The Seven Days of Christmas

We are only 7 days away from winter break (if you count today).  As always around this time of year, my learners were starting to get a little restless and to treat each other not so nicely all the time.  While I tried to stress again and again global citizenship and with freedom comes responsibility I decided it was time to break out a behavior chart in order to earn some holiday classroom cheer.

After scouring Pinterest, I realized there was nothing quite what I needed, so I decided to create something of my own. Here is our '5C Christmas Tree of Goodness and Kindness':

Each morning we talk about how our actions impact others.  Sometimes it's reflecting on a short reading, other times its sharing something positive we have done for others.  Starting our day off thinking about our actions has really helped guide my learners in making better choices.

Our christmas tree has 5 main layers (the top is for the star that we are going to make as a class) and we will use the two sides of the door as decoration space as well.  Each day, the students have the opportunity to earn an ornament for completing their homework on time, helping their classmates, and practicing goodness and kindness.  At the end of the day, the students are given an ornament which they take home to color and then add to our tree the next day.

Our goal is that each student will have at least 5 ornaments on the tree (out of 7 possible days) which will earn them a movie morning of 'Elf' and hot chocolate. The students who haven't earned that right are going to work with another teacher either tutoring younger students or helping around the schools o they can practice goodness and kindness.

So far the kids love it!  Our classroom is getting decorated, spirits are lifting, and it feels great to work towards a common goal.

I've hung this sign by the tree, please feel free to use it in your own classroom.

Happy Holidays!

~Michelle Louise