Don't get me wrong: their behaviors, in the grand scheme of things, haven't been that bad--mostly talking and playing out of turn, but there's been some disrespectful behavior also.
So today I tried a new program with one of my 5th grade groups called ClassDojo. ClassDojo is a program that allows teachers, students, and parents to record and communicate behaviors. What I love most about the program is that the focus is on positive, not negative, behavior.
I used today to "dip our toes in," just to see what it was like. First, we watched this video:
Then, it was business as usual. I was using it on my iPad, and it makes a friendly little "ding" whenever I give a student a positive point. It also makes kind of a sad sound if I give a negative point. Just the sound was enough to keep them paying attention for the entire period. At the end of today, we had 81% positive points! That's probably about where we were before, we're just paying more attention now.
The kids were REALLY excited about it! A lot more excited than I thought they would be. I didn't get their Secret Codes printed off before class because I really didn't think they would care as much as they did, but lots of kids couldn't wait to see how they did at the end of class. They're also excited to customize their avatars.
I also sent an e-mail to parents to explain what it's all about. Parents can also log in to ClassDojo to find out in real time how their son or daughter is doing. It also has a pretty slick messenger tool--it's a lot like texting but I don't have to share my cell phone number :)
My hope is that using ClassDojo will reduce the number of times in a day I have to say, "Please don't talk between songs," or "Wait to play!" In the long run, I think it will result in more disciplined classes, and disciplined classes make happy teachers!
How do you use ClassDojo in your room? What successes have you had? What should I watch out for? Any other apps I can't live without? I'd love to hear from you!
