Home | How It Works | Stats Login | Register         Case: Incentives What do you find is the best incentives system? I am trying to find a new approach at rewarding good behavior. Solution: (Rates are posted for this solution!) Rewards systems can be great tools for classroom management, but educators must carefully consider the messages sent to students. Firstly, it is important to discuss the benefits of intrinsic rewards over extrinsic rewards. It is vital that students exhibit certain behaviors because they have been taught the importance of positivity and respect in the classroom. Students should not be acting in a certain way merely to win a prize. Secondly, it is essential that teachers discuss behavioral expectations in the classroom. Students need to know what they must do and what they must achieve in order to earn rewards. Thirdly, I see particular value in a group reward system. In this way, a sense of collaboration and team-work is brought to the classroom, and no student is left out. An example of an effective intrinsic reward system, is the incorporation of “bucket filling.” There is a book called “Have you filled a bucket today?” that teaches the importance of acts of kindness. After reading the book as a class, a visual representation of a bucket can be crafted and students work to fill the bucket together. Once the bucket is full, the class will celebrate their kindness with a previously agreed upon reward. In this way, students are taught the meaning and value of good behavior. The following is the citation for the book: McCloud, C. (2015). Have you filled a bucket today?: A guide to daily happiness for kids. Bucket Fillers.