Class Dojo for Behavior Management
Setting Up Your Class Dojo Skills
When one hears “Class Dojo,” the first thing that comes to mind is “Oh is that the app that allows you to give and take points away?
Those of us who are veteran Class Dojo users will immediately go on and on (and on and on) about how it is so much more than that!
However, we have to acknowledge Class Dojo’s roots. This was how Class Dojo started. It all began as a behavior management and communication tool for teachers and parents.
In this post, we will discuss the “how-to’s” of Class Dojo’s Behavior Management aspect of the app.
In the previous post we discussed how to set up your classroom. Let’s take a closer look at adding and editing skills.
To add skills you need to navigate to “Options” then “Edit Class.” The great thing about Class Dojo is being able to assign a variety of point values per skill.
Positive skills can be awarded 0 – 5 points and “Needs Work” skills can be deducted 0 – 5. In a PBIS school, I highly encourage the use of 0 point “Needs Work” skills. We will get into this more in our PBIS post.
These skills can be edited at any time. Be sure to spend time modeling these skills so students know how to achieve them.
Many educators, myself included, find the sounds to be distracting. These sounds can be turned on or off. You also have the ability to turn the notifications on or off. This is useful for those that have Class Dojo displayed all day. Some students can be easily distracted by the notifications and sounds. These settings can be changed at any time.
In this example, you can see how to do just that. If you’re using a mobile device
You also have the power to change which skills are shared with parents. You can control this by editing the skills. You can choose to share all points, positive points only, or no points. As a PBIS school, I use the “Postive Points Only” option. In the photo, I show you how to do this on a mobile device. The video is showing you how to do this from a computer.
Creating a Classroom Economy
Ok, so you have the points set up. Now… what do you do with them? A great way to use your Class Dojo points is to turn them into a Classroom Economy. There are a few ways to do this. I will share with you some of the ways I have gone about this.
Bankaroo
I used Bank-a-Roo for the 2018 – 2019 school year. Bank-a-Roo (for schools) allows you to create your bank account for your students. Your students can even set goals for themselves. You can even print out credit cards for your students. I utilized the goals for students to help them save their Dojo points for expensive items or for school celebrations. You can even attach your students’ picture to their account for easier navigation. A couple drawbacks to Bank-a-Roo is the excessive email. Even when I opted not to get the emails, I was getting them. Another drawback is that it can take a bit of time to learn to use. I was very excited to find this app because my previous method using Google Sheets, got to be a bit tedious. Be sure you are signing up for Bank-a-Roo for Schools and not the regular Bank-a-Roo.
Google Sheets
Before I stumbled upon Bank-a-Roo I used Google Sheets. In order to use this method, you will need to have background knowledge of Google Sheets (or Microsoft Excel). I created a tab for each student. Then, using functions, I kept track of how many points they currently have, how much they spent the previous week, and how much they are spending that day. Then, using the “Sum” function, I calculated how much was still in their bank. This method can be complicated, which is why background knowledge of Google Sheets is a must. Click the link below to see a sample of this method. If you would like to use it, be sure to make a copy.
My Current Classroom Economy System
One thing I absolutely love about the Class Dojo team is the fact that they listen to feature requests. Coming soon to all Class Dojo users is the ability to use an economy within Class Dojo! YAY! If you are a Class Dojo mentor, you have access to this feature now! Be sure you have points set to all. You can find this feature when clicking on a student to award/deduct points. You will see a link saying “Redeem Points.” Click on this to deduct a set amount of points and what the student is purchasing.
You can always go back to check what the student purchased by referring to their report. This new feature is a GAME CHANGER and I cannot wait for everyone to have access to it! See the video to explore this feature!
So... What Do the Students Buy?
Once you decide on your classroom economy system, it’s time to decide what your students will be able to buy. I prefer intrinsic rewards over extrinsic rewards. There is nothing wrong with a treasure box, I just prefer to give privileges instead. My students love being able to read to other classes. It is one of their favorite things to buy. I love this because it is a great way to get them excited to read AND it gives them another chance to practice! Eating lunch with friends is always popular (typically we sit boy, girl, boy, girl). The other popular choice is Stinky Feet. This privilege allows them to take their shoes off (in the classroom only) as long as they have socks (or brought slippers). Visiting the principals is another popular choice. Sometimes this means eating lunch with them and other times it just means saying hello, having a snack, or reading a book to them. I have had a lot of success with this store set up.
Class Dojo Reports
A valuable piece of data that you can use when discussing behavior with parents is the Student Reports. I like to use this piece to track behavior trends. It is also valuable for attendance purposes. I will use the reports to discuss frequent behaviors seen in class (positive and negative). I find this really helpful when writing a behavioral plan for my students. The spreadsheets are nice to send home to parents or as a reference tool for conferences. You can print out a class spreadsheet or individual student spreadsheets.
Social-Emotional Learning
As a classroom teacher, I have witnessed my students struggle over the recent years with their social-emotional health. As an educator, one must acknowledge that we are here to teach the WHOLE child. I have really noticed how students struggle with their emotions and what to do with them. It’s unfortunate that children, especially young children, do not get as much social interaction. In this digital age, many children use devices rather than imaginary play. So much learning occurs during this time.
Just when you started to realize how awesome Class Dojo really is- they upped their game even more! Enter Class Dojo’s Social-Emotional Learning series!
Through the Social-Emotional series, we join Mojo and friends on their journey through self discovery. Students will learn how to handle difficult emotions and situations. The activities will lead to important discussions. Students LOVE Mojo and can relate to him.
I especially love being able to share the episodes and activities with parents through Class Story. This will connect the important discussion with families.
The episodes are nice and short- so it’s perfect for a quick 5 – 10 minute transition piece. My class participates in these lessons and activities on Monday., Class Dojo fondly calls this “Mojo Monday.” You can, of course, do this any day of the week.
2 Responses
I really appreciate all the time and effort you put into this! This was very informative! I am looking forward to next part of your series on Class Dojo! I especially enjoyed seeing how you use it in your own class!
Thank you so much, Cleo! If you ever need any help or guidance with Class Dojo do not hesitate to ask!