A multitiered approach to social, emotional, and behavior support

PBIS is a set of strategies and systems that enables our school to:

• create a culture of positive behaviors
• reduce behavior disruptions
• create appropriate environments to educate all students

This approach fosters successful social behavior and encourages school staff, students, families and community members to work together to create a safe social culture with consistent expectations.

How Does PBIS Work?

PBIS invests in prevention. Some of the strategies include:

• Proactive intervention—identifying the behaviors expected in all settings.
• Active teaching—teachers, students, families and community members often work together to teach and model appropriate behavior.
• Ongoing recognition of appropriate behavior—such as tangible rewards or verbal praise.
• Clear, consistent consequences for inappropriate student behavior.
• Additional support for students with more significant needs.
• Collecting and using data to make decisions.

As part of the PBIS program, Kirkwood staff will:

• Establish several clear expectations for the behavior we expect in all areas of our school.
• Explicitly teach those expectations to students and reward them frequently with acknowledgement for their great behavior.
• Make clear the expectations for all student behavior throughout our building and playground, lunch room, hallway, bathroom, and classrooms.

You will be able to ask your student:

• "What are the expectations for behavior in your school?"
• "How do you follow those expectations?"
• "What happens when a staff member sees you following the expectations?"

Our school expectations provide for a safer school environment and allow more time for instruction. See the links on this page to read the expectations for the various areas of our school.

Ask your child or his/her teacher to tell you about each of the following:

• Whole School Rewards & Celebrations
• AVID Classroom Academic Celebrations
• Common Area Expectations (See links on this page to expectations for lunchroom, hallway, and office areas.)
• Positive Ticket System
• Individual Rewards
• Classroom Rewards
• SOAR Moments
• SOAR Store
• SOAR Game Cart

We believe that by helping students practice good behavior, we will build a school environment where students can succeed and grow.