Lessons in behavior, education

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April 17, 2009

By MIKE JAMES - The Independent The Daily Independent Fri Apr 17, 2009, 11:19 PM EDT

RACELAND — The students at Campbell Elementary School are learning to behave just like they’re learning to read.

Learning the basics is what primary school is all about — reading, writing and arithmetic.

The littlest students also learn the basic rules of deportment — raising hands, staying in line, talking in turn.

And that’s the idea behind a new program at Campbell. Behavior that appears natural to grownups, because they’re so accustomed to social conventions, actually is acquired through instruction and practice.

“People assume kids know how to act, but they have to be taught,” said Stephanie Caines, a third-grade teacher.

The program is called Positive Behavior Support and Campbell will be using it for at least the next three years, said Principal Jill Imes. Underneath the jargon, it’s as fundamental as the Golden Rule: “When you show respect to others, you get respect,” Imes said.

Campbell students filed into the Cultural Arts Center next to Raceland-Worthington High School Friday for a kickoff assembly and some practice of the behavior skills they’re learning. In fact, the entire trip was a lesson.

Caines’ students, who had been practicing back in class, served as models Friday for a demonstration on how to walk in line quietly down a hallway. Her students took the job quite seriously, knowing they are examples for the younger Students at Campbell, she said.

Imes has created a slogan that plays on the Raceland mascot: Respect, Attitude and Motivation equal Success.

“All our school procedures will fall under that umbrella,” she said.

Children who learn behavior skills early won’t be a problem later on, she said.

And with their innate desire to please, the Campbell children took their lessons quite seriously. When Imes praised them for sitting quietly and correctly in their auditorium seats, many of the children visibly corrected their posture.

When the assembly concluded, the students filed out of the auditorium with hardly a peep.

Ultimately, the program will pay dividends in grades and test scores, Imes said. “Research shows that the environment results in better academics.”

MIKE JAMES can be reached at mjames@dailyindependent.com or at (606) 326-2652.

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