Student buy-in is one of the many focal points for school teachers and administrators every year. Students have many things competing for their attention; i.e. video games, sports teams, television, outside activities, and friendships are a few of things drawing attention from kids. These attention grabbers do a great job of providing kids with a sense of connection that schools seek to create. Creating a strong sense of student buy-in is possible if approached from many angles. Implement structures like houses, positive office referrals, and Fun Fridays to engage your students.
Houses
Create excitement by assigning students and teachers to houses. Each house competes against the others to claim the weekly crown of Top House. Students earn points for positive student actions: classroom behavior, cleaning the cafeteria, being a mentor to another student, classroom academic achievement, etc. Display the points earned by each house on a House Leaderboard. Consider making on-the-fly announcements to spark excitement of house leaders who will earn a future celebration.
Positive Office Referrals
Reward students who have shown outstanding character and grit. Recognize these students by calling them down to the office and taking the time to celebrate character. Then, make a positive phone call home and tell the parent of your outstanding student how great their child is.
Fun Fridays
Add some spice to your Fridays by greeting parents in the car line with music. Everybody loves a little Journey-Don’t Stop Believin’. Another way to keep Fridays fun is to have an impromptu administrator sing-off and let the students vote for the winner. Students love to see teachers or administrators sing their favorite pop songs. The energy is electric during and after the sing-off. These are a few ways to create student buy-in in your school. Watch your student engagement soar when you engage students in and outside of the classroom.