House points ideas that work in the classroom

House points only motivate pupils when they are easy to earn, easy to see, and tied to behaviour that matters. Here are practical ideas from two schools, and what each one does well.

Reward the behaviour you want to see

Decide what earns a point before you start. St Vincent's Catholic Primary in London gives house points for being polite and well-mannered, and for sportsmanship such as leading a team. Points there are a recognition of achievement by individual children, not a reward for winning.

WeAreTeachers, a US teacher-advice site, describes a classroom system where pupils earn points for good behaviour, special accomplishments and more. Teachers in that article also give points for going above and beyond.

Decide who can award points

Points work best when more than one adult can give them. At St Vincent's, midday supervisors and PE teachers award points as well as classroom teachers. That spreads the reward across the school day, not only in lessons.

Make the points visible

Visible tracking keeps pupils interested.

• Tokens in a bucket. At St Vincent's, each point is a house point token that goes into a token bucket in the hall. House captains count the tokens once a term.
• A board with magnets. A WeAreTeachers teacher uses magnets on a board, with bigger magnets for bigger point values.
• Gems in a vase. The same article describes coloured glass gems placed in a clear vase, and progress chart posters.

Choose one method and keep it. A tracker that is easy to update is more useful than an elaborate one that falls behind.

Set milestones and prizes

Prizes do not have to be large.

• A house lunch. St Vincent's gives the winning house a Top Table lunch at the end of the term.
• A weekly placing. Willingdon School awards house points by weekly placing: 4 points for first, 3 for second, 2 for third and 1 for fourth. Its winning houses also earn weekly tokens.
• A champion each quarter. One WeAreTeachers teacher names a house champion each quarter to help with buy-in.
• A semester treat. The same teacher gives the winning house pizza and ice cream each semester.

Announce milestones in the same place you show the standings, so pupils can see how close they are.

Give pupils a voice in the rewards

Pupils engage more when they help choose what the points buy. At Willingdon School, the School Council chooses the house rewards each term. At Polygon, the school council ran a survey on whether the reward system worked and revamped it from the suggestions. That was a lesson points system rather than house points, so use it as an example of pupil involvement, not as a model for house points.

Keep the rules fair

Ideas are only half the job. The rules decide whether pupils trust the points. Before you start, decide how points are earned, whether they can be taken away, and when results are announced. The house points rules guide covers these choices in detail.