CLIMATE AND CULTURE
The resources on this page have been compiled to help schools increase:
School Spirit | A Sense of Community | An Understanding of Your School’s Values | General School Culture
Featured School Climate and Culture Resources
The resources below are available to all schools without signing in.
ARTICLE
Lunch on the Lawn
Build community by inviting students and Staffulty to bring lawn chairs or blankets to your school’s green space on the first Friday of the month. This will soon be a highlight of the month!
PRINTABLE
Sidewalk Chalk Messages
Set the tone of your school as a welcoming, fun place where everyone belongs for Staffulty, students, parents, and visitors with this low cost initiative.
VIDEO
Minute to Pitch It
With a timer counting down, how many ideas can Stand Tall Steve Bollar give? He’ll be sorry if he takes too long! One minute. 60 seconds. Ideas Ideas Ideas!
Exclusive School Climate and Culture Resources
Use The Results Formula™ to boost school culture at your campus. RECOGNIZE and REWARD the academic efforts that result in success. REINFORCE your values through traditions and words, while looking for ways to create strong RELATIONSHIPS. All of this drives RESULTS.
THE ART OF CULTURE
Resources and ideas for building a culture that you can feel
ARTICLES
Results – While typically seen at the tail end of The Results Formula™, Results often drive Renaissance activities, whether the goal is teacher morale, academic achievement, character or climate & culture.
Respect – The very first R of Renaissance – Learn how identifying your school’s values is the first, crucial step in fostering a positive school culture and climate.
Recognize – Jostens Renaissance schools recognize students’ hard work in various forms, ultimately improving their learning environment. Discover the student behaviors your school should be recognizing.
Reward – When it comes to determining the most effective approach to driving student success, rewards can get a bad name. We disagree.
Reinforce – Find out how Jostens Renaissance helps you transform your school culture with positive reinforcement in the classroom and beyond.
Relationships – Jostens Renaissance helps schools leverage their values to build positive relationships with students, staff and faculty.
IDEA EXCHANGE
Frivolous Fun Scavenger Hunt (Article) – Reinforce a culture of joy by creating a scavenger hunt in which students search for designated items, like dollar store dinosaurs, around campus. Sometimes it’s good just to have some frivolous fun.
Create a Sense of Fun (Video) – Use Renaissance to build on the positive things happening at your school. Hear Tina’s perspective on how she does it at the elementary school level in this video.
The Look of Renaissance (Printable) – Make your school’s look reflect your culture and values by adding colorful and engaging visuals.
Spirit Week Cafeteria Fun (Article) – Encourage participation in your school’s spirit week by playing a variety of Minute to Win It games that are quick and entertaining during lunch periods.
Seasonal Hallway Decorations (Article) – Commemorate the seasons of the school year by decorating the hallways – this can easily become a fun competition between students, classes, or Staffulty!
THE GREEN ROOM
Climate and Culture – This episode provides details and ideas for transforming your school into an environment that students and Staffulty will love and appreciate!
LEADERSHIP CURRICULUM
School Culture and Climate – A classroom lesson plan explaining how school culture and climate create connectedness
The School Culture Formula – A classroom lesson plan highlighting how recognition and rewards lead to a culture of connection
Culture Building Resources – A classroom lesson plan sharing resources specific to culture, climate, and connection
Representation – A classroom lesson plan designed to measure student voice
CONNECTED PODCASTS
Recognition – Podcast episode sharing best practices for formal and informal student and staff recognition
Reward – Podcast episode sharing best practices for creating formal and informal student and staff reward systems
Reinforce – Podcast episode discussing how recognition and rewards reinforce student and staff connection to your school
Identity – Podcast episode expressing the importance of knowing you are as a school and how that provides something for people to connect to
Community – Podcast episode sharing how to brand your school within your community
COURAGEOUS CONVERSATIONS VIDEO SERIES
Building Your Brand – In this episode of Courageous Conversations, Steve Bollar (aka Stand Tall Steve) shares simple insights on how to build the brand you desire for yourself.
EVERY DAY ACTIONS
Resources and ideas for effective every day actions.
THE GREEN ROOM
Reaching At-Risk Youth – This episode details ideas and strategies to ensure that even those “hard-to-reach” kids on your campus have a sense of connection and belonging.
What Rock Star Administrators Do Well – Ever wonder how the rock star administrators do what they do at such a high level? In this episode of The Green Room, host PC shares key insights and non-negotiables on the roadmap to administrative greatness.
