The Pros and Cons of Using Behavior Charts

Are you seeking effective strategies to foster cooperation, encourage positive habits, and manage daily routines in your preschool classroom? Every childcare provider and educator knows the challenges and rewards of guiding young children. The good news? You can transform potential chaos into opportunities for immense growth and learning.

This article will show you how behavior charts, when implemented thoughtfully and strategically, serve as a powerful, visual tool to encourage positive behaviors, boost independence, and bring more harmony to your learning environment. Let's explore how these simple charts can become your secret weapon for cultivating a thriving and cooperative classroom.

Benefits of behavior charts

Behavior charts can be one effective preschool behavior management strategy, offering advantages that extend beyond simply managing behavior.

Here are some key benefits:

Fosters clarity and predictability: Behavior charts provide a clear, visual representation of classroom rules and expected behaviors. This helps young children, who are still developing language and abstract thinking skills, understand what is expected of them, reducing confusion and anxiety.
Encourages self-regulation and independence: By tracking their own progress, children learn to monitor their actions and take responsibility for their choices. This process actively supports the development of self-control and encourages children to become more independent in managing their behavior.
Promotes positive reinforcement: The immediate feedback and acknowledgment (e.g., a sticker, a checkmark) for positive actions reinforce desired behaviors, making children more likely to repeat them. This shifts the focus from punishment to celebrating successes and efforts.
Boosts self-esteem and confidence: Seeing their progress visually documented provides a sense of accomplishment and pride. This positive feedback loop strengthens a child's self-esteem and confidence in their ability to meet expectations and contribute positively to the classroom community.
Supports social-emotional development: Behavior charts can be tailored to target social skills like sharing, turn-taking, and active listening. By making these abstract concepts visible and rewarding their practice, educators can effectively support children's crucial social-emotional growth.

Disadvantages of behavior charts

While behavior charts can instill some positive traits, they aren't right for every situation and it's crucial for educators to be aware of their potential disadvantages.

Undermines intrinsic motivation: The primary concern with reward-based systems is that children may become dependent on external rewards (stickers, toys, praise) rather than developing an internal desire to behave appropriately. They might learn to ask, "What do I get if I do this?" rather than understanding the inherent value of the behavior itself.
Creates unhealthy competition: If not carefully managed, publicly displayed charts can foster unhealthy competition among children, where they compare their progress and feel either superior or inferior to their peers. This can detract from a collaborative classroom environment.
Over-reliance on rewards: Children may learn to only perform desired behaviors when a reward system is in place, ceasing the behavior once the chart is removed. This can hinder the generalization of positive behaviors into situations where no immediate reward is offered.
Masks underlying issues: A behavior chart addresses the symptom (the behavior) but may not address the underlying reason for it. A child acting out might be tired, hungry, seeking attention, or struggling with a developmental delay. Relying solely on a chart might prevent educators from identifying and addressing these deeper needs.

Use behavior charts strategically

Behavior charts can encourage positive behaviors and teach children to be independent and take accountability for their actions. However, they may also cause children to constantly expect a reward for their behavior, making it difficult to motivate them when they’re no longer being rewarded. Use behavior charts strategically to motivate children to complete bigger chores or ones they have to complete occasionally, and consider phasing out the charts once they’ve mastered a certain behavior.

As you implement a behavior chart, there are additional ways to motivate your children to complete their chores and exhibit positive behavior. To introduce a chore you’d like your child to complete, start by doing it together until your child can do it independently. Be clear about each person’s responsibilities, including when and how often they should be done. Share the importance of each task or chore, and show an interest in how they’re doing. And don’t forget to praise positive behavior. A simple “great job” or “thank you for your help” can motivate young children as they develop positive habits.

The best way to get the most use out of your behavior charts is to start with chores and behaviors that are age-appropriate. Children can get bored by chores that are too easy and frustrated by chores that are too complex.

Examples of when you might use a behavior chart for young children include:

Potty training

Potty training is a great behavior to track for young children. You can guide their behavior in multiple ways as they transition from diapers to the toilet. For example, you might use the chart to focus on the larger task of using the potty or the individual milestones needed for using the bathroom. Examples that you can track on a chart include:

I said that I needed to use the potty
I pulled my pants down by myself
I sat on the potty
I used the potty
I wiped myself
I washed my hands

Potty training is a huge milestone for young children. Don’t be afraid to give them a lot of praise and even rewards. Everyone eventually learns how to do this on their own, so you don’t have to worry too much about whether they have intrinsic motivation for this behavior.

