Silver End Academy Behaviour Improvement Policy
Governing Body Statement
The Governing Body of Silver End Academy views the Behaviour Policy as one of the vital elements in ensuring the overall aims and objectives of the Academy are met. This policy ensures that the whole school community works together to maintain the safety and emotional well-being of all, in order that pupils achieve their full potential and staff work within a supportive framework.
School mission statement: ‘Grow, Flourish, Succeed’. “A good self-image is the most valuable psychological possession of a human being” [John Powell 1976]
“We must move toward developing competency and self-worth, accompanied by responsible decision making and helping one another. In this atmosphere schools can empower young people with courage, confidence and life skills instead of burdening them with feelings of fear and inadequacy”. [Nelson, Lott and Glenn]
A commitment to the continual improvement of behaviour underpins the structure of the school and all members of staff follow the whole school approach to behaviour improvement.
Whole school agreement on improving behaviour generates high morale amongst staff and children. The children know behaviour improvement will be consistent throughout the school and this in turn generates security.
When members of the community work together to create a learning environment that enables everyone to feel comfortable and successful inconsiderate behaviours will be reduced.
A well-structured and consistent set of procedures will be supportive to new members of staff, covering teachers and new pupils.
All behaviour improvement at Silver End Academy concentrates on raising self-esteem, encouraging self-discipline and engendering a community identity. The existence of an Inclusion Team with members of staff with responsibility for the development of behaviour systems and procedures is an indication of the importance attached to this area.
Aims of this policy
At Silver End we aim to:
Silver End Goals of behaviour improvement
The Rights of all at Silver End Academy
Our rights at Silver End Academy are an expression of the fundamental values that we as a community encourages, teach and promote. To ensure everyone’s rights are protected; members of the community must abide by the ‘fair’ school rules and accept the responsibility of their own behaviour.
Values held by our school community
We all have the right to:
Learn or teach. Be safe. Be treated with respect.
Our responsibilities are:
Strategies and procedures for promoting acceptable behaviour and working habits within the school
The Elton Report [1989] suggests that when considering the requirements for effective school behaviour improvement the following 3 needs should be addressed.
At Silver End we feel we have addressed these three needs very effectively in the procedures and strategies that we have in place to promote acceptable behaviour and working habits.
Whole school procedures and ways of celebrating achievement within the school
School Rules
Our school rules serve to protect the rights of all members of the school community. These rules are displayed in a prominent position in every classroom. They are revisited at regular intervals throughout the school year and the children are encouraged to show responsibility in abiding by them. All procedures and strategies are based on these ‘fair’ rules.
Codes of Conduct
At the beginning of each new school year the class teacher and children will formulate a class code of conduct to operate alongside the school rules. This will be the basis for all classroom behaviour improvement. The children and staff from each class then get together to formula. See Establishment procedures for details. These rules will be revisited and revised at regular intervals throughout the school year. All classes operate ‘Time Out’.
My Own Targets
Each week the children decide to work towards a target that is based on social skills. This can be related to behaviour issues, friendship issues or working together in class.
Circle Time
Circle time or class meetings provide a structured forum for class discussions. They give teachers great insight into pupil’s attitudes, concerns and opinions on school topics. Within this framework topics such as making rules and behaviour can be discussed in an open, democratic way. Circle time promotes group co-operation and cohesion as well as raising self-esteem. There is a set format to follow with definite rules:
Circle Time can be very rewarding for both staff and pupils as they build up trust with one another. It is essential to ensure that all participants in a Circle Time feel comfortable. There are many ‘warm-up’ activities that can be used to achieve this. For further information see Circle Time activities to raise self-esteem*
Celebration of Achievement at Silver End Academy
The whole school approach to behaviour improvement at Silver End is a positive approach and the celebration of achievement is an essential part of this. The more valued child feels the more positive is their self-image. When children feel their efforts and achievements are recognised by the other children and adults within a school, they will strive to achieve more. Fundamental to any whole school, positive approach to behaviour improvement is the support of the Headteacher.
The Headteacher’s Input
Promotion of a positive system of behaviour improvement must begin with the Headteacher. It is essential that he/she has very active and high profile participation in the celebration of achievement. At Silver End this happens through:
Headteacher awards/stickers
The Headteacher has a collection of special stickers that the children can choose from when they bring examples of their excellent work. The sticker is attached to the work and initialled by the Headteacher.
Headteacher certificates
These certificates are awarded for participation in special events or contributing to school life in a special way. These can be individual or class awards e.g. participation in District Sports, Music Festival, working with the Infant children. These are often presented at a whole school assembly. Silver certificate Assembly, Ambassador Assembly and stickers At the end of each week a whole school assembly is held to celebrate the special achievement of one child from each class. The Headteacher leads this assembly and classteachers explain to the whole school how and why the child has been nominated for the award.
