Happy Mail, School Culture, and The Power of One Complimentary Note Home
BY Abby Paulsen
Sometimes kids need a little positive nudge to know when they’re doing well. We often think of the classic classroom reward systems: sticker charts, treat days, or tickets to earn prizes. However, these classic methods suffer from the same problem: they are a short-term solution with basic transactional value.
If you give kids stickers for months, the novelty quickly wears off. Then, the pressure grows for teachers to improve the prizes’ monetary value. What’s left is an unmanageable and anticlimactic expectation.
And, rewarding certain students’ behavior in front of the whole class may promote comparison amongst students. Especially in situations where teachers reward just the top performing students rather than all well-performing students, some may feel decreased motivation, and others might wonder why their behavior wasn’t good enough to receive praise.
So, if toys and candy aren’t good options, what prizes should we give kids for good behavior without putting them into this loop of comparison and short-lived motivation?
A prize that is collaborative, personal, and uplifting long-term. That’s why you should consider writing a positive letter or calling a parent to tell them how well a student is doing.
The power of positive attention
Teachers play a key role in a student’s learning, emotional wellbeing, and belonging in school. Establishing a positive relationship between teacher and student starts with building a supportive environment and fostering confidence in the learner.
Students who are assigned clear goals with benchmarks to admire their achievements are more motivated to do their best. Once a student accomplishes a task, teachers should positively reinforce that student to influence continued good behavior.
Also, teachers can inspire youth by catching them in their good acts, not just academic accomplishments. Anything from students helping each other out or being a good listener. This is where happy mail comes into play.
What is happy mail?
Happy mail is simple: write a short note home to tell the family how well-behaved the student is. It can be as short as, “You’re rocking in this math unit!” or “So-and-so was a great help cleaning up after crafts today!” Maybe it’s more personal, talking about how their student’s behavior has been better this week.
When it comes to parent-teacher communications, it’s too often that parents only hear the bad stuff. But kids need motivation and praise just as much as they need guidance and structure.
Think of it this way: a positive teacher’s note hanging on a fridge can make the world’s difference to a kid who is used to being scolded and put down.
Just as we were told, “A smile goes a long way,” a kind letter can too.
Finding positivity in everyone
For the kids who wrestle with repeated bad behaviors, positive thinking might even be a hurdle for teachers and parents always focused on what they did “wrong.”
We can only see students thrive when we have the optimism and belief that they can improve; otherwise, we set them up for failure in the belief that they will fail again.
While it’ still important to discipline and communicate when students are misbehaving, transform the conversation into a compliment sandwich. For each time you record misbehavior, there should be at least two affirmations of their good behavior to follow it. Find the good things, like when they accomplished something new, went out of their way to help another student, or improved existing skills.
When you consider writing a note to go home, add in the good behaviors conducted by that child as well. Parents with kids who struggle with behavior share the excitement in their improvements.
These little things are what slowly builds a happy school climate for teachers, students, and parents that make us all want to come back.
A positive note home is a beneficial habit to get into. It sprinkles in a bit of joy and confidence for kids in the classroom and at home, and it reinforces those good behaviors in a more personal, long-term effective way.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR YOUR EDTECH? The right combo of tools & support retains staff and serves students better. We'd love to help. Visit skyward.com/get-started to learn more.
|
Abby Paulsen Edtech Thought Leader |
