Classroom Economy Using Tokens for Classroom Management

Last year, I decided to use Classroom Economy for my classroom management system. Well, this post isn't to explain how Classroom Economy works. Google it, search it on Pinterest. I LOVE it!

Because I teach at a year round school, my school year has already begun. This year, I wanted to keep my Classroom Economy, but make one change.

Last year, I had my students keep up with money earned and money lost in a little notebook. This proved to be a lot of work for me to be sure they were keeping up with it correctly. I also had a transaction sheet that the students filled out at the end of the day. Most students understood how to fill out this sheet, but you had a few who struggled. I ended up having to write down all the times they got money taken away so that I could check behind them to be sure they really fined themselves. Then on "payday" (which was every Friday), I had to spend a lot of time checking to be sure they'd added things up correctly.

It was too much extra work. If you're a teacher, you know that you don't want to give yourself extra work. So, this year I switched it up a little bit. Another teacher gave me this hanging thing with pockets. I'm not exactly sure what the original purpose of this one was. I know they make jewelry holders that look like this.

Then, I bought mini white poker chips and mini red poker chips from Amazon. Although, I think regular size would work just as well. I was a little surprised at how mini these really were.

Whenever I have students exhibiting desirable behaviors or completing homework or assignment, I give them a white token. On the other hand, when students exhibit undesirable behaviors or don't complete their work, I give them a red token. They keep their tokens in the pouch that corresponds to their classroom number.

This relates to the Classroom Economy in that each white token is worth $10. Each red token is worth -$10. So, they earn money for having white tokens and lose money for having red. For example, if a student had 8 white tokens and 2 red tokens. I subtract the 2 red tokens from the 8 white and get 6. Then, I multiply 6 by $10, so that student earned $60 that day. I also factor in their "salary" for their classroom job.

The best part is that each individual student does not keep track of this. One of my classroom jobs is Accountant. The Accountant marks on a chart I made how many of each color tokens each student received each day. Then, they figure out how much money they earned each day. At the end of the week, the Accountant adds up their money earned with their weekly salary for their weekly total. This way only one student has to understand how to keep track and all I have to do is look at their total and quickly give them their money.

It is so much easier than what I was doing last year.

How do you keep track of students' behavior? Do you use classroom economy? 

Total Social: My Favorites

Happy Thursday! I have to start this post by saying Happy Anniversary to my husband, Lee! Today marks 4 years of marriage!

Today, I am linking up with Helene in Between and Venus Trapped in Mars for Total Social. This month's topic is favorites. So, I thought I'd share a list of a few of my favorite things.

FAVORITE...

Movie: Titanic

Book: Harry Potter series

Quote: "I figure life's a gift and I don't intend on wasting it. You don't know what hand you're gonna get dealt next. You learn to take life as it comes at you... to make each day count."  

Bible Verse: "Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth." 1 John 3:18

Place: Mountains

Food: Ice Cream

Color: Yellow

Team: University of Alabama Crimson Tide

Holiday: Christmas

Season: Fall

Clothing Item: Pajama Pants

Recipe: Reese's Chocolate Chip Cookies

Music: Throwbacks from 90's early 00's

Game Show: Wheel of Fortune

Guilty Pleasure: Eating raw cookie dough

I'll end with 2 of my favorite posts. These aren't the most fun or happy posts, but I love them because they are 2 that came straight from my heart: You Can't Go Home and Tales from the Emergency Room.

Share a favorite of yours with me in the comment section! Thanks!

July Literary Junkies

It's the second Tuesday of the month which means I'm linking up for my favorite book related link up, Literary Junkies!

 

1. What are you reading? Tell us about it!
I am currently reading Enchanter by Joanne Wadsworth. It's the 3rd book in the Magio-Earth series. If you like fantasy and romance, I'd recommend these books to you. You can buy all 3 books in this series for your Kindle for less than $10!

In these stories, young people can find their "soul bound" mate who is literally their other half. This particular story follows Silvie and Guy who (like the others in the previous books) are from opposite warring countries. They have to try to find a way to forget each other or see each other without their kings finding out.

