What are Brag Tags?
Do you use brag tags in the classroom? Brag tags are a motivational classroom management tool. You can use brag tags for reading, writing, math, etc. You can also use brag tags for mindset and character development. So what are they? Basically, they’re mini awards that students can earn and collect. And we all know how kids love to collect things!
How do teachers use Brag Tags?
Interested in using Brag Tags for students in your classroom but wondering how you’d actually implement them? Teachers use these in so many ways!
Whole Class: Brag Tags can be awarded to the entire class. This might be after reaching a class goal. For example, my class is always working toward filling a glass jar with popcorn scoops. When it’s full they get to vote on a celebration. They also earn a Brag Tag for this accomplishment that they can add to their collection.
Another whole class idea is to set a goal that the entire class should focus on that week. Do they need to practice walking quietly in the hall? Maybe they need to work on improving their partner discussion time? Set the class goal on Monday and tell the students you’ll be paying close attention all week. At the end of the week you can award the class for their focus and growth.
Individual: Students can earn individual brag tags for their personal accomplishments. Did you notice a student stepped up to help the new student in class? They might earn an empathy or helping hand Brag Tag. Did a student step out of his or her comfort zone to volunteer in class? They might earn a bravery or stepping up Brag Tag. I like keeping various mindset and character development based Brag Tags around for these occasions. These unexpected, “caught being good” type tags are the MOST treasured by students!
Ends of Unit Celebration: I like having Brag Tags for each standard. Then at the end of each unit the entire class can earn a memento for their hard work and growth. Typically, a reading or math unit covers many standards. This is nice because students can earn tags throughout the unit. This keeps them excited to learn more about each topic.
Here are two sets of Brag Tags that I’ve created for all of the 2nd grade math and reading & writing common core standards. These sets include not only each standard, but also some more generic tags for accomplishing your goal, improving stamina, and more!
You can find the Reading & Writing set
HERE and the Math set
HERE.
If you’re interested in both, you can save some money by buying the bundle
HERE.
Individual Goal Setting: We all know how powerful goal setting is in our classrooms. Using Brag Tags for goal setting makes it an even more effective strategy. As students earn each tag, they’re more and more motivated to continue setting and reaching for their goals.
What do students do with their Brag Tags?
This is entirely up to you! That’s the beauty of this classroom management strategy. You choose how many/often you want to use them and how your students will collect them. If this idea sounds like it could be helpful but a little overwhelming, start slow. Maybe you have a brag tag of the month that students are trying to earn. It could be focused on a class goal or an individual goal.
Here are some brag tag ideas for how students can collect their tags:
Necklaces: I’ve seen these done a few different ways. Some teachers purchase chains for students like these. I know some teachers might now want this yearly expense and I agree! So I thought of a way that you could use chains and keep them from year to year. At the end of the year, students could take their tags off of the necklace and place them on binder rings like these.
Collection Folder: Another (even less involved) idea is to have students collect their brag tags in a folder of some sort. I actually like keeping a cardstock collection page in my students’ take home binder. This way their parents can see and celebrate their accomplishments also!
Keychains: Many teachers like to use keychains that attach to student bookbags. Again, I like this idea because it keeps parents in the loop as to what their child has accomplished. I will say that you definitely need to laminate the tags if you go this route. If not, you’ll have some very sad students who are missing tags they worked hard for!
Bulletin Board Display: I’m going to be honest, I’m not a big fan of this one. I know I might be in the minority here, but I’m sticking with my opinion. I don’t like the idea of any “public” classroom display of accomplishments of all students. This is DAMAGING for students who are struggling due to a learning disability, lack of support at home, learning English as a second language or any other reason. If they have less brag tags than other students, it will hurt. Period. There are too many better ideas of how to use Brag Tags to intrinsically motivate students on a personal level.
So, what’s my favorite thing about using Brag Tags?
It’s the pride in the eyes of my students as I hand them each tiny piece of paper. I just can’t get enough of that! I mean, isn’t that why we all got into education? We teach kids how to set goals and find ways to achieve them.
The BEST part is at the end of the year. The class takes home their brag tags and can remember how much they achieved that year. They know they CAN reach their goals!
