This year Oster School launched PBIS. You might have heard your student talk about the Oster way which is:

PBIS (Positive Behavior Interventions & Supports) is used to improve school safety and promote positive behavior at Oster. It also helps teachers and staff decide how to respond to a child who misbehaves.

At its heart, PBIS calls on teachers to teach kids about behavior, just as they would teach about any other subject—like reading or math. PBIS recognizes that kids can only meet behavior expectations if they know what the expectations are. An indicator of a school using PBIS is that everyone knows what’s appropriate behavior. Throughout the school day—in class, at lunch, and on the playground—kids understand what’s expected of them.

PBIS has a few important guiding principles:

 

• Every child can learn proper behavior.

• Stepping in early can prevent more serious behavior problems.

• Each child is different and schools need to provide many kinds of behavior support.

• How schools teach behavior should be based on research and science.

PBIS creates a common dialogue, common vocabulary, and common goals for Oster and allows us all to be on the same page.

Not only does PBIS help with behavior issues, it helps build a deeper sense of community among our students and staff. And, as the name suggests, PBIS works by recognizing the positive aspects of what we are looking for, which has been highly motivating for our students.

Classroom teachers taught lessons comprised of our Oster Matrix (see picture above).

 

We had our kick-off assembly which described how kids could earn Cougar Cash and what happens to the Cougar Cash once they earn it. Basically, when a student demonstrates how to be SAFE, RESPECTFUL, or RESPONSIBLE, they can earn a buck.

 

Students write their name on the Cougar Cash and then place in to a box in their classroom. Every other Friday, five cougar Cash tickets are chosen at random and those students get a chance to win a prize.

Families are encouraged to support PBIS through use of common language and expectations in the home. Get to know Oster's 3 school-wide rules and work with your child to make unique definitions for how to connect them to behaviors at home.
PBIS schools focus on teaching the behaviors they desire while at school through explicit instruction, practice, and positive reinforcement. A strong partnership between the home and the school can provide families with ideas on addressing behavior in a similar way at home too.

 

To learn more about PBIS we encourage parents to check out the resources available at:https://www.pbis.org/topics/family