Classroom Coupons: An Easy No-Cost Management Tool

June 4, 2009 by Myscha Theriault

Classroom Coupons

Constantly looking for ways to positively reward good behavior without dipping into your own personal funds? If you’re teaching intermediate to older grades, they love getting classroom coupons and extra passes. Design your own in a size that lets you fit at least four-six coupons on a page, allowing a place to add the date, your signature and any necessary black out options like final or midterm exams. Here are a few ideas of rewards older students like to receive individually.

Free homework pass. Kids who try hard but forget to bring assignments from time to time really dig this particular coupon. You can even hand them out individually as a group reward that they can redeem whenever they each want or need to.

One more chance coupon. This is basically a get out of jail free card when they would otherwise be completely busted. You’ll need to keep it within the bounds of reason and safety, of course.

Five extra points on a test or quiz grade. Perfect for that tough subject a student is trying so hard to pass.

Drop the lowest grade in a particular subject. If you teach multiple subjects, you can get a serious amount of mileage out of this one.

One more day on a homework assignment. Kids that are involved in a ton of extra curricular activities have a tough time juggling everything sometimes. One of these per quarter isn’t overdoing it by any means, and lets the kids know you’re there for them.

Retake a quiz or test. It’ll have to be a different quiz or test likely, in order to make sure they aren’t just doing it to get a look at the questions in advance.

Work at the teacher’s desk. This will continue to work to a fairly high grade level.

Ask the teacher to do something crazy. Personally, I have this hilarious ape face I make and can (or could – I haven’t tried it recently) recite all fifty states alphabetically in song. Students think it’s hilarious when you have to take a risk, and it makes you more real to them overall. Give it a whirl.

Private lunch in the classroom with a friend. Again, even the high school students like this.

Be up to five minutes late to class with no questions asked. They’ll all need to use this at least once a quarter. As with the rest of these coupon ideas, handing them out sparingly will make them seem more valuable.

Select the music the rest of the class gets to work by. Obviously, you’ll need to set some boundaries for what’s appropriate. Overall though, they want to be able to listen to the music so they’ll pick something within the bounds of acceptable.

Remarkably, even the students who have trouble remembering to tie their shoes will manage to not lose these coupons. What can I say? It’s magic. Do you have another coupon idea? This list is more for intermediate to high school grades, but ideas for younger grades are also appreciated.

Photo Credit: EEE PC

About the author…. I am a self confirmed life hacker who has used frugal living and personal finance strategies to focus on early retirement, pursue personal business goals, and achieve debt free living.