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Elementary 'rocks' with second-year kickoff of SOARR program

Subhead
School's behavior committee wants to surpass last year's 15,000 Cardinal Card giveaway total
Lead Summary
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By
Mavis Fodness

Last year’s mid-year implementation of a positive behavior program at Luverne Elementary School yielded 27 reward instances per student.
This year the school’s behavior committee wants to surpass the 15,000 Cardinal Cards given away last year.
Cardinal Cards (business card sized pieces of cardstock) are used to reinforce positive behavior expectations throughout the school.
Earlier this month, the elementary students participated in Bus Blitz, where they learned the proper behavior expectations when riding a school bus.
After the training, Cardinal Cards were given to each bus driver who distributed them the following week to students who demonstrated the behaviors taught during Bus Blitz.
More than 350 of the Cardinal Cards were turned into the elementary office, according to Elementary Principal Stacy Gillette.
Each card lists the student’s name and, when turned in, he or she becomes eligible for prizes both individually and by their classroom.
Rewards may also come during the school-wide assemblies called Flyovers.
Generally conducted the first Friday of the month, the Flyovers focus on different areas of the Cardinal Creed, which is central to the school’s overall behavioral program called Cardinal SOARR.
SOARR stands for safe, optimistic, achieve, responsible and respect. (See creed at left).
Committee members include Gillette, school counselor Marie Atkinson-Smeins, paraprofessional Traci Davis, teacher Allison Eitreim, school psychologist Renee Guy, teachers Deb Hoogendoorn and Luci Rofshus and social worker Stacy Schepel. A parent representative, Molly Carbonneau, was recently added.
The committee applied for a grant to pay for the group’s training to implement PBIS or Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports program.
PBIS provides staff with a framework to improve overall student behavior and academic outcomes, she said.
“We really want to make sure our kids understand what they are expected to do so we can expect better choices from the kids,” Eitreim said at a meeting updating School Board members about the program.
Besides the positive behavior reward program, SOARR also focuses on preventative measures and includes a program to correct inappropriate behaviors called Red Tags.
So far, the Red Tags have identified some problem behaviors, which enable staff to understand and prevent future infractions.
Gillette said the Red Tag program has found most infractions occur in the classroom, some particular grade levels have specific problem behaviors, and the majority of infractions occur around the noon hour.
To reinforce the program, videos can be found on the elementary’s website under the SOARR tab.
Gillette said different grade levels are charged with writing a video script centered on the theme.
This year’s theme is “Cardinals Rock,” which keeps lessons upbeat and focused on making the right choices.
Said one committee member to the School Board, “We want to teach the students how to act rather than assume that they know.”

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