PROGRAM BEHAVIOR PROGRAM
In year 4 of the PBP we have continued to adjust to fit the needs of the school community. In order to continue to improve and update the program, we surveyed both teachers and parents. We are encouraged by the positive results and we have taken many of the suggestions and implemented them. Additionally this year we welcomed Ms. Rebecca Soderberg, as counselor to WUES. Ms. Soderberg has partnered with Mr. Castle to provide additional support to students and she has already become an integral part of the PBP and our community.
Early in this school year, WUES adopted a school wide pledge, voted on by the students, that has been incorporated into the announcements in the mornings. This year we have also added student nominations and continue to improve on ways to engage our school community with the program. We continue to focus on kindness and this year’s theme is “Cool to be Kind”. Created this year is an interactive stand-alone mural “Be the “I” in Kind” where students are able to stand in front of a mirror and see themselves in the word “Kind”. The mural is on a movable stand so that this art installation can travel around campus for greater impact. This will also be utilized to showcase students who were peer nominated. A photo of each student nominated will be taken and shared in a slideshow that is displayed on tvs throughout the campus and in the cafeteria.
Another focus of the program this year is to promote faculty/staff wellbeing and wellness. We celebrated Wellness Week, focusing on mindfulness, social, physical, environmental and technological wellness. We also implemented Coffee with the Counselors, which allows teachers a day every other month to check in with the counselors during their planning periods and recharge with coffee and snacks.
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The PBP’s goal is to continue to foster and encourage the values of WUES (recognizing Positive Behavior and kindness to enhance our school’s culture) as well as to provide education to our school community through speaker events and student programs. This year the program brought three parent education events and held 2 student events (a pep rally and an educational program from a local production company). We are excited about the impact this program has had on our community to date, and we look forward to finding new ways to positively impact the students, staff and community at WUES.
History of the Positive Behavior Program at West U Elementary
2021-2022
In the first year, we introduced monthly positive behavior traits via the morning announcements and a dedicated interactive bulletin board in the cafeteria. We recruited community artists to portray their interpretation of each of the seven positive behavior traits on a canvas. Students were taught the definition of each trait and were invited to write examples of what the trait meant to them. Teachers and staff nominated students who exhibited a positive behavior trait, and nominees were issued a certificate and recognized on Friday’s morning announcements.
To help incentivize positive behavior, nominees received a coupon for an ICEE from Little Matt’s and a coupon for a cookie from Milk and Cookies, generously donated by these great friends of our school.
At the end of the year, all nominated students and their families were invited to a reception where they were recognized along with our community artists and supporters. In the first year since the launch of this program, we have already seen a quantifiable impact on student behavior and success.
2022-2023
In year two, we added more depth to the positive behavior traits and worked on improving the program’s visibility and reach. Our school counselor, Brian Castle, provided our teachers with lessons and materials about each trait for incorporation into the classroom. We partnered with the Rice University School of Engineering and the Rice University Oshman Engineering Design Kitchen (OEDK) to provide nominated students with laser-cut wood backpack charms that feature the program's positive traits. We designed Positive Behavior-themed T-shirts for the teachers and offered shirts as a fundraiser to the school community.
Another exciting feature we started in year two of the Positive Behavior Program is a Student of the Month Recognition Initiative. Students can submit a form describing what the month’s positive behavior trait means to them, and winning submissions in each grade are displayed in frames around the dedicated cafeteria bulletin board. The PBP also established a library available for teachers and on display in the lobby for parents.
Also new to the 2022-23 school year, the PBP provided a gift to all graduating 5th graders entitled, “You hold the key to your success”. To help with our goal of improving the PBP reach, we started monthly highlight emails through room parents.
In lieu of end-of-year ceremony, the PBP chose to bring in a youth motivational speaker from the organization, Think Kindness, to benefit our entire school, rather than just the students who won awards. The speaker’s talk was titled “Be Kind, Be Brave, Be Strong” and she challenged our school to preform 10,000 acts of kindness. The students of West U Elementary School exceeded expectations and logged over 14,000 acts of kindness. In doing so, we clinched the award of being the Kindest School in America! Way to go West U!!