“Single file line in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1,”

This is what I shout to my students within the first 5 minutes of their arrival. The kids scurry to get into the best line that they can form.

“You all have been awarded a Bonus Point,” I say.

At first I get quite a few blank stares or maybe an overly enthusiastic “what’s that?”

Well, let me explain about Bonus Points

Bonus Points are the single most effective tool I have discovered while working at High Trails.  Students receive Bonus Points for simple tasks such as following directions quickly and efficiently and these points keep the students engaged and entertained. They are usually preceded by some kind of countdown that gives the students a time frame to get to where they are supposed to be. You can get Bonus Points for:

• Forming circles
• Getting in a straight line
• Putting on their backpacks
• Getting out their water bottles
• Being quiet for short periods of time

Getting Into A Circle Quickly – One Bonus Point

However, this system works both ways; there is such a thing as negative Bonus Points (no!!!!). Points can be taken away for things like:

• Talking out of turn
• Not forming a proper circle
• Talking over other students or instructors
• Making the instructor repeat directions more than once.

What’s the Big Deal about Bonus Points?

What is the reward for these Bonus Points? Well, if they reach 5 cumulative group points, then I owe them a game outside of the lesson plan. I am very clear on the first day of program that the game might not necessarily be played right away if we are in the middle of a lesson. I promise them that the game will be played within 10 minutes of receiving the 5th point.

One piece of advice, don’t ever make a promise you cannot keep with 5th or 6th graders. They remember EVERYTHING.

If you might forget in those 10 minutes to play a game, set a timer because those students are waiting for their reward. The Bonus Point system will lose all effect if you don’t follow through with a game.

This “Bonus” game might include a version of Red Light, Green Light that we like to call One Bear, Two Bear, Three Bear, Grizzly or an extra round of Camouflage, a High Trails favorite, in which students hide out in the woods pretending the be prey. If the person in the middle of the circle discovers a student’s hiding spot then they have been caught by the predator and are out.

1 Bear 2 Bear 3 Bear Grizzly

Trick #2: “Personal” Bonus Points

These points are awarded to an INDIVIDUAL in the group who might have been listening really attentively, posed a great question that connects a previous class with the current one, taken on a leadership role, or recalls a tough word from a previous class. If a student receives two personal Bonus Points then they are allowed to LEAD the next game that we play.

Why throw in this factor of a personal Bonus Point? Well, I have found that it makes students feel unique and special within the group. It gives them a chance to think at a higher level as well as a sense of accomplishment. Man, you should see the smile on a kid’s face when they receive a personal bonus point. It’s like I just gave them a puppy. Who wouldn’t love to see that look on an 11 year old’s face?

Ok, he’s not a puppy anymore, but he’s still cute.

Does the reward always have to be a game?

Of course not. It can be any type of “carrot,” a word we use at High Trails to signal a reward for a student. This may be an extra 10 minutes at lunch to explore the woods (safely and within sight) or a chance to scream and run down a path (this can actually be quite fun!).

However, my favorite reward is to allow students to explore Frog Creek or Jenks Lake. They have the opportunity to build/race boats made of sticks and pine cones, skip rocks into the lake or just stick their hands in the cold mountain water. Shhhh…this particular reward isn’t just for the students; I also reap the benefits. To see kids play, explore, and interact with the natural world is a rare treat now a day.

Yes, Bonus Points is really a silly little incentive game. But hey; we all need games to keep us motivated and inspired. If this helps you to better manage and teach your students, then feel free to borrow my favorite teaching tool.

If I see you out in the field using this technique I will give you 2 (yes, two) Bonus Points!

At High Trails Outdoor Science School, we literally force our instructors to write about elementary outdoor education, teaching outside, learning outside, our dirty classroom (the forest…gosh), environmental science, outdoor science, and all other tree hugging student and kid loving things that keep us engaged, passionate, driven, loving our job, digging our life, and spreading the word to anyone whose attention we can hold for long enough to actually make it through reading this entire sentence. Whew…. www.dirtyclassroom.com