Don't Let the Balls Bounce!

While Pinteresting today, I came across a super cool classroom management tool that I had to share.  You know from previous posts that I am a huge fan of Class Dojo for behavior management, and now I'm going to have to find a way to incorporate this into at least my center/station work!  You simply go to the website, click "get bouncing", turn your microphone on, and tell your kids to not let the balls bounce!  It's a great way for them to see just how loud they are. If only you could have been a fly on the wall at my house tonight watching me play with it, you would have had free quality entertainment.  My husband looked at me and said, "You are so weird!"  Yep, that's me, whispering at my computer--yelling, clapping, giggling, you name it...all to see some colorful balls bounce.  (Clearly I'm easily amused!) I'm linking you to a list of cool things that I could see myself using next year.  FUN!  Hope it's something you can implement and enjoy (if you haven't seen it already!). 



Bounce on.

9 comments

  1. I love that! Also, I love the Class Dojo site as well! I think that is great and it would help keep the kids motivated! Thank you so much for sharing! I'm your newest follower! Feel free to stop over to my blog and follow me as well. I'm new to the blogging world!

    Allison
    http://staycalmteachon.blogspot.com/

    ReplyDelete
  2. That is awesome! Thanks for sharing....and fortunately I am home alone today so nobody was around to laugh at me! Thanks for the link too...I bookmarked it so I can check it out later!

    Vicky
    Keep Calm & Imagine

    ReplyDelete
  3. Hello! I am curious what you do with the points the students earn from Class Dojo. Also, do you have them add/take away points themselves, or do you do it? Do you do it on the large screen so the entire class sees? I worry about the deduction of points publicly. This might lead to a power struggle with students who react adversely to being "shamed" in front of peers.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I have done quite a few things with the points. I started with having them collect 20 points in order to change their avatar, 30 points for a homework pass, etc. I started their points over each week, btw. The beauty of Class Dojo is that you can add or subtract points for anything YOU want. You can set your own categories or use their suggested categories. You can add extras or get rid of ones you don't like. If you want to do only positive, you can! :) You tweak it to what you want to use in your classroom. You can also give and take points as a class (I often gave class points for good reports in resource class, walking nicely in the hallway, good reports in lunch, working well in centers, etc.). I sometimes do it on the big screen, sometimes I don't; sometimes I use my smartphone to manage points. You have to play with the program and have it work for you. Towards the end of the year, when it started getting old for my fifth graders, we did a class DOJO Wars. The fifth grade class with the highest percentage for the week got Fun Friday sponsored by a different teacher. The kids LOVE it! Let me know if you have any other questions or need help navigating through. This was my original post on Class Dojo (http://5thgraderocks5thgraderules.blogspot.com/2012/04/im-baaaaaaaaaack-class-dojo.html) and in the comments there is a contact as well. They are super helpful and kind! :) Happy Dojoing!

      Delete
  4. I really like the "Bouncing Balls," but I wouldn't want my students to be recorded via the camera and shared. Wouldn't this be in violation of privacy issues and require permission from each child's parent?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Flash player is required to let you know that the program is asking for access to your microphone (and webcam which you can disable). It does this with any program that uses flash and a microphone. To be on the safe side, I address this on my technology release that I send home at the beginning of the school year. :)

      Delete
  5. Hello! What a terrific looking personal website you run! Did you optimize your blog with our own help?

    ReplyDelete