It is key to the success of this programme that the sheets and records are not used as weapons, they are simply a method of recording what has happened, leading to the behaviour itself and the outcome, preferably agreed with the child.
“If you carry on, I’ll give you a pink sheet or record” may possibly elicit a less than favourable response from the students and then an escalation of the conflict usually occurs. All the sheets or records have a space to write down what action is taken as a response. This should be the target outcome of the discussion with the student.
“If you continue to do that, I may need to speak to you after this session – is that what you want to do?” Here the student is being given a choice. Hopefully, in most cases, the student will make a good choice. If they do not, carry through the process after the lesson has ended and 1-1, not in public view. After resolving the issue, complete the appropriate sheets or records and fill it in with the student and explain why it is being done
Normally this results in a neutral response to the sheets or records as it is seen as a facilitator and recording mechanism, not a punishment.
Anonymity and seclusion is very important in closing the issues and moving on as others may waft the fires and want to see more action
Using a technology-based approach
For many schools, using technology to track and report back on behaviours, trends and group progress is a key area. There are a number of ways of doing this; some schools have developed their own SIMS modules which will allow the recording to be done instantly and any reports to be generated from within the school. Many will also be selling these on as a commercial product, so there should be no need to develop your own SIMS package.
There are also commercial programmes, IRIS, Sleuth and more recently, Class Dojo and Pocket Praise apps. These are online systems which allow access from within and outside the school using the internet to access information. In addition, with some developments in the pipeline, some parents may be able to access their child's progress from home.
The levels and suggested actions mentioned below also apply to the ICT method of recording
Some schools may prefer a paper-based programme using behaviour sheets
This is often used in smaller schools and primaries, but is more difficult to interrogate and watch trends for specific issues for targeted students. It also requires collation of sheets during the week.
Managing the negative behaviour sheets or recording is a little more subtle.
The sheets are in three levels, the first two and generally being managed by the class teacher, perhaps with some help from the head of department, the pink level may be similarly managed but needs to be referred to the headteacher or a member of SMT.
The coloured sheets or records are not celebration of a child's notoriety and as such should not be shown to any other students if possible. The further up the levels the behaviours go, the more private the use of the sheets or records needs to be. The sheets or record colours are simply guidance to the member of staff dealing with the student as to some idea of the appropriate level of outcome that may be required
The appropriate completion of all sheets or records including
circling/recording appropriate behaviours
writing some more detail of the behaviour including the lesson or location
writing an appropriate outcome
Blue sheets or records Normally dealt with at the end of the lesson with a short period of time recovery to emphasise that issues, even small ones, require some discussion in order that they are not repeated
Yellow sheets or records
these will also normally be dealt with at the end of the lesson but may require a more formal time recovery, possibly including writing a letter of apology or completing some work that was missed as a result of the behaviour
here may be a possibility at this level or even at the blue level that the student will refuse to take part. At this point, we simply use the language of choices and let the student know that if they choose not to stay behind at the first request, that they will be required to stay at the next appropriate break time, not as a punishment, just to discuss the matter and finalise the outcome.
as a consequence of this, the resolution for some issues, particularly those that take place in the afternoon, may span two days.
Pink sheets or records
It is important to realise that these sheets or records may form the basis of a case for exclusion at a future date
often these are filled in well away from the student and the resolution and recovery for these is often left to the headteacher to manage -- possibly with parents in attendance.
students sometimes present behaviours at this level but are quite keen to resolve the issue independently and even though the sheets or record is referred to the headteacher, sometimes the student does not need to be
In filling in all these sheets or records, it is important to realise that they are not the initial point of contact in resolving the issues, they are simply for levelling and recording. It is therefore not ideal to suggest that the student will be getting a blue sheet or record, for example, unless they stop doing XYZ.
It is much better to give them choices around going out to break on time or needing to speak to you. If you feel this pre-warning will lead to conflict, it may be better not to discuss at all and simply speak the individual as the other students are leaving the class room.
If the students feel that your version of the story is not correct, simply ask them what they think is the correct version, write this on the back of the sheet or as additional information and ensure that both versions are read back to the student. The agreement and conclusion to the incident should be that the student will willingly sign the sheets or record rather than wishing to tear it up.
Normally, if this time is spent with a focus on repair, recovery and relationship, the resolution which may include time recovery is not normally a huge issue for the students to accept. It is also not about a 1:1 recovery e.g. if the student misses 15 minutes of the lesson because of an issue, it is not essential for that 15 minutes to be recovered - a token recovery of five minutes normally resolves the issue and satisfies both sides.