We focus on what successful behaviour looks like and seek to achieve this by being clear and consistent with the children. We have established ‘non-negotiables’ with regard to the behaviour we expect from our children: 

• Walking calmly and silently around the school. 

• Showing active listening when being spoken to (e.g. being still, giving eye contact, waiting to talk). 

• Sitting sensibly on the carpet and on chairs/benches. 

• Keeping hands, feet and objects to oneself. 

• Being polite and courteous (saying please and thank you, taking turns, holding doors, giving and responding to greetings). 

• Following instructions the first time they are given. 

• Completing tasks and activities to the best of your ability.

Anti-social behaviour is easy to spot. It is disruptive and often noisy and stands out in a crowd, making it obvious and giving adults a prompt to respond. Pro-social behaviour is what we expect and is practised by the majority of children most of the time. We believe that all pupils should be treated equally and taught key skills in pro-social behaviour in order to maintain positive relationships with peers and adults and learn positive learning behaviours which allow them and others to make academic progress. These behaviours are taught through our curriculum and whole school assemblies (examples seen below).

The fact that these pro-social behaviours tend to be social norms, means they are much less obvious and also less likely to receive attention. However, as reward and recognition strategies demonstrate, positive praise is an incredibly powerful motivator for children to behave well.  

To provide a prompt for adults, to help them respond to children’s pro-social behaviour, what follows is a (non-exhaustive) list showing how children might demonstrate pro-social behaviours:  

• Being polite  

• Saying ‘please’ and ‘thank you’ 

• Holding a door open for someone else or letting them pass first  

• Taking turns and waiting for others  

• Moving quickly, silently and without fuss (e.g. into the class or to the dining table)  

• Making eye contact quickly and quietly when asked to listen  

• Paying attention  

• Sitting still when required (e.g. in assembly or at a performance)  

• Responding when asked (e.g. to start class work, line up) 

• Treating books, equipment, belongings carefully  

• Following instructions at the first time of asking 

• Keeping books, work, possessions, their desk, etc tidy  

• Keeping themselves and their physical appearance clean, smart and/or tidy  

• Tidying and clearing up 

• Moving from one task to another without reminders 

• Working very hard at something 

• Showing resilience, resourcefulness, collaboration or reflectiveness  

• Taking a lot of care or giving something a lot of thought (e.g. work or a present)  

• Contributing in discussions (willing to answer questions or talk about a subject) 

• Asking for help when they need it 

• Keeping calm in a difficult situation 

• Being a good friend 

• Working well with classmates or siblings 

• Listening and acknowledging someone else’s point of view 

• Finding things to occupy themselves (especially once one task is done)  

• Speaking up on behalf of another person (perhaps if they are being bullied)  

• Sharing concerns with an adult 

• Being prepared to try something new or difficult 

• Performing in front of others or speaking up in front of a large group 

• Asking to borrow something without just taking 

• Sharing (equipment, books, toys as well as games) 

• Encouraging others to join in or befriending in other ways 

• Doing classroom jobs willingly and well 

• Offering to help without being asked