Contact with Parents
The Headteacher/Deputy Head often inform parents personally of their child’s special achievement, by telephone, before or after school and at Parent Meetings.
Class Awards
Daily incentives If children have had an excellent week with no time outs or serious incidents they are able to have reward at the end of the week.
Ambassador of the week Each week one child will be identified as ‘Ambassador of the week’ for consistently being a good ambassador for the school, within their class. Children receive certificates, which can be presented during Ambassador Assembly.
The House System House points are awarded for considerate and supportive behaviour House assembly The Houses meet together regularly to share and celebrate achievements.
Other whole school recognition of achievement General stickers All members of staff (teaching and non-teaching) have a selection of stickers. When children produce a piece of work, which demonstrates good effort or progress, he/she can choose a member of staff to show the work to. Walkabouts The Headteacher and Deputy spend time in classes, observing and talking to children, looking at work and celebrating individual/class successes. This is very supportive for class teachers and indicates to the children that the senior management of the school take an active interest in their classroom activities. Positive comments show appreciation of the hard work resulting in a good classroom atmosphere.
Lunchtime Awards
MDA stickers MDAs on the playground award stickers for appropriate behaviour and for having a healthy lunch. Display Staff and children spend time producing high quality work to be displayed in classrooms and central areas of each House. The shared responsibility of all members of the House encourages the children to feel pride and ownership of the displays (See Display Policy for greater details).
Specific procedures for those children who experience behaviour difficulties Every school, at some point, will inevitably have pupils that for one reason or another do not respond to the type of general procedures already outlined. These children have special needs and require more individual strategies to help them develop self- control and take responsibility for their own behaviour. SEND plans If a child’s behaviour is causing concern on a regular basis, the parents will be informed and the child may be placed on an SEND plan. This will involve recording the areas of concern and working out strategies to help the child. It will usually result in an Individual Behaviour Plan being formulated, with the Inclusion Manager, Behaviour lead, parents and child. In some cases the Headteacher may also attend the meetings. Individual Behaviour Programmes Identified children have an IBP. These outline the school’s main areas of concern, set targets for the children and record how progress towards these targets will be achieved. The programmes are implemented by the person responsible for behaviour improvement on a weekly basis. Charts are monitored daily. The Headteacher monitors all the programmes. The programmes are reviewed and renewed 2/3 times each year. Those children with an EBD statement also have a support plan detailing how support is used.
Time Out and Paired Teachers If a child fails to respond to classroom procedures, they may have to be isolated from the rest of the group for a specified time. Each class has a designated Time Out area for this purpose. If the child refuses to take Time Out within their classroom, or continues to be disruptive, they will be asked to take themselves to another class teacher to take Time Out in their area. If the child refuses to leave, the class teacher will send for the paired teacher, who will come and remove the child. If the child still refuses, the Behaviour Lead will be called to remove the child. If the child continues to refuse the Behaviour Manager will be called to remove the child. Parents may be called to discuss the child’s behaviour. All children who have had Time Out, receive a letter informing their parents. This should be signed and returned. In extreme cases the child may be excluded for a few days. Every incident of Time Out is recorded and followed up by the Behaviour Lead Classroom Procedures
The Elton report suggested that classroom management skills were perhaps the single most important factor in achieving good standards of classroom behaviour. Classroom management Classteachers/Set teachers and LSAs plan very carefully to ensure their lessons run efficiently and effectively at all times. All classrooms are organised so the children have adequate working space and easy access to equipment. Books and other resources are displayed to create an attractive, stimulating work environment. Class teachers take time on displaying children’s work, demonstrating how this work is valued. All children will have work displayed over the year.
Planning Work planned by the class teacher is differentiated to cater for the individual children’s abilities and needs. Teaching of activities is very varied so the children experience a wide range of teaching styles and stimuli. TAs work alongside the class teacher to support individual children or small groups.
Establishment Procedures
It is essential that all class teachers follow this procedure as it establishes their own and the schools expectations of behaviour management.
Revisiting or introducing the school rules All children must have access to a copy of the school rules. These must be read through carefully and discussed to ensure understanding of meaning and purpose, particularly the rights and responsibilities.
Draft suggestions for year group code of conduct.
Explain the purpose of the year group code of conduct and the relationship of these to the school rules. In groups children formulate suggestions for 4-5 ‘rules’ for the code of conduct. Each group presents to the rest of the class. All suggestions are discussed and then 4-5 ‘rules’ are chosen to go forward to the year group meeting. The class also decides who will present the suggestions.
Year group meeting
The whole year group meets in the hall and the chosen representatives from each class put forward their suggestions. The whole year group then vote for the rules they wish to
adopt. Members of staff must explain the importance of these negotiated codes and the fact that they will be the basis for all behaviour management throughout the year. The children also need to know that all members of staff that teach them will be aware of their code. Acknowledgement of the code All children will sign an agreement to abide by the codes of conduct and the signed copy will be displayed in the classroom. A copy will also go home to the parents. During the first week of the school year the code should be referred to and revisited regularly so the children become very familiar with it as do we all!
