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A MENU
of
EFFECTIVE REWARDS

Every parent, every teacher, needs a menu of effective rewards that can be employed at the drop of a hat.

Perhaps surprisingly, mild rewards are just as effective as large rewards. The size of the reward is not as important as its immediacy. Rewards work with all human beings with whom I am familiar, all ages.

The greatest reward is social recognition.

Another great reward is taking the time to listen, "What you are saying is so important, I'm going to actually take the time right now to take notes." Prepared learners always have a clipboard with plenty of paper on hand. Have you ever met a person who didn't like to be listened to?

Rewards must be immediate and tied to specific behavior, "Good job starting your homework on time;" "God job staying on task;" "Good job completing your assignment on time."

With a hip-pocket filled with small rewards, adults can insure that students are rewarded for correct behavior many times during the day.

A MENU OF REWARDS (some examples)

1. Reward the child before there is an incident. "Good morning Bill. Good to see you." Remember, social recognition is the greatest reward.
2. "Wow! Great job getting your work turned in on time."
3. "Thank you for picking up that paper."
4. Write a note to the child, specifically describing the behavior you are rewarding.
5. Write a note to the parent, specifically describing the good behavior (When was the last time a parent got a note like this?)
6. Certificate of merit from the entire class.
7. Call the student and parent at home and specifically describe an incident of good behavior.
8. Allow the student to run an errand for you. "Jane, because you did such a great job turning your work in so neatly, I'm going to allow you to take this note up to the front office."
9. Arrange for the child to tutor a younger child.
10. Arrange for the child to read to younger children.
11. Arrange opportunities for children to be of service to younger children and to the school: cleaning blackboards, raising flags, counting money, collecting books, passing out materials...
12. Reward the entire class for good behavior with five minutes of free time at the end of the period.
13. Allow classical music to be played during independent work.
14. Compliment the student in front of another adult.
15. Touch the student briefly on the shoulder.
16. Make eye contact with the student and smile.
17. Thumbs up.
18. High five.
19. Shake hands.
20. Walk with the child to his next class.
21. Positive referral to the front office.
22. Name up on blackboard, posted on bulletin board, announced over public address.

What defines an effective reward? An effective reward is one that, after it is introduced, increases desired behavior. The reward must be clearly tied to a specific behavior.

Good example: Good job saying "thank you" Bill. Thumbs up.
Bad example: Nice manners.

 
Additional articles of great value:

1. A Menu of Effective Rewards
2. Rewarding Behavior
3. Some Additional Thoughts on Rewards

COPYRIGHT NOTICE: EFFECTIVE REWARDS © June 2001 by Rory Donaldson. All rights reserved. In order to help reverse the tide of academic failure and optimize school success, parents and teachers may copy articles, tools and software for individual, non-commercial use at no charge. Contents may not be sold or repackaged in any manner without the written permission of Rory Donaldson. Since all material is copyrighted, please ensure that this entire copyright notice and contact information continues to be attached to each article you download. Mr. Donaldson appreciates the feedback. Additional academic-success articles and tools may be viewed and downloaded at no charge by logging on to brainsarefun.com. New titles are being released regularly. Suggestions and comments encouraged, email: roryd@brainsarefun.com.

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