answer the question; that was shaded in favor of looking better or worse than the truth, or that told just part of the truth, I would hardly have sat down at all.
The June 4, 2012 budget forum:
At the June 4 forum, Citizen A said SPS’s school board budget was nearly $1 million (a figure not provided in any district presentation I’ve ever seen). And still the board overspent it by more than $66,000. If the board can’t stay on budget, the citizen asked, “how are they ever going to balance the budget for the rest of us?”
The answer to that lies in the district’s F-195 reports on OSPI’s Web site. Increasingly, Spokane Public Schools’ budgets are higher than anticipated revenue. This year, the district expects to get $308 million in revenue. They said a “maintenance” budget will cost $310 million. Yet, they’re proposing to spend $317 million, taking the extra from their Fund Balance.
About that million-dollar board budget, Associate Superintendent Mark Anderson said the state requires districts to charge legal services, elections, and auditing costs to the board budget. Who knew? The district doesn’t note those sub-categories in its Financial Report or itemize them separately.
Also according to the Financial Report, the budget category of “Instruction” includes the sub-categories of the Department of Teaching and Learning (T&L), with its $100,000+ salaries; the principals, with their $100,000+ salaries; counseling and health services; and other categories. The district's budget presentations don’t mention these, so the public has little idea of how “Instruction” is calculated or how it’s enlarged by administrative bloat. Other categories also have their own unmentioned sub-categories.
Anderson, Douthitt and Director of Finance Linda McDermott said they “can’t” report these details about expenditures because the format of the F-195 report is “prescribed.” They said this earnestly and emphatically (and with an air of finality), as if a) OSPI’s prescribed format means citizens can’t get something more expansive; b) that’s the end of the discussion; and c) taxpayers should just accept not being able to know how our dollars are spent.
If it did occur to administrators that they could build a different, more-detailed report for taxpayers, they’ve obviously rejected that idea. McDermott invited Citizen A downtown to talk about the budget – a seemingly helpful, friendly idea – but actually an inefficient, ineffective, and expensive way to handle public disclosure. How does that inform anyone else?
How absurd that at a budget forum, administrators and the board president refused to entertain the concept of providing taxpayers and voters with easy access to critical pieces of budget information.
On June 5, I emailed McDermott to ask for a breakdown of the sub-categories. Citizen A had been offered budget details if she went downtown and got them, but McDermott said I would have to file a Public Records Request (PRR) for the same information. (Please recall the district’s public and legislative attacks on certain public records requestors, including yours truly.)
I questioned this, and McDermott sent an email on June 6 saying she would need time to pull records and that I had the option to file a PRR. I didn’t realize from her email that she had changed her position. I decided to ask about this at the June 7 forum the next evening.
Also at the June 4 forum, McDermott said there would be “pretty significant curriculum adoptions that we will be purchasing in the next few years. You may or may not have heard about the Common Core State Standards initiatives.” She said the first phase “will start in the 2012-13 school year.”
Clearly they’re planning to buy Common Core curricula. I asked Superintendent Nancy Stowell why they would set aside millions of taxpayer dollars for curricula that are untested, unproved, unfunded, and unseen. (Stowell said T&L director Tammy Campbell did go to DC to view some part of it. But Campbell doesn’t have a math background.) Stowell said they’re just setting aside money and aren’t yet ready to buy, thus contradicting what the budget presentation, the school board and her own administrators already indicated.
I asked if we would at least get rid of reform math and excessive constructivism, and Stowell did not say “yes.” She said, “None of those materials will go away, but there needed to be some additional materials.” Not only will Spokane taxpayers have to pay for the unproved CCSS, we won’t even get rid of Investigations in Number, Data, and Space and the even-worse Connected Mathematics – two of the worst math programs on the face of this planet.
That pretty much reflects the trend across the country. Districts that had escaped reform hell are facing a new round of it because of the Common Core, while Spokane students never even got a breather.
The June 7, 2012 forum:
Before the June 7 forum began, McDermott handed me a list of sub-categories containing sparse financial data. I didn’t know what to make of it. During the forum, I asked why I had to file a records request to obtain information that every taxpayer and voter should have. I was astonished when she said she’d already told me I didn’t need to file a records request (that was news to me), claimed she’d already provided the information I requested (obviously not, since I don’t have all of it), and appeared to excuse herself by telling the room that I didn’t answer her June 6 email.
Other citizens argued for their need and right to have budget details, but the leadership didn’t budge. Douthitt said the district doesn’t have time for this kind of disclosure, that expenditure detail was just a “quirky little thing” that Laurie Rogers wanted, and that if I got it, it would only make four or five of my friends happy. “It isn’t going to happen,” he stated. At some point, the superintendent cut off the discussion.
I asked how much is spent on the Department of T&L. There was a moment of silence. They looked at each other. Director of the Budget Craig Skillestad began rifling through his briefcase. I waited – staring at Stowell, Anderson, McDermott, Campbell, Douthitt and Skillestad – while noting another absurdity. At this budget forum – with about a million dollars worth of salary, standing right there – no one seemed to know how many taxpayer dollars are spent on Teaching and Learning. The forum eventually ended, and they all left without ever giving me an answer.
Stowell claimed on June 7 that 62 cents of every dollar goes directly to the classroom. But on June 4, McDermott said it was 60 cents. I doubt it’s even that high. It all depends on what they stick in their definition of “classroom.” I’d like to see them prove either number. Hey, if citizens had a breakdown of the budget by sub-category, we’d all know how much it is. (Perhaps that’s why they don’t provide it.)