2. Do you find yourself reading more of a particular genre during the heat of summer? 
 For the most part, I'll read anything during the summer. Usually, if I'm going on vacation I like to take "light" reads. For example, I'll read romance novels, or chick lit, or just fun books that don't require a lot of thought.

3. Who are your favorite book villains (either to love or to hate?)
A villain I enjoy is Draco Malfoy from the Harry Potter series. Of course, he's not the "main villain" and there are plenty of more evil characters. However, he serves as a good foil for Harry Potter and also represents the bully that every story taking place at a school must have. I would have loved to have known more about him. I feel like there's much more to his character and he sort of redeems himself in the end.

I also love the Grinch from How the Grinch Stole Christmas. He's one of my favorite characters ever.

As a Harry Potter fan, I can't leave out Snape. *SPOILER ALERT* You spend the whole series disliking this man, especially from the end of the 6th book through most of the 7th. BUT THEN...you find out he was a hero all along. He's another character I'd love to know more about.

Lastly, I enjoyed the character Cain in the Gone series. He is similar to Snape in that he did some bad and he did some good. He was a complex character.

4. If you could choose one author’s writing powers to harness, who would you choose and why?
My first choice would be JK Rowling. I love how she can weave a story so complex yet everything fits together. I love the symbolism she included in Harry Potter and the characters she developed.

5. Do you read one book at a time, or read multiple books at once?
Usually, I only read one book at a time. Occasionally, I will read more than one book. This usually happens if I'm reading a nonfiction and want to also read something entertaining at the same time. I will also read more than one book if I have a lot of books on my to read list and just can't wait.

6. What are some of your favorite non-fiction books? 
Kisses from Katie by Katie Davis and Orphan Justice by Johnny Carr are two of my all time favorites. I also really enjoyed Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain and 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess by Jen Hatmaker.

What about you? Have you read anything good lately? Do you have a favorite nonfiction to recommend?

Deciding What Role Social Media Will Play in my Life as a Mom

I recently came across this video and thought it was very powerful. If you haven't seen it already, I'd encourage you to watch it first.

It took me a while to get a smart phone. I didn't want to be one of "those people." You know...the people who are attached to their phones. Well, I finally got a smart phone and I hate to say I've become what I didn't want to be. Sitting at a red light? Check my phone. Waiting to pick up my order at a restaurant? Check my phone. Laying in bed at night? Check my phone. Commercial on TV? Check my phone. The list could go on and on. It's just second nature now to reach for my phone when I have a second of down time. What happened to just sitting a minute? Why do I now feel the need to be constantly entertained? Over a year ago, I wrote a guest post about this growing habit I observed in others. Now, this person is me.

On a good note, I do try really hard to not get out my phone if I'm visiting with someone-even if it's just my husband. I still try to respect that time.

Smart phones aren't the "bad guys" here. Even before I had a smart phone, I spent more than enough time on social media.

Now, don't get me wrong. There are things about social media that I love. I live far away from my family and many friends. It's a great way to keep in touch, know what they're up to, and share what I'm up to. Through blogging I've been able to meet people and have opportunities that I never would have met or had otherwise.

It's just interesting to me to think how in a few short years social media has really integrated itself to be a part of our every day life. 

Now that we're expecting our first child, I've really been thinking about what role I want social media to play in my life as a mom. I also have been thinking about what role I want technology to play in my child's life.

My thoughts on my social media use:

-I don't want to miss out on time with my child because I can't get off my computer or phone.


-I don't want to be so wrapped up in capturing a moment in a picture or video and sharing it on social media that I miss enjoying and actually living in the moment.

-I don't want my child to view me as the person who always has her laptop open or her nose stuck to her ipad or iphone screen. I don't want that to be the norm.

-I don't want to feel like I need to share every little thing my child does and says with the internet world.

-I don't want to feel like I have to be super mom and do all the cool things that I see posted on my various social media newsfeeds and Pinterest feed.

