Generate Student Promise Statements

While teachers can easily adopt either of the strategies from these reproducibles, remember that it is not the strategy that matters most. Instead, what matters most is setting aside time to engage students in conversations about the kinds of behaviors that can move a group forward together. Those conversations give teachers the opportunity to highlight the idea of learning, of mastering content, and of working together. Those conversations also give teachers the chance to communicate a sense of hope, determination, confidence, and drive to their students. Finally, those conversations help build positive interpersonal relationships, to show intensity and enthusiasm, and to create a welcoming classroom environment.

Also remember that for commitments and norms to become meaningful, educators must find ways to regularly reinforce them. Start by pointing out moments in classroom interactions when you notice individual students or small groups who are honoring the norms. Simple statements like, “I just saw Tyreek and Makayla being patient with one another” or “I’m proud of Luke, who asked a ton of good questions in class today” go a long way toward reminding students of the patterns of participation that are necessary for ensuring that your class is successful together. You can also set aside time at the end of lessons to give students the opportunity to recognize peers who have honored your classroom commitments. Finally, you can ask your students to review your classroom’s norms or collective commitments periodically, identifying personal strengths and areas for improvement.

Generate Student Promise Statements

Using chants, mottos, and slogans, or sets of norms and collective commitments with students is a great first step toward reinforcing a culture of learning in your school or classroom. Doing so results in a set of shared expectations that everyone—parents, students, teachers, principals—can measure themselves against. More important, chants, mottos, slogans, norms, and collective commitments can be used to set a shared direction for your school community. When everyone agrees to build a better future together and has a sense for just what building a better future looks like in action, they can make individual contributions to the work of the whole.

For many students, however, making individual contributions to the work of the whole can be an abstract concept. When progressing through childhood and adolescence, students are naturally egocentric, believing that others see, hear, and think in the same ways that they do (McLeod, 2018). In addition, we live in an increasingly isolated world where working with neighbors to create something better together is no longer the norm. In fact, as membership in mission-driven community organizations that once held us together—4-H clubs, Scout troops, church youth groups, Rotary clubs, Lions Clubs— dwindles (Crary, 2018; Heinonen, 2019; Newby & Sallee, 2011; Schmidt & Epstein, 2019), it is far more likely for students to live across the street from neighbors whom they have never met than it is for students to take part in shared efforts to advance the common good with their neighbors.

How can teachers reinforce the notion that advancing the common good depends on the actions and decisions of individual members of a community? They can ask their students to develop promise statements that are connected to the broader mission, vision, values, and goals of the classroom or school community. Developing student promise statements starts by asking students to respond to simple prompts like, “Looking back at our classroom norms, what are some steps that you are willing to take to make our year together safe, happy, and successful?” or “What kinds of things can you do as an individual to live up to the ideas expressed in our school’s slogan?” The goal is to encourage students to think about who they currently are, who they most want to become, and how they can best contribute to the shared work of the class. Then, teachers can ask students to generate one- or two-sentence statements that express the promise that they are willing to make to their peers.

Here are a few examples of student promise statements. • “I will learn new things each day so that I am ready for the real world.” • “I will enjoy school, respect my classmates, and be a leader every day!” • “I will study, learn, and make friends by listening to others in order to gain knowledge.” • “I will help my classmates by lending a hand when they are struggling with schoolwork