Behaviour/Anti-Bullying
It is a primary aim of Wimborne First School that every member of the school community feels valued and respected, and that each person is treated fairly and well. We are a caring community, whose values are built on mutual trust and respect for all. The school’s behaviour policy is therefore designed to support the way in which all members of the school can work together in a supportive way. It aims to promote an environment in which everyone feels happy, safe and secure. At Wimborne First School we have a whole school policy for behaviour so that all members of the school community - teachers, support staff, play leaders, parents, children, volunteers, external visitors - use a common positive approach to children with simple rules, rewards and sanctions that everyone can understand.
The school has a number of rules, but our behaviour policy is not primarily concerned with rule enforcement. It is a means of promoting good relationships, so that people can work together with the common purpose of helping everyone to learn. This policy supports the school community in aiming to allow everyone to work together in an effective and considerate way.
The school expects every member of the school community to behave in a considerate and respectful way towards others. We treat all children fairly and apply this behaviour policy in a consistent way.
This policy aims to help children grow in a safe and secure environment, and to become positive, responsible and increasingly independent members of the school community.
The school recognises and promotes good behaviour, as it believes that this will develop an ethos of kindness and cooperation. This policy is designed to encourage good behaviour, rather than merely deter anti-social behaviour.
"Behaviour Management is the responsibility of all staff at Wimborne First School"
Positive Approaches to behaviour at Wimborne First School
Positive Praise
Frequent praise and positive responses from the staff are powerful tools to motivate and enthuse pupils. Praising good behaviour creates a positive atmosphere in a school and as a result pupils are less inclined to be disruptive.
The following methods of praise are used by the staff of WFS:-
Lots of verbal praise! - This goes a long way, how you speak to children and give them praise can be very powerful. Some children like praise in front of the class, other children like a quiet word so they are not embarrassed. We strive at WFS to get to know the children and give them praise in an appropriate way that suits them.
Class Charters
Each class has a 'Classroom Charter' which are created by the children at the beginning of the year for use in the classroom. These are regularly referred to and children are reminded about the class rules and routines.
Sticker Charts
The pupils in all year groups will receive stickers for a variety of different reasons relating to their work and effort in school. Once a child receives 20 stickers they will be awarded with a bronze certificate from the Headteacher, 40 stickers, a silver, 60 stickers gold, 80 stickers a special award and then 100 stickers will be a platinum award. As the children collect their stickers they can bank their amounts and save them up to shop in the Headteachers reward shop. The children can choose something small or save their points to get something bigger. They absolutely love this and it is a great incentive for rewarding good behaviour in school.
Class Rewards
Each class has a reward system e.g. marbles in a jar, feathers on a duck. This is linked to their class and key stage. Once they have achieved 20 feathers on a duck then the entire class get a treat. The aim of this reward is to encourage teamwork in the class as everybody has to work together to receive the rewards. The motivating factor is within reason the class can choose the reward. This can be anything from some time at the play park, pyjama's and a DVD, outdoor sports and games.
Fun Time Friday
As a school we wanted to reward children who are 'good' all the time. We felt they shouldn't have to earn time to go towards Fun Time Friday they would just be given it and if a child is ever exited from a classroom then they will lose 5 minutes. The children will take part in Fun Time Friday once a half term and the entire school mix up and carry out events such as knitting, tag rugby, discos, construction, singing, arts and crafts etc. The children who have lost any minutes spend time in the Head teachers office until they rejoin their activities.
Assembly
Good behaviour is, however, expected and the school and staff take every opportunity to draw attention to good behaviour and conduct. A weekly assembly called the 'Celebration' assembly enables staff to award special certificates for pupils who have, in some way, worked hard or behaved in an exemplary manner. These certificates are sent home to be kept. A strong emphasis on praise, respect for the individual child, and positive reinforcement, is our method of promoting a happy and well behaved school.
Playground Expectations
Our School playground is divided into zones and each zone has a playground box full of lovely toys and games. The children are allowed to play with these toys throughout playtimes but there are clear rules and boundaries in place to limit any unwanted incidents. Expectations for playground behaviour are very clear to all staff and children. Children are reminded about how to use each playground area and the equipment. Adults warn children verbally if their behaviour is inappropriate. If the child receives a second warning then they are asked to shadow the adult for 5 minutes. If inappropriate behaviour continues timeout inside for 5 minutes. Any more serious incidents such as aggressive behaviour both physical or verbal are dealt with by the Headteacher or Year Leader. Staff will be made aware if any individual child is having particular difficulties with their behaviour or are following an individual behaviour plan.
