Great schools celebrate their students.

Pausing to take time to celebrate and recognize student excellence is in the DNA of most elementary schools.  The school year is filled with pizza parties, glow dances, certificates of achievement, and any other excuse to let students know they are on the right track.  In some circles perhaps it is seen as part of the over praising our kids – but I happen to think it’s just good feedback for kids.

Yet as kids get older, the opportunities to be celebrated seem to diminish.  Students are increasingly more likely to be called out for inappropriate behavior as opposed to efforts to reinforce the good.  By high school, it seems formal opportunities for recognition come primarily at the end of the school year in the form of awards assemblies and scholarship recognitions.

Last year, I attended a student recognition ceremony at one of our Intermediate Schools.  Parents were invited and students dressed up to be recognized for their academic excellence.  It was a genuinely touching experience to watch parents as they were invited to the stage to place a medal of achievement on their son or daughter.  Parents and children alike were glowing.

One of our high schools recently adopted a practice of dropping in on classrooms randomly to recognize outstanding student efforts and achievement.  Much like the Publisher’s Clearinghouse Prize Patrol, students are just sitting in class when a whole entourage of administrators, counselors, and other staff show up to celebrate.  Yes, perhaps it’s a little humiliating – but mostly it’s fun.

Last night, I was invited to a principal’s excellence ceremony held by one of our high schools.  Perhaps a little more traditional in nature, the event highlighted those students’ on the honor roll and who had perfect attendance.  The kicker came at the end, when the principal announced “front of the line” lunch passes for the students who had been honored that evening.  But it wasn’t just a one-time pass , or even a week-long perk.  Students received a pass for the entire semester!  Upon this announcement, the students in the auditorium were ecstatic. I would define it as spontaneous bliss.  It was almost comical to watch the students’ excitement.  Yes, I know, it’s perhaps a commentary on the drudgery of school lunch.  But it caught the students off guard – a true surprise from an institution that typically is anything but unpredictable.

It often doesn’t take a lot to signal that appreciation to students – “hey, we see you.  We want to celebrate you.  You’re moving in the right direction.”