Character Cards

Hello, all! I hope your July is going well! I have been taking time to read and relax. But I've also been prepping for the upcoming school year and rethinking my classroom management plan. I stick to my old reliable tools and tricks, but I try to add something new in each year. 

I'm hoping to share something with you that I have found to be tremendously helpful and effective for all of the students I've had. You may know them as Brag Tags, but I choose to call them Character Cards. Why? Because I don't think bragging has a positive connotation, and I think that when we focus on character in the classroom, we get better result.

What are they? Character Cards are fun little cards that students can be given for any reason and at any time. Because my school is a Leader in Me school, I've created some with a leadership theme. I have a *FREEBIE* of these below, so stay tuned!

When do I give them out? I give out Character Card regularly, but I am very free with them during "difficult" times of the year. You know what I mean--the first few weeks, right before winter break, right after winter break, right before spring break, right after spring break, and as the year ends. Wow. That's literally almost all the time. ;) I also pass these out with specific purposes. Each card I have made has a positive message and reason I am giving it out. I try to be very choosy about the cards I give out. 

What do my students do with them? There are two options for how to store your cards in my classroom--either in baseball card sleeves in a folder, or in a zipper pencil pouch. My first year with Character Cards, I thought my students would be overjoyed with them and want to take them home at the end of the year. Not so. I actually had students asking if they could throw them away. I had spent HOURS printing, laminating, and cutting these things. I was NOT about to have them in the trash. This is when inspiration struck. I told them they could throw them out, but why would they want to if they were going to get to use them at a class store at the end of the year? Voila. Best behaved class the last week of school, and I had some friends with some serious behaviors that year. I have since upped the store to twice a year--once before winter break and once at the end of the year. My change this year will be to allow them to use their Character Cards to buy small, free incentives at the end of each week. 

How do I store my Character Cards? I store my Character Cards in a plastic parts storage drawer (not an affiliate link). I love it, it's the perfect size, and it doesn't take up too much space! I need to purchase another one, but until I do, extra cards can be stored in those skinny pencil/pen baskets from the dollar store. I tried to find a close up of this in action, but the best I could find is the photo below...

Still not sure if Character Cards are for you? That's totally fine! BUT, if you're thinking you'd like to get your feet wet at try them, I have two freebies for you!

These two cuties are a part of a full set that you can purchase from my Teachers Pay Teachers store HERE! Please do not use these freebies for anything other than personal use, though. I trust you, I just have to say that. ;)

Thank you SO MUCH for stopping by today friends! I hope that what I've shared today is helpful for you as you decide on a classroom management strategy for the upcoming school year! As always, if you have something you'd like me to write about, or have a request for a digital worksheet or other product, please email me at mhkdesigns.etsyATgmailDOTcom! Until next time, HUGS and happy teaching!