Community Goals Teacher Guide Happy Classroom Goals
Teacher Facilitation Guide
Lesson 1 of 5
Lesson Overview
In this lesson, Pre-K students will collaboratively define what a "Happy Classroom" looks and feels like. The goal is to establish 2-3 core group expectations that will serve as the criteria for the collective behavior tracker introduced in Lesson 2.
"How do our individual actions help our whole class succeed together?"
Materials Needed
A broken toy & a fixed toy (Hook)
Large Chart Paper
"Happy Class" Worksheet
Green & Red Markers
Facilitation Steps
1
The Hook: Broken vs. Fixed (10 mins)
Show the students a toy that is broken (e.g., a car with a wheel off) and a toy that works perfectly. Ask: "Which one is more fun to play with? Why?" Explain that our classroom is like a toy—when we all work together to follow rules, it stays 'fixed' and fun for everyone.
2
Brainstorming: Happy vs. Sad Classroom (15 mins)
Create a T-Chart on your chart paper. Draw a on one side and a on the other. Ask students what behaviors make them feel happy at school (sharing, listening, walking feet) and which make them feel sad (pushing, yelling). Record their ideas with simple icons.
3
Goal Selection (5 mins)
Circle the 2-3 most important "Happy" behaviors. Tell the students: "These are our **Garden Goals**. Every time we see friends doing these things, our classroom garden will grow!"
Suggested Goals:
Listening Ears (Following directions)
Helping Hands (Cleaning up or sharing)
Walking Feet (Safety in the halls)
Discussion Prompts
To Spark Ideas
"Close your eyes. Imagine you are walking into our classroom and everyone is being super kind. What do you see? What do you hear?"
Addressing Safety
"How does it feel in your body when people are running inside? Does that help our classroom stay safe or does it make it feel 'broken'?"
Pro-Tips for Pre-K
Use Visual Icons: Always pair a word (like "Listening") with a picture (an ear). Many students are still developing pre-reading skills.
Positive Reframing: Instead of "No Running," use "Walking Feet." It tells them what TO do instead of just what NOT to do.
Keep it Shared: Emphasize "OUR" classroom. The reward isn't for one person; it's for everyone together.
Happy Garden Slides Happy Classroom
Goals
Growing Together
Let's Think!
🚗💥
Broken
Is this car fun to play with?
🏎️✨
Fixed
How about this one?
Our class is like a car—we want it to work together!
Which Class Feels Better?
Sad Choices
Shouting inside
Pushing friends
Leaving a mess
Happy Choices
Using listening ears
Using helping hands
Using walking feet
Our Garden Goals!
When we do these things, our garden grows!
Listening
Ears
Helping
Hands
Walking
Feet
Your Turn!
Color the picture of our Happy Classroom.
Think about how you will help our garden grow today!
Happy Class Worksheet My Happy Classroom
Draw a picture of you making a Happy Choice !
Name:
Date:
Listening
Helping
Walking
Draw Here
Today, I used my...
Listening Ears
Helping Hands
Walking Feet
Garden Tracker Slides The Good Choice
Garden
Our Class Tracker
Look! A Magic Jar!
Every time we make a Happy Choice...
PING!
We add a flower to the jar!
Let's Practice!
👂👂
Everyone is using
Growth!
🤝🤝
Everyone is using
Huge Growth!
What happens when the jar is FULL?
Dance Party!
Extra Play!
Stickers!
We celebrate TOGETHER!
Ready?
Let's grow our garden!
Garden Tracker Setup Guide Garden Tracker Setup
Teacher's Quick-Start Guide
Lesson 2 of 5
Physical Setup
What you need:
A Clear Jar:
Plastic is safest. Ensure students can see the level from across the room.
Accumulators:
Marbles, plastic flowers, pom-poms, or foam stars. Consistency is key.
The Goal Line:
Use a piece of bright tape or a ribbon to mark the 'Target' level.
The Magic Moment
To build engagement, make the addition of a tracker item a "ceremony."
Sound Effects
Use a bell, a funny whistle, or a "PING!" sound effect on your phone when adding an item.
Student Involvement
Occasionally allow a student who was demonstrating the target behavior to drop the item in.
The Golden Rules of Tracking
Add Only
Never take items out for poor behavior. This system is for positive reinforcement only.
Collective Focus
Highlight when the *group* works together. "I see the whole blue table waiting with listening ears!"
High Frequency
In the first week, add items very frequently (5-10 times a day) to build momentum and understanding.
Introducing the Tracker (Script)
"Friends, look at this magic jar I brought today! It's empty right now, but it's going to hold all of our Happy Choices . Look at this blue tape at the top... that's our Goal Line ."
"When we fill our garden all the way to the line, something special happens. We get a Class Celebration! "
"How do we fill it? By following our Garden Goals: Listening Ears, Helping Hands, and Walking Feet. When I see our whole class doing one of those, I’ll say 'Ping!' and we add a flower. Shall we try it now?"
