Our Approach to Student Discipline
“It is not enough to love the children; they must know they are loved.” -Saint John Bosco
At Saint Timothy Catholic School, we strive to model the Salesian Preventative System of Saint John Bosco. The system, based on reason, religion, and loving-kindness, centers on the value of meaningful relationships between students and teachers.
We believe that the most critical step in combatting student behavior challenges is to prevent them. Providing clear expectations, modeling appropriate actions, practicing routines and procedures, and removing temptations go a long way in reducing the instance of negative behaviors.
We do not believe in public shaming, behavior clip charts, time-outs, missed recess or detention. Not only are they ineffective for many students, they can be a threat to a student’s self-esteem and connection to their class communities.
We do believe that effective discipline should have a clear connection to the undesired behavior. For example, if a student misuses materials and creates a mess in class, they should not miss recess. Instead, they should take responsibility for cleaning up the space with the supervision of a teacher. If they run and shout during a fire drill, they should practice it a second time.
We believe that strong parent partnerships benefit students. When home and school are in alignment and consistent with responses to student behavior, students receive the context, environment and support needed to grow.
We believe in using our resources. The administration, school counselors and resource team at Saint Timothy are eager to partner with teachers and parents to support students. The sacrament of confession can also be scheduled for students through the administration team. We believe in offering students the chance to be forgiven and to start again.
We believe that our vocation as Catholic educators requires preparing students for Heaven.