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My research will investigate the effectiveness of using a clip chart for behaviors as it relates to increasing time for learning and reducing undesirable behaviors.

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My research will investigate the effectiveness of using a clip chart for behaviors as it relates to increasing time for learning and reducing undesirable behaviors.

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I am linking up with Leigh, from
The Applicious Teacher! She is having a behavior linky party and I love to talk about my behavior plan.

I've been teaching for 19 years, and during this time I have tried just about every behavior management gimmick known to man. I can honestly say I have finally found a management system that truly works for every child in my class. Even the hardest to manage child. I know many of you have heard of and are using the clip chart system, but, just in case you haven't heard of it, or are skeptical, I thought I'd take this opportunity to explain how and why it works.

The clip chart consists of a chart that has been divided into levels. All of the children start the day on Ready to Learn. Then, during the course of the day, the children move their clothespins up or down the chart, based on the behavioral choices they make. If they are making good choices, they can move their clothespin up a level at a time. Inappropriate behavior would cause them to move down a level. Since the children start in the middle of the chart, they have numerous opportunities to work their way up the chart. This really helps the children realize that they have to have self-control and be responsible for their actions and behavior if they want to be recognized for making good choices. Making it to the top of the chart is not easy, but it is definitely attainable. The children quickly realize how they must conduct themselves in order to achieve this goal. In the beginning of the school year, only 2 or 3 of my students made it to the top of the chart each day. But, as the days, weeks, and months wore on, more and more of them went home on red (the top of the chart). By the third quarter, just about all of them were clipping up to the top of the chart every single day. This speaks volumes! Even my most severe behavior case (someone who used to kick, spit, scratch, knock my tables over, and wreak havoc in my classroom) began to go home on red just about every single day after a few months. The parents love it, substitute teachers love it, and, most importantly, the children love it.

My students clip up when they:

go the extra mile to help a student in need.

are the first or second to do what I ask.

are extra polite and respectful.

do amazingly good work.

interrupt me when I'm teaching.

are disrespectful to another student or adult.

cannot sit still or purposely keep another student from learning.

do not behave during lunch time or specials.

Each day, the children document what color they go home on so their parents are aware. In the beginning of the year, they needed to earn 4 outstanding's a month in order to get a special privilege. However, I had to change it to 8 outstanding's a month after a couple of months because so many of them were easily clipping up to the top of the chart almost every day. At the end of the month, they count up the number of outstanding's and choose a certificate if they earned 8-15 of them. If they earned 16 or more, they choose two certificates. Some of my certificates are:

lunch in the classroom (the most popular)

bring in a toy or book to share with the class

choose a sweet treat

choose an extra special treasure from the prize box (the second most popular)

extra computer time

You can download my certificates, for free, by clicking on the image below:

My clip chart is a little different from most because I combine this system with 1-2-3 Magic. You can download my clip chart by clicking on the picture below. (Please note that the clip chart you download will not have the 1-2-3 Magic component.)

CLIP CHART UPDATED JULY 2014!

These are the calendars I use for the children to document how their day went. You can download them for free by clicking here.

There is so much more I can say about the clip chart, but, my post is already super long. If you have any questions or want more information about how I use the clip chart and 1-2-3 Magic, please don't hesitate to ask.

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I am linking up with Leigh, from The Applicious Teacher! She is having a behavior linky party and I love to talk about my behavior plan. I've been teaching for 19 years, and during this time I have tried just about every behavior management gimmick known to man.

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classroom management classroom behavior classroom rules classroom control classroom discipline disruptive behavior elementary student

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WWC | Reducing Behavior Problems in the Elementary School Classroom

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Designed for elementary school educators and school- and district-level administrators, this guide offers prevention, implementation, and schoolwide strategies that can be used to reduce problematic behavior that interferes with the ability of students to attend to and engage fully in instructional activities.

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Classroom Management in Elementary Schools

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Classroom Management in Elementary Schools

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Classroom Management Using the Clip Chart

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Classroom Management Using the Clip Chart

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Clip Chart

Here's an idea I got from my son's third grade teacher, a truly gifted man by the name of Jonathan McDade. It's a wonderfully simple strategy that I was able to use in my own classroom with great success.

And now that I'm no longer in the classroom--I resigned from my school district June 30, 2008 after thirty-one years of teaching and three years of a leave of absence--I've been sharing this same strategy as a part of the discipline seminar I present at schools and districts.

Lately, though, I've received a number of email requests about the idea from teachers who had heard about it from another teacher and were looking for a bit more information about how it all works. Thus, this free teacher's guide.

The book will show you how to get started, how to use the included blackline masters, and how to add new features to make the whole thing really click with your students.
Make Your Own Chart or Buy One of Ours
Although the Clip Chart teacher's guide will show you how you can make your own chart, a lot of teaches prefer the professional look and feel of the Clip Chart we sell. It's $20 and is made of 12-ounce nylon that will last for years.
Clip Chart available in our online store Colors Used in the Clip Chart
A frequently asked question is why I chose red as the top color. You can find my reasoning on page 28 of the Clip Chart eBook. To download just page 28, click on this link:
Why is Red the "Good" Color? Teacher Suggestion
I love your Clip Chart! It takes care of the uneasy feeling I get when using the standard red, yellow, green chart.

