Classroom economy motivates Grade 6 students at Oyen Public School

By Samantha Johnson
Prairie Rose Public Schools Content Writer

This past September, on the first day of the school year, Kayl Davies, teacher at Oyen Public School, and her class of Grade 6 students collaborated to create a set of classroom norms, giving the students a voice in the classroom environment they would be part of. Davies took the expectations and grouped them into three core values: respect, responsibility and teamwork. From there, Davies created a contract and the class held a democratic vote, which resulted in the contract being approved. Most of the students chose to sign the contract and not only did the process correlate with the Grade 6 social studies curriculum on democracy but it also provided a great learning opportunity for all involved.

Cruz Evans, left, and Jayden Stewart standing in front of the board in their Grade 6 classroom at Oyen Public School that lists all the jobs students in the class can apply for. SUBMITTED PHOTO

“In classroom economy we have jobs,” explained student Cruz Evans, “such as teacher’s assistant, banker, and homework helper. We also have our Davies Dollars, ranging from five cents to $5, and taxes. We made wallets at the beginning of the year to put our money in and we can each get paid and taxed.”

Once core values and a contract were in place, Davies introduced the students to the concept of classroom fines, attaching a printed list to the whiteboard for everyone to reference. Evans explained the fines are for such things as leaving a mess, which will cost 25 cents in Davies Dollars. The student holding the position of teacher’s assistant is responsible for taxing and the money goes to the banker. Each student created a personalized wallet to hold their Davies Dollars and Evans added if a student doesn’t have enough money to pay the fine, they are allowed to go into debt.

Every two weeks, the students are allowed to shop at the classroom store using their Davies Dollars. As a class, the students chose the items, along with the price of each, that would be in the store to provide them with motivation to earn a reward.

Student Jayden Stewart currently holds the position of banker, but his preferred position is errand runner. “I like banking because I’m good at math,” he said. “We buy prizes and other things with the money. Miss. Davies has different board games, puzzles, and squish toys. It’s lots of fun. I’ve gotten some hockey cards, a squish ball and a cup. For errand runner I get to run different errands and hand out hot lunches. I’m pretty good at that because I’m fast.”

The classroom jobs change each month and students must apply for them, stating on their application their first and second choice along with using persuasive language on why they should be selected to hold their desired position.

Evans explained, “at the start of each month, we move our desks around so we sit by someone else and we change our classroom job. We must apply for the jobs on sheets Miss. Davies hands us. You write your name, age, grade, and you pick two options, first choice and second, and then there are additional notes to write on why we would be good at the job. My job right now is teacher’s assistant and I wrote what I’m good at: math for taxing people, I can multitask and I have a good memory.”

Another motivational concept Davies implemented in her classroom is having students earn letters toward spelling the word compliment. “When students demonstrate kind acts, use good manners, or show helpfulness around the school, they may be noticed by other staff members. If a staff member, other than myself, gives the class a compliment for their behavior, we earn a letter toward the word COMPLIMENT. Each compliment equals one letter, and once we’ve collected all ten letters to complete the word, we have a celebration.”

Evans and Stewart were excited because the word was almost complete again, which will be the third celebration for the class this year. Students get to vote on the special event they want to have, such as watching a movie, having a classroom party or a pajama day.

“It’s a great way to build a positive classroom community while also reinforcing respectful and kind behavior throughout the school,” stated Davies. “I’m truly enjoying seeing how engaged and empowered the students are through this system. It’s been such a rewarding addition to our classroom community.”