IDEA EXCHANGE
Morning Greetings (Printable) – Best practice idea for starting each day of with positivity and connection
High Five Fridays (Video) – Creating a positive climate on your campus can start with something as easy as High-Five Fridays! Educator Melissa Skinner adds a fun twist that makes it extra special at her school.
Say Cheese! (Video) – We’ve all seen it. We’ve all felt it. And we know it works, but it’s easy to forget how effective it is for motivation and building relationships.
Taffy Time (Article) – Spread giggles (and maybe some groans) through your whole school with this easy-to-do activity of passing out candy during class and sharing a joke!
Ideas, Ideas, Ideas (Video) – With a timer counting down, how many ideas can Steve Bollar give? He’ll be sorry if he takes too long! One minute. 60 seconds . Ideas Ideas Ideas!
Sidewalk Chalk Messages (Printable) – Set the tone of your school as a welcoming, fun place where everyone belongs.
A Compliment for Every Student (Printable) – A great way to display your positive culture in the hallways
Birthday Walls (Printable) – A great way to recognize students and Staffulty during their birthday month.
Talentless Talent Tuesday (Article) – Recognize and include ALL students at your school by hosting “Talentless Talent Tuesday” – this small, silly event will have a big impact on students who receive the rewards!
Power Cards (Video) – Reinforce your school’s values by taking time in Staffulty meetings to write notes of recognition for students who display those qualities.
Tokens of Appreciation (Printable) – Catch your students doing the things you want them to do and reward them with this “token” of appreciation to reinforce the positive behavior!
Search Institute Research
Catch Them Doing Something Right – This article offers ways to “Catch Students Doing Something Right” as a powerful tool in schools. Learn about Search Institute’s widely recognized framework of Developmental Assets®, which encourages reflection, conversation, and learning about the strengths and resources.
Five Essential Actions of Mentors – About one-third of young people grow up without a non-parent adult in their life to offer guidance, support and encouragement. Among youth facing greater risks, those with a mentor were more likely to have a positive outcome. Research identifies actions that lay the foundation for a mentorship.
Cultivating Caring Relationships with Students – Expressing care is the foundation of teacher-student relationships. Research shows that a caring teacher can have a lasting impact on many educational and behavioral outcomes throughout a student’s education. While it can be more difficult to cultivate those relationships during middle and high school, it can be done.
ANNUAL TRADITIONS
Resources and ideas for traditions that students will look forward to every year.
ARTICLES
First Day of School – Read about how Renaissance schools across the country welcome back their students and Staffulty and set the tone for a positive school year.
Rallies – Unlike a typical pep rally, a Renaissance Rally is specifically designed to celebrate a broad number of students for academics and character, along with the Staffulty that helped make those achievements happen.
THE GREEN ROOM
First Day – This episode provides ideas on how to offer the best first day and why it is important for the success of your school year.
IDEA EXCHANGE
Senior Walk (Article) – Provide seniors with a memorable final walk through campus, and show younger students the power of the graduation cap and gown.
Passing the Torch (Printable) – Best practice ceremony for advancing from one grade to another
Engrave a Brick (Printable) – Best practice for engaging local community members with your school
Every Single Student- LIP DUB! (Video) – EVERYONE in your school can participate in this creative venture. And that’s an easy recipe for building a lasting sense of inclusion and camaraderie.
Rock Paper Scissors Tournament (Article)- Puyallup High School decided they needed to do something to bring joy back into the school day, so they held a school-wide Rock Paper Scissors Tournament of Champions.
Pinning Ceremony (Printable) – Create a feeling of belonging to the school community for the new class of students by having a pinning ceremony.
School Values Poster Contest (Article) – Give students a way to learn, understand, and build connections to your school’s values through a fun, creative contest.
Senior Sunrise (Article) – Gather your seniors before classes begin to start the year with some communal fun – Senior Sunrise will soon be a tradition each student will look forward to participating in as a senior.
Summer Spike Out (Article) – Celebrate the beginning of summer and the end of a great school year by bringing all your students together for a school-wide 6 vs. 6 volleyball tournament.
CONNECTED PODCASTS
Power and Planning of Tradition – In this episode, host Scott Geesey is joined by principal John Bush (TN) to discuss the need and impact of school traditions on school culture.
School Spirit & Culture Traditions – In this episode, host Scott Geesey is joined by Steve Bollar (NJ) to discuss the impact school traditions have on school spirit.