Classroom Management with Marbles Results

It's been two weeks since the Christmas break and already I feel that January is becoming a better month than my first few months of teaching.  I feel more focused, and more determined to make interactive and engaging lessons.  My New Year's resolutions of using my SMART board more and having more group work has been helping my lessons incredibly.  While it is more work at times, in the end it is so much more rewarding!  Now I just need to make a goal for getting marking done on time...haha.  

I posted about how I was going to use marbles for a new classroom management strategy here in November.  I said that I was going to try it within 2 weeks...well it's been about 2 months..and I am finally starting it :).  As for results... it is going well.  I find it is an easy strategy to keep up with (I found this hard when I used the stop light strategy at the beginning of the year).  It also motivates the kids to be more attentive when specific instructions are given.  Most of all, they are excited about it.  

If your interested in trying it in your classroom these are the rules that I gave to my students:

1.  To get marbles, it is a group effort.  Some examples of how students can get marbles is showing me that they are ready for a lesson quickly, staying quiet when you are supposed to, acts of kindness, etc.

2.  Marbles are taken away when students do not listen, are not showing me they are ready for a class, are extra loud in the cubbies, etc.

3.  There is absolutely no blaming allowed.  If a student blames another student, all of the marbles are taken out of the jar and we have to start over.

4.  By March Break if all the marbles are in the jar we get to have an afternoon class party.   I plan on playing a class game, have some treats for the students, and maybe watching a short video.  

If you have any other tips for this classroom strategy, let me know!