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Class Dojo Points For Students – Well guys, today was my 21st day! It’s hard to believe that we’re practically halfway through the first quarter of the school year. Reviews will be done by the end of the week which I will be very happy about! Anywho…when I got my kids into the classroom using Class Dojo, we added some fun new things and I let them have some say in how we give/get points, so I wanted to share it with you. to share
The first week – I stayed ALL POSITIVE on Class Dojo – my kids didn’t even know what a negative point sounded like until halfway through the second week of school. I really wanted to focus on the positive and teach the students the expectations of what they should and should do. I used that week too and said, “next time, we’ll lose a dojo point for that action”.
Class Dojo Points For Students
The first week of school my positive and negative activities for points were very general and somewhat aligned with our classroom rules, which are WBT 5 classroom rules. After about 2 and a half weeks of school, we ate the dojo lunch at work (since we eat lunch in our classrooms) and, as a class, edited the behavior for positive and negative points.
Idea Share: Class Dojo
Now, you know that working with 7-year-olds meant that they wanted to be on top of these really specific, and sometimes silly, behaviors. I couldn’t put all of their ideas or we’d have 20+ pros and cons each, so I had to convince them to group a lot of their ideas under some of the ones we already had (like choosing poor). What stupid behavior a 7 year old would do – one of my sweet girls wanted a positive point for “awesome”!!
After ClassDojo rolled out the Groups Feature this year, it’s so much easier for me to be able to assign points to a group of students at once. So, now, we have the Table of the Week! I have 4 desks in my classroom, so I have a group for each desk. When we’re transitioning or working on a project, I’ll look around for a table that’s doing what it’s doing, or see which table is done the fastest, and they earn a dojo point for their desk. At the end of the week, we look at the Group points and the table with the most takes this fancy mark in their table for the next week. Then we reset the table group points and start on Monday.
Now that we are 4 weeks into school, my kids are starting to collect some points! On Friday afternoon, we had our first members join the 100 point Dojo club! I used monster clipart from ClassDojo to make these little monsters to represent the students’ names.
And finally, our Dojo Leader of the Week! Every Friday afternoon, I look at the Class Dojo reports to see which student has the highest points for the week and that student is the Dojo Leader of the Week. They get a brag badge, a certificate, and their name is added to our Class Dojo bulletin board. They start asking me on Monday who has the most points – but I make them wait until Friday!
Show Or Hide Points In Parent Reports
The monsters on the side are a preview of the Dojo Leaders of the Week – they might become the boss again, so keeping their monster nearby helps! How to measure and evaluate participation is a frequently debated topic. Over the years, I have used different methods. A few years ago, I used a spreadsheet to add and subtract points for everything students did or didn’t do in class. I also created alternative activities every day for students who were absent and needed to make up points. It wasn’t a bad system, but I just couldn’t get on with it. For the last couple of years, I’ve gone to a system where I roughly estimate an engagement score for each student at the end of every 3 weeks – not as accurate or rigorous, but much easier to handle.
Lately, I think I want something more, more active and more demanding. One of my goals over Christmas break (when I wasn’t destroying and rebuilding the house in preparation for the new baby) was to find a better way to attend class. I did some research and found Class Dojo (classdojo.com). I have been using it for 5 weeks, and I love it. There are still some kinks to work out, but the difference in my workouts is incredible.
Class Dojo is a program designed for elementary teachers to track student behavior. However, it also serves as a tool for a Foreign Language teacher to monitor attendance. I was able to create a lesson and add all my students to it. I was also able to change the list of actions that would add or subtract points to each student’s score. The best part is that I can control it all with an app on my iphone. I can quickly add or subtract points with my phone and the website will track it. By the end of the week, I had everything gathered and ready to go into the class book.
I told the students that they needed to earn 10 points each week, and I distributed to the class what actions earned and lost points. Now, instead of dumb, distant faces when I ask questions in class, I get more volunteers than I wanted (a good problem).
Using Class Dojo As A Classroom Economy!
I understand that the relationship I have made with the students is a bit superficial, but I don’t mind. I joked with them about how much more popular I am now when I pick up my phone. Last week, as I was leaving the building, a student closed the door in front of me. She asked how she earned participation points. I laughed and told him it doesn’t work like that.
Since the program is made for children, its appearance is childish. Each student’s name comes with a silly monster avatar. There were some app reviews that said this would be a problem for older students. I didn’t have such a problem. When I present the scores and pictures, no one complains that it is too childish.
It should be clear to students that Class Dojo is not used for behavior. The behavior is separate and does not affect the grades.
I currently only teach level 2, 3 and 4. Attempting to force speaking from lower level students may not be appropriate. And, starting in the second half of level 2, as I did, may be just about right.
Class Dojo For Classroom Management
It may be wise to adjust the required points according to class size. They may be fair in large classes.
I want students to understand that missing class does not absolve them of their responsibility. The “work” class is everything in the TPRS class. If they miss, I tell them they need to do more the next day to compensate. I will not correct the required points of each student due to absence. However for students who miss most or all of a week, I do a video interview as a way to catch up. Let’s face it, there are a million different systems for motion management. I have tried many over the years and sometimes I have tried several times in a year! However, there is one that I keep coming back to again and again, and that is Class Dojo!
In a nutshell, Class Dojo is a FREE online tool that allows teachers to give or take grades from students. But really, it’s too much! Class Dojo has a website www.classdojo.com and a free app! So there are options for everyone!
How it works: The teacher creates an account and adds students. Each student is given a little monster character and can be changed at any time!
Mr. Sommerfeldt / Class Dojo Management/communication System
Students receive positive points for positive behavior and negative points for negative behavior. These moves are completely customizable so they fit the needs of your classroom!
On the website, you can also view and print a variety of reports! You can adjust according to time, student, etc. Also, parents will receive an e-mail of their child’s report every week.
Speaking of parents, the ability for parents to connect with Class Dojo is probably my favorite feature. Parents can use the website or app to register as a parent with a special code you send them. Then they have access to see their child’s behavior at any time! It also has a great messaging system that allows you to communicate with parents individually or as a group!!
Class Dojo stories are kind of like a Facebook wall. Where you can post updates, photos and videos for class viewing. There is a class story for everyone to see and every student has their own story!
Going Strong In 2nd Grade: 21 Days In…how We Are Using Class Dojo!
What to do with the points earned? I have done it several ways
