The Chart...

Gavin was truly inspired by the behavior chart in his Kindergarten classroom this year.  So much so that he decided to re-create it at home.  The kids start at "Ready to Shine" in the middle of the chart every day, and with their good or bad decisions throughout the day, their clothespins move up and down.  When they got to "Super Star" on top of the chart, Mrs. Ryan would send home a star with piece of candy attached, and if the kids ended the day at the bottom of the chart, they were sent to the director's office and a note was sent home to parents.  Thankfully, Gavin never landed at the bottom, and we were very proud of him for getting to the top five times during the year.  It has become a pretty helpful behavior modification tool at home now, too, and Gavin and Gage are motivated to get to the top (special rewards and privileges) and not end up on the bottom (no electronics the next day or bedtime book) at the end of the day.  It's not a perfect system, of course, but I think that it's been mostly positive and helpful around here.  I love that Gavin re-created it with such precision, and I didn't realize that until I saw the real deal in his classroom one day.