LEXINGTON — Shelly Knapp’s first grade students sat on the gymnasium floor and watched as Abby Yates crouched down, holding a bowl of hay with a small turtle inside.
The visit from Yates and several residents of the Ohio Bird Sanctuary was a reward for students’ good behavior as part of the school’s Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports program.
“The students earned this reward by being respectful, responsible, and ready,” said Shelly Knapp, a first-grade teacher at Western Elementary. “It goes along with our district-wide behavior initiative.”
Every nine weeks, students do a different activity as a reward for making good choices. In between, students get a chart to visualize their PBIS points over the time period.
Knapp said the charts help students feel their positive actions are being rewarded and better understand their good behavior.
Knapp said that in the past, they have done many different types of activities and rewards for the students, including movie days.
“We are creating memories for them that they will always remember,” Knapp said. “We want to make sure that they realize that making good choices has benefits for themselves and others.”
This was the first time the Ohio Bird Sanctuary visited Western Elementary.
“We chose the bird sanctuary to bring something to the students that many of them might not get to visit or experience,” Knapp said. “Seeing the students interact with the animals is the best part.”
Western Elementary teaches students in kindergarten and first grade. All students were able to participate in this reward over two days.
The students gathered in the gymnasium where the Ohio Bird Sanctuary was set up. Once seated, the kids listened as a staff member shared about the Ohio Bird Sanctuary and what they do for the animals.
The Ohio Bird Sanctuary brought three different animals to share with the students. One animal was covered in feathers, one in scales and the last in fur.
Knapp said chose to do this so they could teach the kids about more than one type of animal, since the Ohio Bird Sanctuary has many different kinds.
The Ohio Bird Sanctuary first showed the students an Eastern Screech Owl. While they were not allowed to pet the animal, the students were interested in learning about the owl.
They asked many different questions and got to learn what the owl eats, how it hunts for food, and the differences it shares with the same kind of owl that lives in the wild.
Next, the students were introduced to a turtle. Once they were taught different facts about the turtle, they were allowed to pet it.
The students showed excitement while remaining patient and utilizing the respectful, responsible and ready attitudes they had been taught.
The final animal brought out was a bunny rabbit. The kids were very excited to get a chance to pet the animal as well as learn about it.
Throughout the event, all of the students were eager to learn, asking many different questions not only about the animals, but the Ohio Bird Sanctuary as well.