When we think about Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), most teachers think about school-wide incentives. As an educator myself, I’ve been a part of many PBIS reward days like pizza parties in exchange for positive student behavior points. I’ve also utilized PBIS effective praise by highlighting students meeting hallway expectations.
Sarah Besand, a teacher and Possip Reporter, examines how PBIS, a traditionally schoolwide system, can be implemented on a smaller scale in classrooms.
Programs like PBIS or other similar programs beautifully promote students modeling appropriate behavior norms. PBIS also clearly communicates expected procedures to students who may not be meeting those desired norms yet. Julie Gembra, a seasoned teacher and PBIS expert, shares tips on how to activate these ideals within your classroom.
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Schools generally implement PBIS on a community-wide level. However, Julie emphasized how the principles of PBIS could easily be adapted on the individual classroom scale. She shares,
“The first step for PBIS to be used in the classroom is to develop 3-5 expectations that go with an acronym of your classroom/school. This can be done as a grade level or individual teacher. For example, if you are the Element Elementary School Eagles, you may pick the acronym SOAR to go with the expectations: Be Safe, Be On Task, Act Responsibly and Respectfully.”
Begin brainstorming how your expectations could fit into an acronym for your class! Students often latch onto acronyms like this–especially when it can earn them rewards later on. Setting aside some time to think about an acronym students would enjoy is a step that will pay off in the long run. Julie also emphasized that this process could be completed in collaboration with the class to promote student buy-in.
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The next step in classroom management success with PBIS is to develop a token system with your chosen acronym. Julie recommends beginning to develop a “menu” of choices for students to spend their tokens on. She shares another tip:
“In addition to items to purchase, you will need to develop prices for the items. It is recommended to have items priced at different levels to ensure all students have the opportunity to purchase something.”
Schools across the nation implement this on a large scale PBIS system with reward days such as ice cream parties, bounce houses, etc. However, Julie reminds us that this could easily be adapted for the classroom level. Use what you know about your students to motivate them–you truly know them best! Students could exchange points for lunch in the classroom, wearing a hat to school, etc. Here is a blog with more ideas that don’t involve food!
PBIS Tools for Classroom Management Success All Year
To truly see classroom management success in your classroom, shifts need to be encouraged all year round. With the use of a token system within the room, language surrounding positive behavior is crucial to encourage students long term. Julie shares,
“When you see a student doing something from your acronym, provide behavior specific praise to the student then give a ticket or point to students. For example, Jonny, great job being safe by following directions the first time. Here is your SOAR ticket or here is a point on a digital school wide reward system.”
Using language like this gives that student a boost during the school day, while simultaneously reminding the rest of the class about the desired behaviors as well. As we know, students mirror their peers. Use these steps to cause a positive chain reaction throughout the entire classroom!
We hope these tools for classroom management success with PBIS are helpful. School-wide use of PBIS positively impacts school culture, and the same can be said for inside your classroom as well. For a deep dive into PBIS in the classroom, check out The Center on PBIS. We can’t wait to see the impact you help create!
