KINDERGARTEN
In our Kindergarten class we have two students on a daily basis who win the "Good Choice Award". In order to win the Good Choice Award the student not only needs to go the whole day without getting in trouble, but be the first student to follow directions, try their best even when they don't always understand, be brave even without mom and dad around, and be kind to their friends. This allows me to help teach the students that it was THEIR choices throughout the day that won them the award, and how important every choice we make is to help us be successful.
**I make a big deal about handing them out at the end of the day. When we first implemented this, I told the students how important it is for them to not cry if they did not get one and instead for them to cheer on their friends (because this would be a good choice that I might notice for tomorrow's award.) While we sometimes have a student who will cry, it is a rare occasion now.
FIRST GRADE
In First Grade I had a "Star Chart" with every student's name on it. Students could earn tally marks next to their names to work towards earning a prize from the Prize Box. This was wonderful because while some students might earn a prize weekly, others might take two or three weeks. In the end, everyone always got a prize because whether someone else got it or not, their points never got erased.
FOURTH GRADE
In Fourth Grade, I noticed the students had some difficulty in handing in their homework. I created a game board with four "Spacemen" that would travel around the board (20 spaces). These four spacemen were numbered to match the four tables where the students sat. Everytime the entire table handed in their homework, the spaceman could move a spot. Sometimes, if I gave a lot of homework, I would tell them that that particular night was worth 2 or 3 spaces. It worked great because the students kept each other accountable for handing in their homework.