It’s an Honour
REWARDS AND INCENTIVES
Getting Started
If you haven’t done so already, get together a group of interested people from the school community (e.g. students, staff, parents/guardians/caregivers and other community members) to work on this badge. Be sure to engage the entire school community and provide opportunities for input as the work progresses. This will help increase buy-in from your school community.
Badge Benefits
Rewarding student achievements or behaviours with food can lead to unintended negative consequences for their relationship with food. Offering food as a reward disrupts a student’s ability to recognize their own hunger cues and promotes the belief that food must be earned. To foster a healthy relationship with food, it is better to acknowledge students’ accomplishments through non-food rewards such as positive statements, classroom privileges, extra recess, collaborative games, stickers, certificates, physical activity, or other non-food incentives.
Steps To Earn This Badge
Step 1 - Explore You School Community
Ask other teachers and staff about their reward systems; what do they use as rewards? Are there opportunities for improvement?
Ask students what motivates them to succeed? Focus on fun not food!
What kind of rewards are feasible? Is there a budget for student recognition?
Step 2 - Make a Plan and Have Fun Completing It
Use the information found under Learn More, Helpful Tools and Activities and Badge Inspiration to create a plan that works for you and your goals. Involve all key partners and have fun completing your plan.
Step 3 - Evaluate and Celebrate
What worked well? Would you do things differently next time?
What did students think of the new rewards? Did you get any parent or teacher feedback?
Was the new reward system adopted by the whole school? If not, is there interest in doing so?
Celebrate! You should be proud of your efforts to boost positive eating behaviours at your school!
Step 4 - Keep it Alive
Would it be possible for all classrooms to adopt rewards without food? If you haven’t already, you may want to consider creating an ongoing healthy school committee. You may also want to consider developing school guidelines or policies for lasting change (add a good link?)
Badge Inspiration
- Innovative and inspirational ideas submitted from schools across the province!
- Praise (e.g., certificate, sticker, verbal acknowledgement)
- Public recognition via an assembly, morning announcements, school newsletter/social media
- Privileges (e.g., sit near friends, extra time for preferred activities, being first in lines)
- Identification as the Classroom Helper (e.g., making deliveries to the office)
- Earning points or play money to be used towards non-food prizes (e.g., school supplies, spirit wear)
- Choosing a prize from a Treasure Box (filled with stickers, erasers, highlighters, fancy paperclips and other fun school supplies)
- Class outdoor activity
- Free passes for school events (e.g., dances)
