How does this rewards system sound?

I really wanted to do something with prizes, like a token economy..... but after looking around at the dollar store I realized there was nothing there that my 7th graders would be excited about. At least not in the dollar stores I have been into........

So........ I decided this:

I will hand out a ticket for HW, class participation, genius comments during class discussions , etc........

10 tickets would be a piece of candy. It might take about 3 days though to get 10 tickets for someone trying very hard... Should I make it 5 tickets for candy instead so it's more attainable, and then move it to 10 in the middle of the year?


What do you ladies think? Also, should I make it so you could save your tickets up and 50 gets you a no hw pass? or something like that.........

I like my idea but I am open to some tweaking if anyone thinks they can make this idea even better!! TIA

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

I wouldn't do candy. I stay away from food with all of the different food allergies these days.
I think a better reward might be a hw pass, or a few extra credit points.

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

I like the idea of HW passes. What about baseball or football cards? When I had a self-contained class of 5th grade boys, they LOVED when my class store had cards in them. They would buy and trade them.
I made a whole token economy- I gave out "compliments" during the day for exemplary behavior (really just tally marks on a chart). For every 5 compliments they earned a quarter (play money of course). At the end of the day, they got to put the quarters they earned into their "wallet" (an envelope they decorated). Each Friday, a different student was the "cashier" for the store and would trade in the quarters for dollars, five dollar bills, etc. and then had to make change as the other students bought things in the store. It not only motivated them to behave but it also was great practice for adding money and making change. The key was having reinforcing items in the store and by far, the HW pass and cards were most popular.

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

I think it sounds good.
I would try to incorporate other prizes or hw passes for saved tickets. Some kids may surprise you and save.
I would leave the tickets at 10 for a prize. In the beginning you can give them out quickly so they are earning more prizes and then slow down if you want them to earn less often.
1 other thing- you may want to think about making them save until Friday for prizes or candy. I know you're teaching self contained but it could cause problems if they are all earning on different days. I did it with 3rd grade self contained students who all had emotional disturbances so it can be done!

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

I also think candy is key! In NYC in my school my admin. stresses tangible/edible rewards.

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

This is what I do with my 3rd graders and it's effective so far. Also, in regards to the allergy issue, I do candy, but I also have glow bracelets from Michaels ($1 for a tube of 15) for the children that have allergies.

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

THANK YOU for the input!!!!!!!

I decided this:

10 tickets for a candy......... 30 for a no homework pass......... 250 for a surprise prize... (and I'll figure out something special, I have some ideas in mind....)

Oh, and I'm thinking tickets can only be redeemed Wednesday and Fridays (Thanks Daisygirl!!!) ... I was thinking JUST Fridays was too infrequent for my class... so I decided on 2 days where they can turn in their tickets.....


I'm glad I finally have a system! Honestly, last year I started a system with points where I kept track in a notebook and it was just SO hard to keep track of...... I basically quit doing it by November and never replaced it with a different plan. I just REALLY lucked out that my kids had AMAZING behavior even without a plan! I have the same kids this year, but I would like the structure of a rewards system. Yea, they are well behaved... but some are pretty terrible with class participation. I'm hoping this will encourage them to speak out more in front of the class if they know they will get a ticket for it!


Thanks everyone!!

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

Posted by PennyCat

By the way, your daughter could be on the cover of a cereal box!! SHE IS ADORABLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

Good luck! Sounds like a good plan.

Re: How does this rewards system sound?

I teach a 9th grade inclusion class and the last 3 years we did tickets. It would be 15 for HW pass, 30 for extra points on a test. We first did 10 for candy, 20 for HW and 30 for extra points, but our school stresses NO candy! Also, I would suggest stapling a little ziplock into their notbook or binder to prevent them from losing their tickets. Otherwise, you will have tickets all over the classroom, and kids lloseing them left and right. You should have a policy for sharing too. I hate to say this, but sometimes the bullies actually bully kids for tickets. We used to write their name on the back. HTH!

Re: How does this rewards system sound?