The Nuts & Bolts will give you some idea as to how we keep our little train running smoothly in our Pre-K station. Like the Little Engine that Could we encourage everyone to help and to use her motto "I Think I Can" when attempting new and difficult tasks.
Fill a Bucket ~ a Guide to Daily Happiness for Young Children, is a book we read to the children and put to use its important message in our classroom.
The book explains that everyone is born with an invisible bucket that gets filled with happy feelings when others say or do kind things that help us feel special. Our own bucket also gets full when we show kindness to others too. We are happiest when our buckets are full!
We can also be bucket dippers when we say or do something that is unkind to someone else, taking little bits of their happy feelings away. When we do that we also remove some of our own happy feelings from our own buckets due to hurting someone.
Have You Filled a Bucket Today ~ a Guide to Daily Happiness for Kids is another favorite of ours by the same author. We will also read this book to help us remember how we should treat one another, and how our words or actions affect others.
Brag Tags
Brag tags are another positive behavior incentive we use in the classroom in addition to our Bucket Fillers. This is a way for children to collect tags for various kind acts, character goals, and bucket filling.
Children will earn and receive a “brag tag” (dog tag) to add to their collection ring. The rings will be displayed on our classroom Bucket Fillers bulletin board.
The children will receive a necklace when they complete their first Bucket Filler’s sticker page. Any subsequent filled pages will result with a Bucket Filler’s tag to add to their ring and the aforementioned certificate.
Each week we will also have a special goal tag to earn as well. Some examples of these tags are Good Listener, Good Friend, Responsibility, Super Hero and etc.
The Brag tag system encourages positive behavior and character traits while rewarding the children in some small way for reaching their goals and adding to their collection of good deeds!
The Pre-K teachers use the 1-2-3 Magic discipline system. This discipline system was designed by a clinical psychologist and uses a manageable and very effective technique.
The teachers use verbal praise, stickers, or some other small reward system to encourage and acknowledge “Start” behaviors – these are the positive behaviors the children are expected to use on a daily basis. The following are the “start” behaviors:
1. Sit quietly when waiting
2. Raise hand quietly before speaking
3. Clean up station area after the train whistle blows
4. Use manners
5. Share and take turns
6. Be helpful
7. Travel quietly in line
8. Participate in group/ teacher directed activities
9. Respect others
10. Be Responsible with classroom materials/toys
11. Be a 5 star listener – which consists of:
a. Eyes are watching the person who is speaking
b. Ears are listening
c. Lips are closed
d. Hands are still and in lap
e. Feet are quiet and legs are crisscrossed
A number system 1-2-3 is used for “Stop” behaviors – these are the negative, disruptive behaviors we want to “stop” and discourage. The following are the “stop” behaviors:
1. Interrupting, talking out of turn
2. Yelling in the classroom
3. Temper outbursts
4. Not following directions/requests given by the teachers
5. Running in the classroom or hallway
6. Breaking or misusing classroom materials
*Deliberately hurting someone physically/verbally results in being sent to our “time to stop and think” area.
When a child exhibits an unacceptable behavior (“stop” behavior), the teacher will respond with a straightforward count of “1” and continue the planned activity without any other explanation or discussion about it with the child. If the child proceeds to repeat the behavior, ignores, or argues with the teacher he/she will receive a count of “2 “. Most often, the child will refrain from the unacceptable behavior so as not to receive another count. However, if he/she continues he/she will receive a count of “3” and will be sent to the “time to stop and think” area for 4-5 minutes (based on the age of the child). The “time to stop and think area” consists of a chair and desk facing the wall near the teacher’s desk. While in the area, the child will be expected to think about his/her mistake and review the classroom rules stated in the rules binder. Any behavior that has been counted will be recorded in our behavior log book.
Our discipline system is broken into three 2 hour increments (8:00-10:00, 10:00-12:00, 1:00-2:00); therefore, if a child receives a count during one of the 2 hour intervals, he/she will start over the next 2 hour interval with a “clean slate” never carrying over a count from the previous interval. The children have many opportunities to correct any misbehavior.
Children will receive either stickers, verbal, written praise for positive behavior, or some other small reward for exceptional behavior. Parents will be notified to address any repeated misbehaviors that are a disruption to our learning environment.