Common Pitfall: Delay
Don't wait until the end of the day. For Pre-K, the reward (the item in the jar) must follow the behavior almost immediately to create the cognitive link.
Power Move: The First Win
Make sure they reach the first goal quickly (e.g., in 2-3 days). They need to experience the full cycle of tracking-to-reward to understand the value.
Garden Goal Poster Our Class Goal!
Growing Our Garden Together
When the jar is full, we will:
[ Teacher: Draw or paste choice here ]
"We work together to reach the line!"
Listening
Helping
Walking
"Go Class Go!"
Kindness Scout Slides Kindness Scouts
Spotting Good Choices
Put On Your Scout Eyes!
Today we are looking for FRIENDS doing great things!
Use your eyes to see...
Use your voice to tell me!
🔍
Scout Missions
Helping
Hands
"I saw Timmy help
Listening
Ears
"I saw Sarah stop
Kind
Words
"I heard Leo say
Ready to Report?
When you see a friend doing a Garden Goal...
Walk up to your teacher and say:
"Teacher, I have a Kindness Scout Report!"
This adds a flower to our garden jar for the WHOLE class!
Happy Hunting!
Help our garden grow!
Kindness Scout Badges Printable Kindness Scout Badges
Print on cardstock, cut out, and wear with pride!
Kindness
Scout
Observation Pro
Helper
Hero
Spotting Success
Great
Listener
Garden Helper
Magic
Friend
Happy Hunter
Cut along the thick borders. Punch a hole at the top to make a necklace or tape to clothes!
Scout Report Log Teacher Resource Scout Report Log
Tracking Kindness Spotlights
Week of:
How to use this log:
When a "Kindness Scout" brings you a report, record who was spotted and what they did. Add one item to the garden jar for every report!
Who spotted it? Who was kind? What did they do?
Total Points This Week:
Keep our garden growing!
Garden Growth Slides Data Tracking Watching Our
Garden Grow
Tracking Our Progress
The Mystery Line!
Goal!
Are we there yet?
Look at our jar. Are we close to the magic line or far away?
Almost!
A Little More!
How many more?
5️⃣
A Few
🔟
A Lot
"Every Happy Choice counts! Let's fill it up!"
Think Together
"We filled half our jar today.
Teamwork
Kindness
To the Line!
Can we reach the line tomorrow?
Estimation Math Worksheet Visual How Many Flowers?
Practice counting and estimation with our garden!
Name:
1
Count the flowers in the small jar.
2
The Big Garden Estimation
Look at the jar. Circle the best answer:
Almost Full
Not Close
Adult assistance suggested for reading the options.
Keep making happy choices!
Garden Party Celebration Slides Final ✨
🎉
🎈
✨
WE DID IT!
Our Garden is Full!
Teamwork Heroes!
Look at all those Happy Choices in our jar.
"I helped, you helped, we ALL helped!"
Celebration Time!
🕺💃
Dance Party!
Starting in... 3, 2, 1...
You are a Garden Hero!
Today, everyone gets a special certificate to take home. Tell your family:
Can we do it again?
Let's grow another garden!
Garden Hero Certificate Reward Certificate of Excellence
Garden Hero
This award is proudly presented to:
Student Name
For making Happy Choices and helping our
Teacher Signature
Date
Reflection Circle Guide Teacher Resource Celebration Circle Guide
Facilitating Group Success Reflection
Lesson 5 of 5
The Purpose
Reaching the goal line isn't just about the party—it's about the interdependence . This final lesson helps students realize that their individual good choices directly benefited everyone else in the class.
"We did it because WE worked together!"
Celebration Checklist
Ceremonial last item added
Dance party/Reward activity
Certificate presentation
Family notification
The Reflection Circle
1
The Drumroll Moment
Gather the students around the jar. Have them do a "lap drumroll" (papping hands on knees) as you drop the final flower in. Make it a big deal!
2
Guided Reflection Questions
Scripted Prompts:
"Look at our full garden! Did one person fill this jar alone?" (No!)
"Could we have finished it if we didn't help our friends?" (No!)
"What was your favorite 'Happy Choice' to make this week?"
3
The "High-Five" Chain
Have students turn to their neighbor and say, "We did it together!" followed by a high-five or a "thumbs up." This physically reinforces the social connection to the reward.
Resetting for Next Time
The Empty Jar Effect
It can be disappointing for Pre-K to see the jar suddenly empty again. Explain: "Our garden was so happy it gave us a party! Now, we have a clean field to start a NEW garden."
Raising the Bar
For the next goal, move the line slightly higher or add 1 new 'Garden Goal' behavior (e.g., 'Indoor Voices') to keep the challenge fresh.
Teacher Pro-Tip: The 'Memory Wall'
Keep the completed "Garden Goal Poster" or a photo of the full jar on the wall. When the class is having a tough day later, point to it: "Remember when we worked together and filled that jar? I know we can do it again!"