Here's my idea based upon your idea (Reward Indicators, page 25 of the Clip Chart eBook) about allowing students to add some kind of recognition awards to their clothespins whenever they've reached the top of the chart:

Draw a stripe on the front end of the clip (a short line across the width of the clip, not the length). Once they have 5 or 10 stripes ( I don't know how many would fit) the clip could then be retired for a new color of clip.

They do something similar in my son's taekwondo class by giving them stripes (skinny stickers) to wrap around their belts each time they bring a "good" behavior report from home.

Thanks for sharing your ideas!

Elementary Teacher
Colorado
Hanging Your Chart
It will be easier for your students to move their clothespins if there is a gap between the chart and the wall from which it hangs.

Here's an easy way to accomplish that.

1. Buy a pack of Sun Screen Fabric snap grommets. (Home Depot, 4 bucks)

2. Place the top half of a grommet on the chart and trace the inside circle.

3. Cut around the circle with an exacto knife, remove the cut piece, and pop the bottom half of a grommet up through the opening.

4. Place the top half over the bottom half and bang it with a hammer.

Parent Contact, Take 2
At a recent presentation on discipline for student teachers at Cal State Fullerton, one of them asked this question:

"Can there be a Parent Contact level at the top of the chart?"

Wow. What a great idea.

Adding another Parent Contact level above Outstanding makes the Clip Chart that much more positive and rewarding for the students. It would also help to portray the teacher as someone who has a balanced approach to parent communication. More than just a litany of bad news, the teacher is also intent on the sharing the good.

Now it's just a matter of:

1. The placement of the new Parent Contact level.

2. Deciding how the good news will be shared or communicated.

Level
Here's what I'm thinking about the placement of the new level.

1. Top of the Chart: clothespin clipped vertically.

2. Off the Chart: clothespin clipped to shirt, necklace, or lanyard.

3. Parent Contact: clothespin clipped to Parent Contact sign located above the Clip Chart.

Notification
Kind of up to you how you go about it. Something written is always nice since it's a tangible reminder of the occassion. Maybe a little half-page rah-rah thing you could hand the student in the presence of the parents. Or if the parents cannot be present, the note can be sent home for the family to enjoy.

A Different Kind of Phone Call
Another way to communicate the child's success with the parents would be to have the student place a phone call home as soon as the clip hits the new Parent Contact level. This was something I did in my own room for years as a way for good news to be sent without me having to place a call later. Whether it was for outstanding behavior, having the top score on a test, or some special accomplishment, it was always fun to watch a student--using our classroom phone--share the good news with the folks.

You do have the issue of a student making a call and then doing something that causes the clip to go down a level. But I think that's a minor issue and shouldn't trump the fact that the level was reached in the first place.

Super Star?
And how about another level above the Parent Contact sign called Super Star? You could make a sweet little star-shaped sign for the students who go above and beyond the others.

Last Thought
The possibilities for adding features to the basic chart are definitely there. It's just a matter of trying something new and seeing what happens. And although it may be a bit of a bumpy ride at first due to the novelty of the addition, rest assured that you can always fine-tune the details as you and your students gain experience and insight with the new feature.

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Here's an idea I got from my son's third grade teacher, a truly gifted man by the name of Jonathan McDade. It's a wonderfully simple strategy that I was able to use in my own classroom with great success.

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When I started using Whole Brain Teaching, the second thing I hung up after the Class Rules was the Clip Chart. There is a wonderful ebook by Rick Morris dedicated to describing this Clip Chart and the details, so I will overview it broadly here.

Here is the inspiration from Rick Morris for the Clip Chart I created:

And here is a picture of my Clip Chart in action:

I start each child off on "Ready to Learn"~ it is bigger for this reason, since it has to hold all 26 clothespins. From the beginning of the day, students have the opportunity to "clip up". I make a simple "cutting" gesture and then an "up" gesture with my thumb as I see them doing great work around the classroom. I have even worked the "clip up" instructions into class songs that I sing around the room throughout the day... more on songs later :)

When I see a student making not-so-wonderful choices, I have them "clip down" discretely. I do not make a loud announcement, but all of the students seem to know it's happening regardless. There are no consequences for "Make Better Choices" but for "Teacher Choice" I do have students write about it on our school's Stop and Think Sheet or do some sort of "Classroom Service" to repair the harm~ this could be cleaning up, wiping out and organizing book bins, sharpening pencils, etc.

What I love most about this clip chart, as opposed to my former green-yellow-red card system, is that a student is not trapped on "make better choices" all day~ when I see them making good choices, I immediately have them clip up.

The other main reason I love the clip chart system is that it rewards those kids who go above and beyond. If someone is a class leader with "Class-Yes" or "Teach-OK," I do tell them to clip up in a loud enough voice so that others can hear and are inspired to copy their positive model.

If they end the day at "Super Student" they get a star on their clip. After 5 stars, I have them peel off their stars (they can place them on their name tag or notebook) and they can choose something from the Treasure Box.

I actually had a little girl today say that today was one of the "best days of her life" because she was a Super Student~ how awesome is that!

Here is the Clip Chart pdf printable!

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When I started using Whole Brain Teaching, the second thing I hung up after the Class Rules was the Clip Chart. There is a wonderful ebook by Rick Morris dedicated to describing this Clip Chart and the details, so I will overview it broadly here.