Classroom Management - Clip Chart

Do your kids seem totally crazy after the 3 day weekend, or was that just my room?

I have been in a lot of classrooms. My substitute teaching and student experiences have spanned across numerous schools in 3 different districts. The one form of classroom management that I have seen work consistently through the wide variety of settings I have been in, is the clip chart management system.

Some of you may be familiar with this system. Some of you may use it in your classroom or know of a co-worker who uses it. If you haven't seen it done though, it is an incredibly effective method of classroom management.

The objective of the clip chart is to use the traditional, "green, yellow, red card" warning system, but with a PBS (Positive Behavior Support) twist to it. It is usually made with a clothespin for each student with their name or student number on it. Every day, all students start with their clip on the middle of the chart's green square. This usually has a saying like "Ready to Learn" or other themed sayings. (I'll cover that more in a second.) Below the green square are colors like yellow, orange, red, etc. If the student makes a poor behavior choice, the teacher tells them to move their clip down. Certain consequences come with each step. For example, yellow may be a warning, orange would be the loss of a privilege like recess or free time, and red would be a phone call home. On the other side, moving up from the green square, are often colors like blue, pink, and purple. If a student makes a good behavior choice the teacher can tell them to move their clip up. These colors might be worth verbal praise, an extra reward, or a positive phone call home.

Many teachers have come up with very cool, themed clip charts. I would like to take a second to appreciate these people and share their ideas with you!

Polka Dot

Jungle

Fabric

Rockstar Guitar

Soccer (this one is in Spanish!)

So, you can take pretty much any theme that your kiddos are into and incorporate it into this form! The best thing about this tool is that other adults in the room (paraprofessionals, substitute teachers, etc.) can use the same consequence/reward system that you do with your permission to use the clip chart! What a fun, themed way to keep order and consistency in your room!

-TheBusyLittleYellowBus