Behavioral Expectations
At Great Hearts Prairie View, one of our chief goals is the Formation of the Soul of every single student. We stand with the Classical tradition of Western Civilization when we assert that our vocation as educators is to cultivate those in our charge as whole persons. As such, we are engaged in the formation not only of our students’ minds, but their hearts as well. Training in habits of virtuous action is an essential component of all humane education, and this is particularly true of very young children.
At Great Hearts Prairie View, a number of strategies and procedures are employed in service of this end. In Kindergarten through 3rd Grade, strategies include the use of the clip chart. All classroom teachers should make use of the clip chart as necessary, but it is crucial that expectations for student behavior remain consistent. The language we use for this clip chart is meticulously intentional – while clip charts have been used in some places to shame and punish, the language we use and the reminders we provide students is to help students know that it is okay to make mistakes – human beings learn by making mistakes! Our goal is to help students learn to grow in self-control and understand right and wrong through the use of our clip chart, a necessary visual reminder that we all have opportunities to grow and improve.