We also have a Principal's Club where students each quarter get to eat pizza with the principal. Another program we have is Caught being Good - Students get tickets from various staff members and teachers when ever they are helpful to others or go above and beyond etc. The tickets go into a jar and on Friday several students are called down to the office during the morning announcements - the younger kids get little prizes they pick what they want from a variety of stuff - for the older kids we decided that they could pick from different jobs or privlages on index cards such as - eat lunch with your teacher - sit at the teacher's desk for a day- help in the front office for 1/2 hour- switch teacher for a day etc. You know how hard it is to please the 5th graders now a days - they seem to really like this.
We do "Building Blocks for Good Character". If any school staff member catches someone being respectful, responsibility, fairness, trustworthiness, caring or cooperation, The staff member will write up a certificate for the Building block. The Principal on Friday will announce the students that was caught and they will get the certificate and a pencil. Their names will then go on a building block (that our PTO President made up and cut out) and put up on the wall in the hall for everyone to see.
Last year, They did "Caught being good". Using the same reasons above, but instead of a building block, The student's name went on a leaf to be added to a tree on the wall.
Our school does something that is really cool...every month there is a theme....be it cooperation, honesty, respect, so on and so on....the children that show examples of such behavior are showcased by awards, rewards and lunch (pizza) with the principal...It seems to work great...one child is picked by each class...and by their peers of that class, I might add. I like the fact they use diffrent character building skills because every child is diffrent, but touch on the values they all need.
We just have a lower school "student of the week". One for the lower school and one for the middle school. Usually at the Friday chapel service, they will announce the student of the week along with a reason such as "Jason is always kind to a friends and helpful to his teachers" or something like that. They get a coupon for a free ice cream.
Shelly
