Discipline and Citizenship
As this will be the final newsletter for this school year, I wish to urge all
of you who will vacation this summer to "vacation the best you can." We will
be training additional schools so they may implement MYD and offering trainings in
Washington and Arizona during August so the next newsletter will be in September. Planning
is continuing for the Make Your Day Conference in Seattle, September 16-17 and
we hope to see many of you there. Gene Sharratt will start it off with a keynote
address that speaks to the critical contribution educators make and the value
of relationship building within the school community. Educators, including ourselves, will
be presenting innovative practices in reference to MYD during a variety of breakout
sessions. Because of space we have to limit registrations so make sure you register
as soon as you know who will be attending. There is a link on the MYD homepage
(www.makeyourdays.com) for on-line registration. Please contact us if you have any questions.
Back to discipline and citizenship.
A major observable difference in approach is the emphasis of points over steps.
When points have become a critical piece of instruction the students demonstrate
greater insight into their own motivation for behaviors. This "whole child" approach
translates into immediate attitudinal adjustments. When points become part of
curriculum with both students and teachers finding a common introspective experience,
citizenship is more the focus.
The campus of both citizenship and discipline programs are universally peaceful,
but a campus focused on citizenship shows greater proclivity to random acts of
kindness. Spontaneous compliments and greater insight into the term "well-being"
are evident.
A measurable difference would include the percentage of escalating step 4s vs.
automatic step 4s. Schools that focus on citizenship will often see about 90%
auto 4s vs. 10% escalating 4s, while schools that focus on discipline will usually
see in the neighborhood of 70% auto 4s with 30% escalating 4s.
Most schools without MYD prioritize behavior over academics and academics over
self-esteem. Thank you MYD teachers for turning that focus around. We are focused
on self-esteem first. Academic performance and behavior become the overt payoff
for our willingness to spend the time we do in the affective domain.
Those who teach "can." We as teachers "will not be left behind." Thank you
again for the continuous articulation and refinement of Make Your Day. Be emotionally
and physically safe this summer. See you at the September conference in Seattle.
Indian Bend Student Committee in Action
The Indian Bend Elementary Student Committee took on redoing the "School-Home
Communication" form. Based on asking other students and their experiences, they
felt that their current form did not really explain to students or parents how
not making one's day should be addressed. Their first draft is below. They made
some changes such as changing it to first person rather than third person and
changing the idiom "clean plate" so that ELL students would clearly understand
it. In addition, after some discussion they changed the paper color to lime green
so that it would look more like a message to parents and less like an official
document.
Make Your Day
Your child has received a make your day slip. This honorable slip should not
be a punishment. It is one bad day for him/her. This slip is for you and your
child to talk over the responsibility he/she took today. Your child should be
proud that he/she took responsibility, but it is not the best your child can do.
The next day your child should have a clean plate and not get another one. This
is why you should be proud of your child for taking responsibility.
This slip does not go on your child's permanent record.
Planning for Next School Year
Start Fresh
Remember that a critical component to the success of MYD in your school and classroom
is that the commitment by everyone is renewed each and every year. If students
and teachers come into an existing system without the opportunity to provide their
input and agree to a common standard, the program has simply become an imposed
system. It will become a listless, watered-down version of a program that was
initially a vibrant, positive part of your school community.
Teachers - There is an outline in your MYD manual. Hunt it down, dust it off
and starting on about page 26, review it and make it your lesson plan for the
first day of school. Take the rule down and start from scratch. It will be well
worth your time.
Administrators - Give your teachers the gift of time. Help them out with a first
day schedule that allows teachers to spend at least a half day taking their students
from A-Z. The rule comes down everywhere and doesn't go back up until the second
day.
Everyone - Feel free to contact us if you have any questions about how to do
this or need a little pep talk about the importance of starting again.
Ted Polk Middle School MYD Video
Make Your Day at Ted Polk Middle School is spotlighted on the district website
in a video. This is Ted Polk's first year of implementation and the staff has
worked hard to implement the program in a way that invites their students and
community into the process. Take a minute and visit Carrollton-Farmers Branch
ISD at http://www.cfbisd.edu and find out what the students at Ted Polk have to say about Make Your Day at
their school.
Staff in Need of Training?
There are two-day trainings being offered in August in Lynnwood and Kennewick,
WA, along with Phoenix, AZ. This will be a great opportunity for any new staff
member to receive training or for anyone who would like a review. Parents are
also welcome. Space is limited at all the sites, so register as soon as you know
which staff members will be able to take advantage of this opportunity. On-line
registration is available from the educator website (www.makeyourdays.com) and from the parent website (www.makeyourdayparents.com).
