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Mystery Motivators

DEFINITION Mystery Motivators are incentive systems designed todeliver random rewards for appropriate behavior. They can be used with

single students, teams, or with a whole class. Their use depends on you andthe behaviors you want to increase (e.g., academic assignments completed,promptness, good lunchroom behavior, few classroom rules broken, etc.) ordecrease (e.g., noncompliance, ghting, swearing, talk-outs, or academicerrors).

DESCRIPTION The Mystery Motivator tools provided in this section are allbasically the same form with dierent pictures added to appeal to individualstudents. The s!uares are labeled with the days of the week, with a bonuss!uare at the end of the week. "n invisible ink pen is used to indicate whichdays are reward days by putting an #M# in the s!uare(s) of reward days. "

developer pen is re!uired for the student or students (if this intervention isbeing used with teams or with the whole class) to color the s!uares to see ifan #M# appears. $f an #M# appears, a reward is given for that day if the pre-specied criterion has been met. %ach Mystery Motivator also includes a&omments 'ection that can be used to give positive feedback to yourstudent(s).

Steps for Implementing Mystery Motivators

Step 1:'elect some basic rewards for the student(s) to earn with the

Mystery Motivator. This can be accomplished by watching what thestudent(s) do fre!uently (this is what rewards them), keeping track of whatthey ask you for (this is also a hint about what rewards them), asking themfor suggestions for rewards, using a menu or checklist, or looking at &hapter of The Tough Kid Book for ideas. Make a list of at least ten rewards that donot take a lot of time or cost a lot of money. $t he.ps to think like a kid incoming up with this list.

Step 2: *rite one selected reward on a piece of paper, put it in a sealed en-velope, and do not tell the student(s) what it is. $f you are working with onlyone student, the envelope may be stapled or taped to the Mystery Motivator

form and kept at your desk. $f the Mystery Motivator is being used with thewhole class, the envelope may be stapled or taped to the Mystery Motivatorform and hung at the front of the room.

T%&+$% +$T/raw !uestion marks on the Mystery Motivator envelope, refer toit often, point to it during the day, and give the student(s) hints

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about what is inside (e.g., #$t is brown and awesome.#). +owever,the student(s) should not be told what the reward is.

Step : /ene the behavior you want the student(s) to increase ordecrease. This denition should be ob0ective and specic. $f the behavior

cannot be seen or measured, then it is probably a bad choice. ($mprove yourattitude, be more responsible, be a good citi1en, or do better work are allpoor choices because they are too general.) 'ome good specic choicesinclude being in one2s seat ready to work before the bell, nishingassignments with at least 345 accuracy, following classroom rules, handingin completed homework on time, good or e6cellent reports from the busdriver, the whole class having more positive marks on the #*hat $f7 &hart#than rule breaking check marks, etc.

T%&+$% +$T$t helps to write the e6act behavior and the criteria you have

selected on the Mystery Motivator sheet for the student(s) tosee.

Step !: 8urchase a set of invisible and developer ink pens (almost alwaysavailable in variety and school supply stores). The invisible ink pen is used towrite an #M# in the s!uares for reward days. "fter the ink dries, studentsshould not be able to tell on which s!uares an #M# has been written. /ays forno reward are left blank.

T%&+$% +$TThere are several good brands of invisible9developer ink pens on

the market. 8roducts such as &rayola &hangeables or 8enti6Transformers can be purchased in drug stores, o:ce9schoolsupply stores, and variety stores.

Step ": $f the student(s) meet the pre-specied criteria, the student(s) get tocolor in the s!uare for that day with the developer pen. $f an #M# appearsafter the coloring, the envelope is opened and the specied reward is givenimmediately.

T%&+$% +$T$f you are working with a group of students or the whole class,

the student who worked the hardest that day may be asked tocolor in the s!uare to see if the reward will be given.

Step #: $f no #M#, appears after the student colors the s!uare with thedeveloper pen, congratulate the participating student(s) on their behavior(describe how well they have performed) and tell the student(s) thattomorrow could be a reward day.

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Step $:"n important factor is the number of reward #M;s# that are placed inthe s!uares. $n the beginning, there should be at least two or three per weekuntil the student(s) become adept at the behavior. Then the s!uares can bethinned out to one or two per week. $t is also important to place the rewards!uares back-to-back occasionally.

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Solution: " rule should be established that if the student(s) complain or wanta dierent reward, then they lose that reward for the day.

Problem: " student indicates that he9she does not want to participate in the

Mystery Motivator program. +e9she is not interested.

Solution: $ndicate that nonparticipation is BC but that the student will lose abasic privilege such as recess or break time when the behavior selected forchange is not e6hibited.

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. se the Mystery Motivator with the whole class to improve a behavior.