-I don't want to share every little detail of our personal lives with "friends" who I don't even know that well.

 My thoughts on technology for my child: 

-Obviously the abundance of technology brings up a lot of issues like children accessing things they shouldn't be looking at or talking to people they shouldn't be talking to. At this point, that isn't even my main concern. I'm concerned that there are babies who can use an iphone better than my mom. (Sorry mom...it's true.)

-I don't want to use technology to pacify my child.

-I want my child to grow up playing and using her imagination, not stuck in front of a screen of some type.

-Technology has it's place and it will be an even bigger part of my child's life than it was mine, but I don't want it consuming her life from the very beginning.

*  *  *

Again, I will say that I don't think social media or even technology are bad things. There are things about them that I love and that make my life so much easier. I just think it's about finding a good balance and sometimes that can be really difficult.

How do you balance your time on social media as a mom? What are your thoughts on your child and technology? 

*Linking up at Mommy Moments and Made to Mother*

June Book Review

At the beginning of this year, I changed how I did my book reviews. I started reviewing books individually. Those didn't seem to get as many views as when I reviewed all the books I read in a month in one post. So, I'm going to try going back to the monthly book reviews. 

It is summer and I was tracked out this month, so I've had a lot of time to read.

Wedding Night by Sophie Kinsella

Book Description:
Lottie just knows that her boyfriend is going to propose, but then his big question involves a trip abroad—not a trip down the aisle. Completely crushed, Lottie reconnects with an old flame, and they decide to take drastic action. No dates, no moving in together, they’ll just get married . . . right now. Her sister, Fliss, thinks Lottie is making a terrible mistake, and will do anything to stop her. But Lottie is determined to say “I do,” for better, or for worse.

Book description and image via Goodreads

My Review:
At the time, this was the 2nd Sophie Kinsella book I'd read. I really enjoyed the first one so I was looking forward to a fun, beach read (considering I was at the beach when I read this). I was pretty disappointed overall. The promise of fun and laugh out loud moments just didn't happen for me. It was an easy read and definitely worked for a light, beach read.

I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

City of Heavenly Fire by Cassandra Clare

Book Description:

Sebastian Morgenstern is on the move, systematically turning Shadowhunter against Shadowhunter. Bearing the Infernal Cup, he transforms Shadowhunters into creatures out of nightmare, tearing apart families and lovers as the ranks of his Endarkened army swell. The embattled Shadowhunters withdraw to Idris - but not even the famed demon towers of Alicante can keep Sebastian at bay. And with the Nephilim trapped in Idris, who will guard the world against demons? When one of the greatest betrayals the Nephilim have ever known is revealed, Clary, Jace, Isabelle, Simon, and Alec must flee - even if their journey takes them deep into the demon realms, where no Shadowhunter has set foot before, and from which no human being has ever returned...Love will be sacrificed and lives lost in the terrible battle for the fate of the word in the thrilling final installment of the classic urban fantasy series The Mortal Instruments!

Book description and image via Goodreads

My review:
This is the final book in the Mortal Instruments series. My feelings after reading this one are very similar to my feelings after reading the previous two books in the series. This series was originally a trilogy and I wish it had stayed a trilogy. The last 3 books felt so repetitive. The same types of things kept happening. I also didn't like the characters as much in the last 3 books. In the first 3, there were moments that I laughed out loud, yet the last 3 just seemed to be trying too hard to be funny. Simon is my favorite character, but his time in the book was very limited. I also didn't like how a lot of questions were left unanswered or new questions were created. I know that the author did this so that you would read her other series, but I don't want to read the other series. I wanted resolution. 

I give it 3 out of 5 stars.

Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella

Book Description:
Lara Lington has always had an overactive imagination, but suddenly that imagination seems to be in overdrive. Normal professional twenty-something young women don’t get visited by ghosts. Or do they? When the spirit of Lara’s great-aunt Sadie—a feisty, demanding girl with firm ideas about fashion, love, and the right way to dance—mysteriously appears, she has one request: Lara must find a missing necklace that had been in Sadie’s possession for more than seventy-five years, because Sadie cannot rest without it. Lara and Sadie make a hilarious sparring duo, and at first it seems as though they have nothing in common. But as the mission to find Sadie’s necklace leads to intrigue and a new romance for Lara, these very different “twenties” girls learn some surprising truths from and about each other. 

Book description and image via Goodreads

My Review:
This was a fun book. This would have been a better beach read than the other Kinsella book I read. It actually was funny. It was also different in that it wasn't exclusively a romance novel. It did have a little romance, but that wasn't the driving force of the book. It also had some elements of mystery to it. The main character grew a lot throughout the book. This was an easy, light read and I would recommend this for a fun, summer read. 

I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Goodbye for Now by Laurie Frankel

Book Description:

Sam Elling works for an internet dating company, but he still can't get a date. So he creates an algorithm that will match you with your soul mate. Sam meets the love of his life, a coworker named Meredith, but he also gets fired when the company starts losing all their customers to Mr. and Ms. Right. When Meredith's grandmother, Livvie, dies suddenly, Sam uses his ample free time to create a computer program that will allow Meredith to have one last conversation with her grandmother. Mining from all her correspondence—email, Facebook, Skype, texts—Sam constructs a computer simulation of Livvie who can respond to email or video chat just as if she were still alive. It's not supernatural, it's computer science. Meredith loves it, and the couple begins to wonder if this is something that could help more people through their grief. And thus, the company RePose is born. The business takes off, but for every person who just wants to say good-bye, there is someone who can't let go. In the meantime, Sam and Meredith's affection for one another deepens into the kind of love that once tasted, you can't live without. But what if one of them suddenly had to? 

Book description and image via Goodreads

My Review:
The premise of this book seemed really interesting. However, the book did not live up to my expectations. I had a really hard time getting through this one. The writing style was different. I never felt connected to the characters. I don't feel like the characters grew or changed by the events of the story. I don't have much else to say about this one other than I didn't like it.

I give it 2 out of 5 stars.

Savannah Folklore by Nicole Carlson Easley

Book Description: 
Read Savannahs history through 58 short stories about revenge, exorcisms, graveyard parties, forgotten cemeteries, unsettled spirits, and lady pirates. See over 60 images of Savannah's lovely buildings and statues that are mentioned in the text. Learn tales of a secret tunnel once used to capture men for forced labor, superstitions that stave spirits of the dead, and unabashed sexual deviances in the most hospitable city in the South.

Book description and image via Goodreads

My Review:
I picked this book up on my family's recent trip to Tybee Island. I've gotten to where I like to buy ghost story or local folklore books when I visit historical cities. This is the first one that I've actually read all the way through. It was a very simple read. The history of Savannah is told in very short stories. It also had several pictures to help you visualize the spots that the stories were talking about. I really enjoyed learning little bits of history and it's made me want to go back and visit some of these places. 

I give it 3 out of 5 stars. 

A Long Way Down by Nick Hornby 

Book Description:
Meet Martin, JJ, Jess, and Maureen. Four people who come together on New Year's Eve: a former TV talk show host, a musician, a teenage girl, and a mother. Three are British, one is American. They encounter one another on the roof of Topper's House, a London destination famous as the last stop for those ready to end their lives. In four distinct and riveting first-person voices, Nick Hornby tells a story of four individuals confronting the limits of choice, circumstance, and their own mortality. This is a tale of connections made and missed, punishing regrets, and the grace of second chances. 

Book description and image via Goodreads

My Review: 
I'm not really sure what to think of this book. It wasn't really the premise that bothered me as much as the fact that it was just kind of boring. The story was told by each of the four main characters. Usually I enjoy stories that switch between points of view. On a good note, the characters were all very distinct and they grew and changed throughout the story. I also think the ending was appropriate for the book.

I give it 2 out of 5 stars.


What have you read lately? Have you read any of these?