All Elementary Principals from Thomson gave a presentation Tuesday at the 2006 Annual Meeting of the Association of Teacher Educators in Atlanta. Laura Hughes from Dearing Elementary, Mychele Swain from Maxwell Elementary, Beth Newton from Thomson Elementary, and Steve Rhodes from Norris Elementary, along with a teacher from each school, gave a multimedia presentation on motivation strategies for students at their schools.
Each school practices different reward programs that engage their students in a collaborative effort to improve the school and the academic success of all students. The programs are successful as is evidenced in the Spring 2005 test scores for each school.
According to Mrs. Swain, some examples of student incentives presented were: The Triple A Club, where students who have met standards in academics, attendance and attitude become members of their own special club; Accelerated Reader Awards, where students are awarded points to shop in the Accelerated Reader store; Best Behavior Blast, where students without strikes have a celebration of their choice, such as an ice cream party or a movie party; and Principal's Positive Phone Call, where the principal calls parents in the evening to report the student's good deeds.
The presentation included handouts and audience participation, allowing the audience to ask questions and participate in an incentive.