Consequences and rewards
Once the above have been accomplished the children must understand the consequences and reward systems that accompany the codes of conduct. Time Out and Reward times must be carefully explained. The children must be clear about the following: Where they take class Time Out. Who their paired teacher is. That they always take Time Out with their paired teacher unless other arrangements have been agreed.
Use of the code
All members of staff will have a copy of the year group codes. These are to be used when teaching any lesson, thus ensuring consistency of behaviour management across the school. When teaching a class for the first time remind the children that you have their code of conduct and will be using it to ensure everyone can learn without disruption.
When a class teacher begins a school year with a new class he/she needs to establish him/herself. This is setting the tone for the whole year. Procedures negotiated with pupils, for rewarding required behaviour often helps speed up this process. These will be based on the class code of conduct, and could include ‘Caught being good’ or awarding counters for appropriate behaviour. These rewards are often individually given and then go towards a group total, helping to foster group co-operation. The class decides on a target number of rewards and chooses a long-term ‘treat’ to work for. Some classteachers have a weekly tally, and the winning group chooses an activity to do together.
Playground Procedures
Morning Breaktime The members of staff on duty monitor behaviour on the playground. At the end of playtime a member of staff blows a whistle. All children stand still and silent. They are then given a verbal instruction to walk to their lessons. This is to encourage a calm end to play ready to begin the next work session. All incidents of inappropriate behaviour are dealt with initially by members of staff on duty but if the situation escalates the child/children involved in the incident will be sent to the Breaktime Room. If an incident needs further action all involved will go to the Lunchtime Room. The member of staff responsible for behaviour will deal with the incident. Lunchtime Lunchtimes can, at times, present difficulties for some children, particularly those with behaviour problems. It is very important for the children to have some unstructured
time, when they organise their own play. [Although some soft play equipment is provided]. This can lead to disagreements and tempers become frayed. At Silver End we have evolved a set of procedures to help children take responsibility for their behaviour in the same way as we have for other school times. All midday staff have a very positive, supportive approach to the children, which helps make the lunchtime procedures so successful. Minor incidents at lunchtime are dealt with on the playground by the MDAs who record the incident in their record books. These record books are collected in each lunchtime and all incidents and the children involved are put on to an accumulative record. If a child’s name begins to appear regularly in these records he/she is asked to come to the Lunchtime Room to discuss their behaviour and the consequences of continued problems. They will be given the opportunity to have respite from the playground if they wish to spend time in the Behaviour room. Each class has an identified MDA who they are encouraged to approach in the first instance if they experience problems at lunchtime.
Lunchtime Room
This is a designated classroom, where the children can take themselves or be taken should they need ‘time out’ from the playground. The area is supervised by the responsibility for behaviour, the Behaviour Lead, the Inclusion Manager and the Headteacher If a serious incident occurs at lunchtime all concerned will be taken/sent to the Behaviour room. If the child refuses to follow these procedures one of the Behaviour staff will be sent for to collect him/her. The child/children will be spoken to and the incident recorded in the Lunchtime folder. All children involved will be given the opportunity to write/tell their side of the story. Once the incident has been dealt with to the satisfaction of all concerned the child/children can then return to the playground. The Lunchtime Room is also used for ‘make-up’time [see Time Out procedures] and for those children unable to go onto the playground for medical reasons or because they are not wearing correct school uniform. These children are able to participate in ‘play’ activities using the lunchtime equipment.
Eating Arrangements
A high standard of behaviour is expected of the children when eating. The Lunchtime staff monitor this. If a child’s behaviour is inappropriate he/she will be spoken to. If the behaviour persists, the child may be asked to eat in the Lunchtime Room. Should this happen the incident will be followed up, when the child has finished lunch in the Lunchtime Room. Those children that experience problems regularly at lunchtime are paired with a named MDA. Success is rewarded with certificates/stickers.
Simple steps towards effective behaviour management
Raising self esteem is the most important factor governing all behaviour improvement Raising children self esteem is the most effective way of improving their behaviour. If the child spends much of his/her time with adults who concentrate on their failings, their self-esteem or self-image is damaged. Their emotional, social and academic development is blighted. If however a child experiences respect for their opinions, has appropriate behaviour reinforced and is given time and approval they will develop a sense of security, identity, belonging and competence. The best way to enhance a pupil’s self-esteem is to, verbally and through actions, makes them feel special.
“A good self-image is the most valuable psychological possession of a human being” [John Powell 1976]
Policy Implemented September 2016- MAT Policy.
We use cookies to track usage and improve the website.
Click here for more information.