Teacher Idea Factory

Teacher Idea Factory

SUPER STUDENT BUCKS – MATH + REWARDS IN ONE

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Hey gang!  Pardon the late post.  I went with the sci-fi lovin’ hubster to see Prometheus.  Not the best movie around, but not the worst either.  (I’ll take it over Event Horizon any day!)  The cool thing was that it was my first 3D movie. I kept wanting to grab the “stars,” but I somehow restrained myself.  

I have our final teacher workday of the year in the AM so I need to get my bum into bed, but I wanted to offer up a little Back To School management freebie.  

I run Super Student Bucks in my classroom.  Kids earn this play money for all sorts of things – manners, trying their best, getting papers on the super star board, helping others, etc.  As money is earned, these bucks are stored in special wallets (labeled Ziploc bags) in the students’ pencil boxes.    

Thank you PeachPops Clip Art for your fantastic little hero!
CLICK HERE to get the Super Student Bucks FREEBIE
Every other week, the kids cash in their money to have lunch with me.  Pretty much the kids get to eat in the classroom and I spring for very small dessert (i.e. a cookie). At the beginning of the year I set the “price” of my lunches low. As the school year progresses, I up the price. The kids love earning money and ask to count it all of the time.  There’s the kicker . . . they want to count it.  This has proved to be the best skip counting practice around.  I always start the school year giving out ones and move to tens and hundreds a few months in. Then, about mid-year, I add fives to the mix.  My classes learn to pile their bucks by value, skip count like crazy, and count on like pros.  By the end of the year my kiddos are earning in the thousands and most can count it on their own with awesome accuracy.  
Interested in trying this in your classroom?  Print out the above templates on different colors of card stock (i.e. $1 on white, $5 on pink, etc).  You will need at least a 50 -100 copies of each student buck value to start.  However, once you have a set, you will not have to remake them for quite a few years.  
I only have three rules in my room when it comes to money:
  1. You keep the money you earn.  Although we love sharing, this is not something to give away.  You earned it . . . you deserve to keep it. 
  2. Please keep the money in your “wallet.”  This keeps stray bucks to a minimum.  
  3. No stealing money.  If a child steals money from another student or from the “bank,” he/she looses all of his/her money and does not get to attend the lunch date.

Want to make personalized bucks??  Simply slam a few text boxes together, add and oval, and slip in your own special clip art!!

Alright my friends . . . I’ve gotta call it a night.  If you have any questions on this, give me a shout (I may night be making much sense at this hour).  Have a great one and I’ll see you soon 🙂

Comments

  2. Heidi says

    This is a great idea to use and it teaches soooo many different concepts in the process. When I was doing my subbing I was in several different classes that used this technique and once all of the students got their money for the day (they had morning work that they earned money for) they got to count it and keep a record of their money. They also had to exchange their money for high bills. It was a great tool to help them with money sense. 🙂 Soooo many possibilities with this idea 🙂

    Heidi
    My (Not So) Elementary Life

  5. Lisa R. says

    Love those super student bucks! We use something similar in my class- "Buccaneer Bucks" (I have a pirate theme) and it works like a charm. I use the same guidelines that you do & it's a great behavior management tool! 🙂 I like how you add 5s to the mix later on. It reinforces so many important skills!
    Lisa
    Learning Is Something to Treasure

  8. April says

    I just found your blog and have already implemented an economy system. My students get a $200 pay day. Although I feel like that may have been too much to start with. I'm trying to think of a creative economic downfall that may cause them to get $100 a pay day LOL.

    I haven't given them time to spend their money yet. How do you orchestrate that? Is it only for lunch with the teacher? If not do you give a few options at a time that they can spend their money on?

    • teacherideafactory says

      You can run a store day (my dad and mom) used to do this in their classes. The parents donate unwanted items (i.e. toys and such) and the store is open the last Friday of every month. The items are put into priced bins and the kids get to determine what and how much to buy. This does take quite a bit of prep though.

      I always just run with a lunch because it's easy and it requires no prep 🙂 I love your economic downfall idea . . . cracks me up!! Good luck with this system . . . let me know where you end up going with it!!

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