So I've got quite a class this year: majority boys, high energy, wiggly boys. I love them, but they are hard to keep focused for more than 10 minutes at a time. So I've started using Class Dojo with them., and it has made a world of difference.
Class Dojo is an online behavior management tool. You set it up and customize it to your class.
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| Sorry for the side view. I haven't figured out how to rotate an image in blogger yet. But you get the idea. |
You can customize the positive and negative awards to your classroom rules. When a child is following classroom rules, you give him/her a point.
If a child is not following the classroom rules, you give him/her a negative point.
You can set up your own reward system. I have a pocket chart where the children earn golden tickets. So I tied Class Dojo into that. At the end of the day, for every five points a child earns, he/she gets one golden ticket. They have to earn at least one golden ticket in a week (yeah, it's that bad) to take part in Friday Fun Day the last period of the day. To give you an idea of my class dynamics, Last week was the first full week using this system. Last Friday, 14 of my 24 students did not take part in the reward. This week, I only had two students not take part in Friday Fun Day. That's a really drastic improvement! Of course, this week, they will have to earn at least 2 tickets to take part in Friday Fun Day, and my final goal will be 4 tickets.
As an extra incentive, I've added clip chart reward coupons, and each child who earns a ticket in a day gets a coupon to use the next day. So there is a short term and a long term goal for the children to focus on. You can find these clip chart coupons on TPT, and many of them are free.
Some other really nice features are the ability to award multiple students points and the ability to choose a random student to earn a point. I use this a lot when I want to settle the class. I will say, I'm going to choose a random student, and if that student is settled and ready to begin, he/she will get a positive point. It takes a few seconds to pick a student, and in that time, most have settled down and are ready to begin.
Some other really nice features are the ability to award multiple students points and the ability to choose a random student to earn a point. I use this a lot when I want to settle the class. I will say, I'm going to choose a random student, and if that student is settled and ready to begin, he/she will get a positive point. It takes a few seconds to pick a student, and in that time, most have settled down and are ready to begin.
There is also a timer.
I love using this timer to get their desks cleaned out and organized. I set it to countdown for five minutes, and the race is on! There is a scurry of papers to the garbage, books on desks, and at the end, everyone who is done gets a positive point. The rules are no papers shoved in desks, books and folders neatly stacked in desk, and crayons, pencils, markers, erasers, et cetera in their pencil cases and cases zipped shut. One of my goals this year is to help the students learn to keep their supplies organized so they can find them when they need it.
Parental involvement is a big part of Class Dojo.
There is an individual behavior profile for each student, and you can invite the parents to go online and check out their children's behavior for the week. I haven't delved into that aspect yet. It is on my to do list this week. I wanted to get the system up and running and be sure it was something I wanted to continue to use before I brought the parents in.
And finally, there is a mobile app that I downloaded on my android phone so that I can add points at anytime and anyplace during the day. I take the cell phone everywhere with me, and the kids know that I can access Class Dojo from anyplace anytime. That includes church, halls, computer lab, lunchroom, and even on our evacuation drill we had yesterday when we walked from our school to the local high school! I did clear it with my principal first so she knew why I was carrying my phone everywhere. Luckily, she knew of my class, and she approved of "whatever it takes."
So there you have it! Class Dojo is great online tool for managing student behavior. I'm sure many of you have already heard of it, but it's definitely worth checking out if you haven't already.
Here's an old blog post to revisit to grab a fall freebie:
I hope you are enjoying your fall as much as I am, and you have settled into your school year nicely!
Ooooh, I didn't know about the timer! Good to know! Thanks for sharing your experiences with Dojo. :)
ReplyDelete- Sarah Beth
Miss White's Classroom
You're welcome. Timer is awesome! And it always works.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing. As you described your class, I felt as if you are standing in my class this year. I a have only 14 students (7 boys, 5 girls) but feels like 50. I am spending so much time at the end of my day marking colors and writing notes for 7 to 9 students a day, that I am losing instructional time. I am starting with ClassDojo on Monday. Hoping to have some success because nothing else as worked from my tool box.
ReplyDeleteSuzzanne
Suzanne, I wish you much luck. I have to say, my kids are so much better now. Seriously, Principal, other teachers, everyone does a double take when they come by the room or see us in the hall because of the change in behavior.
ReplyDeleteLike you, I was frustrated and exhausted at the end of the day, but not anymore! And I've moved the goal up to two tickets a week to take part in Friday Fun Day!