'P.B.I.S. for Parents'
The What, Why, and How of Starkweather's new program
Our PBIS program is up and running...
So, what is PBIS, anyway?
Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) is a way for schools to encourage good behavior. With PBIS, schools teach kids about behavior, just as they would teach about other subjects like reading or math.
Our teachers taught lessons on how to Be Kind, Safe, Respectful, and Responsible (Our Wolfpack Pledge) in many different areas of our school. Moving on from those lessons, students attended the Kick Off Assembly, and began to earn WOLF BUCKS!
WHY P.B.I.S.?
PBIS creates a common dialogue, common vocabulary, and common goals for Starkweather and allows us all to be on the same page.
Not only does PBIS help with behavior issues, it helps build a deeper sense of community among students and staff. This was not an edict from central office or a purchased program generically designed for any school--this was something that our staff worked together to design in a way that would work for Starkweather, and kids learned the expectations together, too.
And, as the name suggests, PBIS works by recognizing the positive aspects of what we are looking for, which has been an awesome experience for all of us!
HOW does it work?
Classroom teachers taught lessons comprised of our Wolfpack Pledge (below) in homerooms. Specials teachers supported those lessons by reviewing expectations during their time with each grade level, too.
We had our kick-off assembly which described how kids could earn a WOLF BUCK and what happens to the WOLF BUCKS once they are earned. Basically, when a student demonstrates how to be KIND, SAFE, RESPECTFUL, or RESPONSIBLE, they can earn a buck.
Students write their name on the WOLF BUCKS and then they are placed in to a WOLF BUCKet for their grade level. Every Friday, two bucks from each grade level are chosen at random and those students are given a PAW PRINT to decorate that will be added to our HOWL OF FAME!
We track how many WOLF BUCKS a grade earns and how many the school earns as a whole group. Each time a grade meets their goal, they earn a grade-level reward (maybe extra recess, something simple like that). When the all the grades combined meet our school-wide goal, we do something a bit fancier, like a DANCE PARTY or CLUB DAY ROTATIONS!
WOLF BUCKS!!
The BUCKets!!
PAW PRINTS
Howl of Fame #1
Howl of Fame #2
Howl of Fame #3
So, HOW is it going so far?
To be honest, it has been better than we had hoped! One of the main ideas when PBIS is brought to a school, is to recognize every example of positive behavior we can--we knew they would reach their initial goals quickly, and we were ok with that!
So far, students have earned their first set of grade level goals, and we had school-wide dance parties for K-2 and 3-4-5. They were awesome.
And, we are well on our way to our second round of grade rewards, so that soon we will be ready for our CLUB DAY ROTATIONS that we know the kids will love.
That means that by the time we earn our next school-wide goal, OVER 20,000 WOLF BUCKS will have been handed out!!! You can imagine the power of recognizing when students are KIND, SAFE, RESPECTFUL, & REPONSIBLE over 20,000 times!!!
Grade Level Thermometers
Schoolwide Thermometer
Totally PAWsome
...and WHERE does Morning Meeting fit into PBIS?
Morning Meeting is just what it sounds, and allows the kids to get to know each other better. Each morning, first thing, kids and their teacher have a class meeting which allows lots of different topics to be discussed. Teachers use some resources for ideas, but usually they are able to use that time for topics that come up organically with the kids. For example, kids share what they like to do outside of class and what books they like to read. Sometimes, kids suggest that they talk about something they felt was unfair at recess or ways to allow kids to work together more often.
All of these morning sessions bring kids closer to each other, and they love the fun way that teachers facilitate the action, too. When kids know each other better, and have a safe mode of sharing and learning together, we see a decrease in bullying and an increase in relationships between different kids that we haven't seen in the past.
For these reasons and even more, Morning Meeting goes hand in hand with PBIS. The knowledge gained each morning has literally helped us when emergencies have popped up as well as things that are more subtle, like friendships that grow from this time spent together.
OK, so...does PBIS REALLY work?????
Yes, it does!
What have we noticed since late January?
- MORE POSITIVITY, throughout the entire building
- LESS bus behavior slips
- MORE acts of KINDNESS
- LESS behavior issues in the bathrooms
- MORE interaction between students and all staff
- LESS recess behavior issues
- MORE respectful & quiet hallway behavior
- LESS recognition of negative behavior
- MORE of what we all want--HAPPY KIDS!!!
HOW CAN PARENTS HELP???
Talk with your kids about how they are KIND, SAFE, RESPECTFUL, & RESPONSIBLE.
Use that vocabulary with them at home--these are not just at-school behaviors, they are life-long behaviors.
As was mentioned above, this sort of program is usually supported by grants. While other schools received grants up to $10,000 to roll out this program, this year the grant was no longer available. Through some clever budgeting, and a lot of extra work by our teaching staff, we were able to pull this off.
One of the facets of the original program was the allotment of funds for teacher recognition--every so often we choose WOLF BUCKS out of the bins and award the teachers who gave them out in some way. IF you would like to help out with this aspect, simple $5 or $10 gift cards to Starbucks, Wawa, etc would be great!
STARKWEATHER ELEMENTARY
Email: jmeanix@wcasd.net
Website: https://www.wcasd.net/Domain/856
Location: 1050 Wilmington Pike, West Chester, PA, USA
Phone: 484-266-2202
Twitter: @SWSelem