Examples of sanctions used at Wimborne First School
- A verbal warning
- A second verbal warning and the child told they will have time out if it continues.
- The child will have 5 minutes on the ‘time out’ chair. This is where a child is sent to sit on the ‘time out’ chair to reflect on their poor behaviour. A child can only be sent to the time out chair twice in one day.
- Severe verbal warning.
- Missing playtime or a series of playtime
- Sitting outside the Headteachers office for some reflection time.
- Parents may be contacted and the child is sent home
- Temporary or permanent exclusion
At Wimborne First School, we strive for excellent behaviour. We aim to create a positive atmosphere in and out of school so the children develop mutual respect for each other and for equipment and school resources.
At Wimborne First School we are committed to providing a warm, caring and safe environment for all our children so that they can learn and play in a relaxed and secure environment. Bullying of any kind is unacceptable and will not be tolerated in school. We take all incidents of bullying seriously. Dealing with, and ways to stamp out bullying are considered by the whole school on an annual basis as part of the Jigsaw PSHE curriculum. This takes place in the Autumn Term and national anti-bullying week is incorporated into this work. Children are taught not to stand by if they think bullying is happening but always to tell a member of staff. A ‘worry box’ system is used with the older children to help make reporting bullying easier.
What is Bullying?
Bullying is a deliberate, persistent action by an individual or group which hurts other people either physically or emotionally.
Bullying can take different forms: Physical Emotional Attacking e.g. hitting, spitting, name calling, biting, stealing, criticising, damaging belongings, taunting, hiding belongings, blackmailing etc.
Children are taught to recognise when bullying is occurring and also to consider what is not bullying. The occasional falling out with friends, disagreements etc can be the cause of some name calling or unkind actions. Developing skills to deal with this part of life is addressed through the ‘Jigsaw’ PSHE scheme and through talking things through with children when it happens. Bullying is something done repeatedly and on purpose to intimidate, belittle, isolate or otherwise hurt the intended victim.
Racism In line with our Racial Equality policy no form of racism is tolerated. Any racist incident will be dealt with and reported to Dorset County Council.
Vulnerable children Everyone in school is aware that some children with learning difficulties or other disabilities, or in difficult social circumstances may be especially vulnerable to bullying and we are particularly vigilant in these circumstances.
Wimborne First School's Approach to Tackling Bullying
The school takes all allegations and incidents of bullying seriously and will respond calmly and consistently to ascertain the facts. School will help and support any children who have been bullied and will work with the bully to help them change their behaviour. School will involve all parents concerned, being sensitive to the nature of all issues involved.
Wimborne First School recognises the following strategy as being effective in dealing with bullying:
- Talk with the child - When the teacher finds out that bullying has occurred they begin by talking to the child about their feelings. They do not question them about specific details, but need to know who was involved.
- Meet with the people involved - The teacher arranges to meet with the group of children who have been involved. This will include some children who were present, but did not participate in the bullying. A group of six to eight seems to work best.
- Explain the problem - They are told about the way the child is feeling now. At no time does the teacher discuss details or specific incidents. It is important not to allocate blame to the individuals or the group.
- Share Responsibility - The teacher does not apportion blame but states they know that the group can do something about it, something to help.
- Ask the group for their ideas - Each member of the group is encouraged to suggest a way in which the bullied child could be helped to feel happier. The teacher gives some positive responses but does not go on to extract a promise of improved behaviour.
- Leave it up to them - The teacher concludes the meeting by passing responsibility to the group to solve the problem. They arrange to meet with them again a week later to see how things are going.
- Meet them again - About a week later the teacher discusses with each child, including the bullied how things have been going. This allows the teacher to monitor the bullying and keeps the children involved in the process.
As a school, we take bullying and its impact seriously. Pupils and parents should be assured that known incidents of bullying will be responded to and it will not be tolerated at Wimborne First School. Bullying will not be tolerated.
The ethos of our school fosters high expectations of outstanding behaviour and we will consistently challenge any behaviour that falls below this.