Sharing a toy

Sharing is a social developmental milestone for children. Not only can it help them make friends, but it teaches them to compromise, negotiate, and cope with disappointment. Depending on their age, infants and toddlers are unlikely to share their toys because they don’t know how to share yet and haven’t learned how to consider the feelings or wishes of other people.

Sharing a toy is a great way to put use to a single behavior chart. Anytime you see your child share, have them place a sticker on the chart. For younger children, use a chart that allows them to fill up a page to signify that their goal was reached.

Creating a naptime routine

Behavior charts are incredibly versatile tools, perfect for guiding preschoolers through multi-step processes like a successful naptime routine in a childcare setting. By breaking down the routine into clear, visual steps, you can help children understand expectations and gain independence.

For example, to help children transition smoothly into naptime, first identify the key behaviors you want them to master. These might include:

Put away classroom toys
Use the restroom
Get their nap mat/cot
Find their comfort item (if applicable)
Lie quietly on their mat

While you'll be actively involved in guiding children through these steps, especially for younger ones, the chart empowers them to take ownership. You might verbally prompt and assist with putting toys away, but children can gain autonomy in finding their specific mat or settling down with their chosen blanket, building vital self-help skills along the way.

Types of behavior charts for the classroom

When considering implementing behavior charts in your preschool classroom, it's helpful to understand that they come in various forms, each suited for different goals and age groups. Here are two primary types of behavior charts educators commonly utilize:

Chore charts

Chore charts are designed to help children track and complete regular, expected tasks and responsibilities, often related to daily routines. In a classroom setting, these charts are excellent for fostering independence, responsibility, and a sense of contribution to the group. They emphasize the completion of duties that benefit the entire classroom community.

Classroom application:

Classroom jobs: Assigning roles like "line leader," "table cleaner," "book monitor," or "plant waterer" and having children check off when they complete their task.
Routine tracking: Visualizing steps in daily routines such as "wash hands before snack," "put away toys after play," "circle time participation," or "pack up backpack."
Transitions: Guiding children through transition activities, like moving from free play to story time by following a simple visual sequence.

Classroom Job Chart

A free, printable guide for creating a classroom job chart.

First name*

Last name*

Email*

Phone number*

Organization Name*

Are you open and operating?*

What is your enrollment capacity?*

Tell us about yourself*

I want to get brightwheel for my center
My center already uses brightwheel
I am a parent or guardian

State or province

Would you like to receive a demo of brightwheel?*

Reward charts

Reward charts are focused on encouraging specific positive behaviors by offering a visual way for children to earn stickers, checks, or points towards a desired reward. These charts are particularly effective for targeting new skills or behaviors that children are currently finding challenging. The emphasis is on recognizing and reinforcing positive choices.

Classroom application:

Social skills: Tracking behaviors like "sharing toys," "using kind words," "taking turns," or "listening quietly during group time."
Behavioral goals: Focusing on individual goals such as "keeping hands to self," "staying in designated areas," or "raising hand to speak."
Skill acquisition: Encouraging participation in activities, attempting new challenges, or demonstrating perseverance.

22 Printable Reward Charts for Kids (PDF, Excel & Word)

Source

Printable behavior chart templates

Behavior chart template for tracking multiple behaviors: This free printable behavior chart by Empowering Parents tracks multiple behaviors at once. You can use this chart to keep track of multiple tasks in a child’s morning, after-school, or bedtime routine.

Daily chore chart: This chore chart template by My Creative Playground can be used to keep track of daily chores. The template uses a chart with the days of the week and a section to write each chore. Children can mark the chart daily to show that they have completed their chores.

Single behavior chart: This chore chart by Empowering Parents tracks a single chore that you would like children to complete multiple times. Each time your child completes the behavior, have them color one of the pictures on the chart. Once all of the pictures are colored in, the child receives a reward.

Praise the positive and correct the negative

Behavior charts are a system to encourage positive behaviors and guide children to be responsible and accountable. They’re a great tool to help children become independent in accomplishing their chores. However, in some cases they can undermine intrinsic motivation and cause children to demonstrate positive behaviors only to receive a reward.

With thoughtful implementation and a focus on your child's individual needs, behavior charts can be a powerful stepping stone towards a harmonious and cooperative classroom environment.

Brightwheel is the complete solution for early education providers, enabling you to streamline your center’s operations and build a stand-out reputation. Brightwheel connects the most critical aspects of running your center—including sign in and out, parent communications, tuition billing, and licensing and compliance—in one easy-to-use tool, along with providing best-in-class customer support and coaching. Brightwheel is trusted by thousands of early education centers and millions of parents. Learn more at mybrightwheel.com.