Brighton school's time for good behavour

8:41pm Wednesday 21st May 2008

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Children at an inner city school have amazed their teachers with a commitment to good behaviour - and it's all down to an egg timer.

Pupils at Carlton Hill Primary in Sussex Street, Brighton, have been sticking to a simple list of "golden rules" for behaviour, which encourage them to be kind, honest and hard working, rather than unruly.

The youngsters have been strictly abiding by the code since it was introduced in January, thanks largely to the incentive of weekly "golden time" reward.

Each pupil is given the chance to take part in a halfhour fun session every Friday afternoon unless they break any of the rules.

Each time a pupil disobeys the code, five minutes of their golden time is taken away.

Worse still, they are forced to spend their deducted time watching the other children have fun until the sand drains away from an egg timer in front of them.

Carlton Hill Primary headteacher Louise Willard said: "The egg timer has made a huge impact.

"Before we had a detention system but this has been a much more positive approach and it has really worked."

At the beginning of each week, pupils choose between a variety of golden time options to look forward to.

These include sports, such as football and cricket, along with cooking, music and play sessions.

The activities are alternated regularly to stop the children becoming bored.

Mrs Willard said: "Funnily enough, two of the most popular options have been running errands for the school office and having a cup of tea with staff in the staffroom."

According to Mrs Willard, even the naughtiest children have been abiding by the rules, which are also being implemented at several other schools.

She said: "The children don't have their minutes taken away immediately - teachers issue a warning, followed by a yellow card, which usually stops any child from taking their behaviour too far.

"We're also working out a system where pupils can earn back some minutes of their golden time after they've misbehaved."

Posters have been put up throughout the school to remind pupils of the rules and the consequences of breaking them.

Mrs Willard said the scheme, which applies to all children at the school except the reception class, was brought in with the full support of parents and has been welcomed by teachers.

She said: "It has been great for the teachers because it has made an impact on the pupils' behaviour.

"It is also good to see how much enjoyment the children get from their golden time.

"It's something staff look forward to at the end of the week as well."

Do you think the scheme should be introduced at other schools? Tell us what you think below.