Editor’s note: On June 12, 2023, PBIS Rewards released our new House Groups feature. This feature is the result of suggestions and feedback we received from schools regarding incorporating a house system in schools within a PBIS initiative. PBIS Rewards values feedback from our users and continually makes improvements to our software to better serve our customers.
Want to promote positive behavior and develop good character among your students? A combination of PBIS and house groups in schools is hard to beat! House groups give students an opportunity to work collaboratively, develop relationships, and establish a stronger connection to the school community. The advantage of house groups in schools is that they dovetail nicely with a PBIS initiative. PBIS establishes the expectations of positive behavior in a variety of locations throughout the school. Grouping students within house groups can rev up excitement, foster a competitive spirit, and reinforce positive behavior. Spoiler alert: using PBIS Rewards in house groups can make it even easier!
Who Came Up with Houses, Anyway?
The concept of houses within a school isn’t new. In fact, they didn’t originate from a story about a certain boy wizard (ahem) and his friends. Houses within a school are a common feature of boarding schools, particularly in Great Britain. Students typically live in groups in individual houses and are often identified by the house in which they reside. The identity and relationships formed within this house often carry forward into post-graduate life.
The sense of belonging associated with houses isn’t limited to British boarding schools, however. Public and private schools all over the world have embraced the house format as a way to build school culture.
Utilizing a house system in schools connects students independent of grade level, allowing older students to develop into leadership roles. House activities and competitions encourage students to come together to support and cheer one another on while having fun. Students who struggle in the classroom can also benefit from being a part of a house, particularly when behaviors are the focus instead of grades. House groups also enable students to develop socially and emotionally, reinforcing the concepts taught as part of an SEL curriculum.
Placing students into houses can boost your PBIS initiative, and PBIS Rewards can help you to recognize students in house activities. Here’s how:
House System with PBIS Rewards’ House Groups
When you fold a house system into a PBIS initiative, you not only make both systems stronger, but you also make everything more efficient for your staff. Your behavior matrix does double duty as students receive points for positive behaviors individually and as a group. Students who may be struggling behaviorally receive a lift from the positive recognition of their house. Positive peer influence within a house is a powerful tool to improve behavior across the board.
PBIS Rewards makes it easier to create your own house system to build community and encourage positive competition schoolwide.
Details of the new House Groups feature:
- Option to create a House within the Groups page
- Import or auto-assign students to Houses
- Three ways to award points within Houses – house only, house and students in the house, or individual students in the house
- Avatars/Images can be added to the Houses and seen in the House Group screen and report
- The Points By House report can be used to track House points and display an up-to-the-minute leaderboard
- Houses can be rewarded from the main reward screen
- Houses can be rewarded a specific number of points from the House Group screen (this option is only for the House itself, not the individual students in the House)
- The House Group Assignments report can be used to see the students in each House and to auto-assign students that are not yet assigned to a House
Using PBIS Rewards With a House System in Schools
Once you’ve set up your houses within PBIS Rewards, recognizing houses is super simple! You can award house points right from the main screen or from the Groups page. You can also set up a digital leaderboard in the cafeteria or other common space and your students will be excited to follow their house’s progress.
Remind your staff that they can award points on the fly by using the staff app on their mobile devices, both for individuals and for groups. You can award points to houses during schoolwide events as well as over the course of a typical school day.
Want to know more about setting up house groups in schools? PBIS Rewards makes it easy to manage your PBIS initiative and seamlessly integrate house groups. Request a demo today!
