Setting Class Goals: A Method to Improve Student Motivation and Achievement

Christen Hargett teaches 7th grade English and last year had the opportunity to attend a Leader In Me Symposium.  One of her "take aways" from the conference was the power of goal setting for increasing student motivation and achievement.  Recently, Miss Hargett saw a need for improvement in her students' vocabulary scores.  She decided to tackle this issue by giving the problem to the students.  First she created for each class a graph of their vocabulary test class averages.  As she presented the graphs to her classes, concern was sparked in the students.  This concern led to discussion on why there was a problem and how it could be fixed.  Classes then discussed and set goals for the next vocabulary test.  A new study plan was created which included classroom warm-ups where students helped and encouraged each other.  Examples of those warm-ups include peer critique of vocabulary sentences, and student generated practice quizzes.  Students seemed to appreciate the help from peers, all given in the spirit of reaching the class goal together.  Miss Hargett was excited to share with her class the improvement in test scores on the next vocabulary test.  Class averages moved from a C average up to an A average.  Her classes were proud of their accomplishments and the best part was that the improvement was due to the buy-in and motivation of the students.
Would you like to do something similar in your classes?  Stop by Miss Hargett's room and ask her questions.  She has a wealth of knowledge to share about using graphs and data to motivate students.

Lesson on Responsibility: Prioritizing

This week Mr. Bretz shared in his Lower Campus News, a short idea for teaching the trait Responsibility to your students:

Lesson: Prioritizing Responsibilities:
From:  http://www.polk-fl.net/staff/resources/keystocharacter.htm

1. Provide students with a list of tasks such as homework, brushing teeth, playing, reading, cleaning, time with friends, etc. 
2. Ask for a definition/ explanation for the word:  Priority.
3. Have students prioritize the list of tasks given.
4. Discuss as a class or in groups:
• Why did you prioritize the list the way they did?
• Is prioritizing is a positive thing to do?  Why or why not?
•  Who should prioritize and why? 
• What is the differences between: ― “I must”, ― “I should”, and ― “I want”.
5. Finally, give your students several tasks, such as homework, or other subject related assignments. Have them prioritize the tasks, and subsequently complete these tasks.  Be certain to set deadlines and follow through on collecting all completed assignments.

Please let us know if you used this lesson in your classroom and how it worked out by commenting below!

Middle School Student Recognitions

On Wednesday, October 28, the middle school held this year's first character assembly, the Academy Awards.  This year's Academy Awards had a few big changes compared to the middle school character assemblies of the past.

One big change to this year's character assembly was student recognition.  Throughout the month of October, students, teachers, and parents were encouraged to nominate middle school students who were outstanding in either Character, Challenge, or Community.  A total of 95 students were recognized for a variety of outstanding reasons- from serving their community to persevering in athletics.  Each of these students was called up before the entire student body to receive a coveted gold star that can be worn on their lanyard.  In addition student recognition are displayed on a bulletin board in the front hallway of the upper campus.  Union Academy is filled with some of the most outstanding students in the state and we look forward to continuing to recognize how each of them are valued as part of our school community.
Another change to the Academy Awards was a grade level point challenge.  Each grade level earned points for demonstrating the basic traits of a good student.  Perfect attendance, A Honor Roll, zero tardies and student recognitions were just a few of the categories that grade levels could use for earning points.  The grade level competition ended with the Cardinal Challenge.  In the end 6th grade won the Cardinal Challenge for their excellent skit on Habit 1:  Be Proactive and consequently won the Grade Level Competition!

Post Conference Parent Reflection Letter

I think we all know the importance of connecting home and school as a means for growing character traits in our students.  Here is an easy way to make that connection, shared by 2nd grade teacher Mrs. Schaefer:  Post Conference Parent Reflection Letters.
At the end of each parent conference, Mrs. Schaefer asks parents to write a positive letter to their child.  She gives suggesstions about what can be written.  Ideas like:

• What made you feel proud?
• You would like to have your child work on...
• Keep up the good work on...
• I know that sometimes you have difficulty... but...
• I am glad to see that you are making an extra effort in...

Click here for printable parent instructions on post conference parent writing.

Once all letters are returned by parents, Mrs. Schaefer passes the notes out to the class.  As you might imagine, the students are elated to read a letter from their parents.  They are touched by learning why their parents are proud of them and are inspired to to work hard moving into the 2nd quarter.  

Think about how meaningful it is for children to hear why their parents are proud of them.  Between school, work, and after-school activities, parents, often do not have the time to tell their children what makes them special.  And to be honest, at report card time, parents are much more likely to focus on the areas of improvement than to talk about the areas of strength.  These letters help build kids up, making them more confident and feel appreciated.  As Mrs. Schaefer stated, "Think about how meaningful it would be if a kid had a whole set of these letters from their parents...One from each year of school."

As a school, we can help build stronger families and stronger families produce students with compassion, respect, and responsibility.  Activities like parent letters to students present opportunities for parents to support their child and creates connections with the school.  Union Academy was founded on the belief that teachers, staff and parents would work together to educate the whole child and Mrs. Schaefer has found an excellent way to invite parents to join that process.