Dear TPES Families,

It is hard to believe that March is already here. It won’t be long before warm weather is here to stay, and Spring Break is just around the corner. In honor of Dr. Seuss' birthday, March is known as National Reading Month. We enjoyed seeing our Cubs show extra school spirit as part of our Read Across America spirit week last week, and we want to continue to show excitement for our love of reading. A Reading Bingo Challenge was sent home last week, and we would love to see our Cubs complete these, as we encourage them to spend at least 20 minutes each evening reading.

All your efforts and parental involvement is a direct correlation to your child’s success, so we say THANK YOU! We continue to seek your support and assistance with reminding your child of their role and responsibilities while in school: Come Ready, Use Respect, Be Responsible, and Stay Safe (CUBS). Let’s continue giving our best and nothing less!

Please take a moment to read below to learn about some of the many things happening at TPES in the next few weeks. As always, we appreciate your continued support of our students and school.

Sincerely,

Dr. Sheryl Debity, Principal

A token economy is a form of behavior modification designed to increase desirable behavior with “tokens” (secondary reinforcers) and decrease undesirable behavior with the loss of “tokens” in exchange for rewards (primary reinforcers). Tokens can take the form of many different things. In my home, there have been little glass “bobbles,” “Velcro card stickers,” and even real stickers. Many of us have utilized the token economy system and did not realize that this is what we were doing or that this is what it was called (e.g., remember giving your child a sticker every time they went potty on the potty chair?)

What types of therapy utilize token economy systems?

The use of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Token Economy System (TCS) to Alleviate Dysfunctional Behavior in Children with Attention-Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder in conjunction with Medication treatment has proved highly efficacious as a means of alleviating general symptoms of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Even without medication, the TCS along with CBT can assist in helping a child focus and bring about positive change that shows positive results.

How does this look in the classroom and at home?

The method is based on operant conditioning and is widely used in elementary classrooms

A good token economy system has five major components:

*Tokens – many things can be used as tokens (as mentioned above). They are usually physical objects such as tickets, poker chips, bobbles, stickers, and “Velcro” boards. But they can also be figurative tokens such as bonus points, stamps, or tally marks. In operant conditioning, a token is a neutral stimulus

*Target behaviors – the behavior to reinforce

*Rules – how tokens are earned or lost

*Backup reward – tangible rewards that a designated number of tokens can be exchanged for. They are reinforcers of what the participants value.

*Method of exchanging tokens for backup rewards

At TPES, the use of Token Economy can be seen everywhere! Cub Cash is a splendid example. There is also student of the month awards, Cubs with character awards, color levels, and “pick a stick” among others. If your child comes home with a specific goal, please encourage them to think of ways that they can meet and excel at the goal they have set! The school’s Transitional Coach will be meeting with the students who have been given permission to meet with her to set these goals and work towards positive outcomes both in the classroom and at home. 😊

We are continuing to recognize students each week this school year for going above and beyond our school expectations. Students are nominated based on the qualities associated with being Cubs with Character and following our Cubs Motto: Giving Our Best and Nothing Less. We are proud to recognize our last few weeks of Cubs Ambassadors. We are #CubsStrong!

Please complete this link if you or someone you know might be experiencing homelessness.

Tennessee currently has over 10,000 individuals who are experiencing homelessness. As we strive to provide the best learning environment for our students, we want to ensure their needs, as well as those of their families, are being met. Please feel free to reach out to the school if you have any questions.