The student’s at Holmes Elementary are being listened to! In an attempt to teach students to solve their own disputes each class holds a daily class meeting. The students arrange their chairs in a circle and follow an agenda they have created with items they want to talk about. Each meeting begins with compliments and appreciations. Students take turns giving compliments or appreciations to each other on a daily basis. They get really good at this skill with enough practice. The fact that our students get into the habit of complimenting each other creates an nice classroom atmosphere in which to learn. The students create the agenda by listing on a chart problems they would like help in solving. Students brainstorm ideas that the student could use to solve the problem. The student who brings the problem to the group gets to decide which of the ideas to try first.
The students enjoy being listened to by their teacher and fellow classmates. The bonds of friendship form so much faster with class meetings built into every school day.
Our Positive Discipline program is based on the ideas in the book, Positive Discipline in the Classroom, by Jane Nelson.
Positive Discipline is:
- Non-punitive — no humiliation, blame, shame or pain for the student
- Based on kindness and firmness
- Building dignity and respect for our students
- Focused on long term change not short term gain
- Focused on solutions instead of punishments
Our program is a partnership between Holmes Elementary, Ohio Department of Education, Ohio Commisson on Dispute Resolution and Conflict Management, and the Wilmington College Peace Resource Center.
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