In January, I began sharing strategies that we have used with our students to enhance our school culture. This month, I will share the third set of activities we have implemented with our students. My hope is that something I share will spark an idea that you can apply within your own school/district.
- Energy Bus Book Study with Students
- One of our 6th grade teachers volunteered to lead our incoming 6th graders through The Energy Bus book study. We focus on positive energy and the ideas introduced in The Energy Bus at M.S.M.S. This is a great way for our incoming students to understand what we stand for and how we do things at M.S.M.S. Several teachers also highlight Jon Gordon’s book One Word by having students come up with their own “one word” for the school year. The “one words” are then posted within the classroom, or in the hallway as a reminder of the commitment each student and staff member has made.
- Attendance Competitions
- We are constantly seeking strategies to improve our student attendance. Each week, we keep a running tally for students to see which grade level is winning the attendance for the week. On Fridays, we allow the grade level with the lowest number of students absent to sit at any table during lunch (normally, they have assigned seating). We also have a sign in the commons area that says, “Outshine the STARS.” Our mascot is the Suns with our cross-county rivals being the Stars. Each day that M.S.M.S. has less than 20 absent across all three grade levels, we cover one of the letters of “STARS” with a sun. Once all of the letters of “STARS” is covered, we allow the students an extra ten minutes of lunch ball. At that point we reset and try to cover all of the letters of “STARS” again. The second time they achieve this goal, they will receive two days of ten extra minutes of lunch ball, and so on. Another activity we have to increase our student attendance is our daily Perfect Attendance drawings. Each day we draw two classes from a hat. If we draw a teacher’s class and they have perfect attendance for that day, then that class will get to go to the gym during our academic period (30 minutes) for fun activities.
- End of the Year Rewards
- At the end of the year, we like to reward our students for a successful school year. We host the Game Truck, Bouncin’ B’s Inflatables, and other fun events on the last day of school. This rewards the students plus helps our attendance on the last day of the year.
- Students of the Month
- Each month, all three grade levels select four students as their “Students of the Month.” These students receive recognition on our Wall of Honor and receive a coupon for miscellaneous items such as: free admission to a ball game, free concessions at a ball game, one free a-la-carte item at lunch, free admission to a dance, etc. These students also receive a full week’s privilege of sitting in the booths at lunch with three of their chosen classmates. Doug Gloyd, M.S.M.S. Assistant Principal, also mails a personal note home to these students congratulating them for a job well done.
Next month, I will share activities that we have used with our community to improve our school culture.