Expectations

My Discipline Philosophy

In Order to obtain the greatest academic and social growth for the greatest number of students, a system of discipline must be in place at all times. I'm a big fan of positive reinforcement so I have several incentives throughout the day to encourage students to make good choices. Actions and consequences need to be clearly understood by students, parents and the teacher. It is from this basic understanding that we can all move toward a desirable goal of bringing out the best in each student.

The method of discipline that I use is fair, firm and consistent. It is productive, non-emotional, and provides a high level of school-home communication. The system is called Choices and it is modeled after a program by Rick Morris (a classroom management guru). Our system is based upon ten student responsibilities. It stresses self-discipline and teaches responsibility for one's own actions. Our goal is to develop positive, well-balanced students who possess strong work skills and study habits. In order to promote making good choices every day we say the following pledge each morning:

The Rio Pledge

As a member of Rio, I pledge to: Respect myself by making good choices, Respect my classmates and teachers by treating them kindly, and take Responsibility for all of my actions. I will give my best effort today and maintain a positive attitude. 

When students are making good choices they are rewarded with positive incentives like the following:
  • AveyBucks to spend on market days
  • Raffle tickets (3 tickets are pulled at the end of the day and the winners go to the prize box)
  • Class parties
The following is a list of student responsibilities for each day:

Classroom Goals 

  1. Stay on Task
  2. Complete work on time
  3. Work cooperatively
  4. Follow directions
  5. Listen to learn
  6. Do neat, careful work
  7. Good classroom behavior
  8. Good playground behavior
  9. Respect rights of others
  10. Practice self-discipline

Let's face it, students don't always make good choices and so there have to be consequences. 

Consequences

  1. Nonverbal "nudge" of encouragement to make a better choice
  2. Warning - Name on the Board
  3. Check Next to Name - Community service at recess/lunch; email sent home
  4. Time Out - Sent to peer classroom/office & Contact home
  5. Parent/Student/Teacher Conference 

When classroom goals are not being met, students are given a Making Better Choices Slip. Parents are notified via email and the slip gets filed. 


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