In response to a question about the children’s free-meals program, Stowell said only children are fed with it. However, the evidence suggests that the district purposefully solicited adults to eat for free so they could reach a 70% level of participation.
Rep. Ahern asked why the district needs 110 people each making more than $100,000 per year, and Anderson answered by saying the district spends less than other districts and so “we’re efficient.” (This is neither a logical argument nor an answer to Ahern’s question.) I repeated Ahern’s question, and Stowell answered by saying the district needs to spend that kind of money to get the best people. (This argument is not well supported by the evidence, nor does it answer the question of “why so many?”)
At both forums, administrators continually responded like this – by diverting or by pointing to what other districts and other states do – instead of actually answering the question.
In their presentations, Anderson and McDermott said SPS has extra money and is figuring out new ways to spend it. I asked why they wouldn’t just give that money back to taxpayers, but no one answered that. When another citizen persisted in his line of questioning, the superintendent openly laughed at him. Anderson also told that citizen, “No, you’re not thinkin’ right.” “I’m not thinking right?” the citizen asked. “No, you’re not,” Anderson replied. “We can sit down and explain it to you. I’m not taking ... You’re not gettin’ it,” and he pointed to his own head, perhaps to show the citizen where a brain might be.
It was a shocking display of obstruction, weak arguments, unsupported claims, mocking disrespect for the audience, lack of concern for transparency, and willful non-disclosure.
The Spokesman-Review, which seems not to have sent anyone to either forum, has printed PR pieces before and after the forums to assure us all that Spokane Public Schools is spending our money wisely. I’m loath to call this “media coverage.”
So, this is what we have. A stunning abdication of responsibility for informing the public, insufficient transparency or accountability, little substance or logic, zero media investigation, no consequences, barriers against the public, and no apparent shame for a refusal to properly educate the children.
We aren’t losing control of this school district; we’ve already lost it. Please care about that, folks. The future of your children and grandchildren is on the line.
Please note: The information in this post is copyrighted. The proper citation is
Rogers, L. (June 2012). "School district budget forums showcase half-truths, contempt for the public." Retrieved (date) from the Betrayed Web site: http://betrayed-whyeducationisfailing.blogspot.com/
This article was republished June 12, 2012 on Education Views at: http://educationviews.org/school-district-budget-forums-showcase-half-truths-contempt-for-the-public/
This article was republished June 19, 2012 on Education News at: http://www.educationnews.org/k-12-schools/laurie-rogers-school-district-budget-forums-show-contempt-for-public/
Rogers, L. (June 2012). "School district budget forums showcase half-truths, contempt for the public." Retrieved (date) from the Betrayed Web site: http://betrayed-whyeducationisfailing.blogspot.com/
This article was republished June 12, 2012 on Education Views at: http://educationviews.org/school-district-budget-forums-showcase-half-truths-contempt-for-the-public/
This article was republished June 19, 2012 on Education News at: http://www.educationnews.org/k-12-schools/laurie-rogers-school-district-budget-forums-show-contempt-for-public/
Updated Behavior Management System
My class needs a bit of a make-over so I thought I would start out with my behavior system. I've used a system similar for many years and thought it was time to update it. I have always used a three level system. In this system everyone starts on high level/green light and work their way down for misbehaving. I've seen systems where everyone starts on level ground and has room to work up or down depending on their behaviors. This will give me the chance the reward those who consistently follow the rules and behave as they should. Here's a picture of what I plan to use.
(Do you like the owl theme? I thought the students who ended up on the bottom half of the chart didn't earn a cute name and opted for standard levels.)
I assign each student a number so that I can reuse many supplies from year to year. I have a stash of clothes pins with numbers on them. Everyday, each student will have their clip on "Ready to Fly" and as they make choices throughout the day, their clips will move up or down accordingly. For students who end the day on "Owl-standing"or "Egg-celent," they will earn extra class money to shop in the class store on Friday. Students who finish the day on "Ready to Fly" will earn less class money. Students who are below "Ready to Fly" will not earn any money. I chose class jobs everyday, and those students who are on the top half of the behavior chart will be able to have a job the following day. These same students will also have privilege of playing outside, sitting with their friends at lunch, and playing on the ipod/computer. For students on the bottom half of the chart, they will not have these extra privileges. If the student moved down the chart because he did something to another student, (hitting, name calling) he will have to pay a fine for his offense. The fine goes to the student that was wronged (as well as an apology.) Having to "pay" another student for hurting them teaches the students a good lesson. It helps them learn that when you make a mistake, you have to correct it.
I hope this "tweaked" system will work better for my students and allow me to reward those who really deserve it.
I assign each student a number so that I can reuse many supplies from year to year. I have a stash of clothes pins with numbers on them. Everyday, each student will have their clip on "Ready to Fly" and as they make choices throughout the day, their clips will move up or down accordingly. For students who end the day on "Owl-standing"or "Egg-celent," they will earn extra class money to shop in the class store on Friday. Students who finish the day on "Ready to Fly" will earn less class money. Students who are below "Ready to Fly" will not earn any money. I chose class jobs everyday, and those students who are on the top half of the behavior chart will be able to have a job the following day. These same students will also have privilege of playing outside, sitting with their friends at lunch, and playing on the ipod/computer. For students on the bottom half of the chart, they will not have these extra privileges. If the student moved down the chart because he did something to another student, (hitting, name calling) he will have to pay a fine for his offense. The fine goes to the student that was wronged (as well as an apology.) Having to "pay" another student for hurting them teaches the students a good lesson. It helps them learn that when you make a mistake, you have to correct it.
I hope this "tweaked" system will work better for my students and allow me to reward those who really deserve it.
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