To build a closer bond with students is a principle’s first priority. Becoming a great principle is about building outstanding relationships with the student population within your school. A strong inspirational principle keeps students motivated to learn and excel for beyond what they ever thought possible. Creating such a positive image among students should be the vision of every administration in America.
The approach for winning the hearts and minds of students involves several activities during the course of an academic school year. By consistently applying these implementing these activities can create great synergy between the students and the principal. When students can look at the principle and see more than just a disciplinary figure, they will appreciate themselves, their peers, their school and their academic work. These activities are simple, but immediately effective in influencing student progress. Any principal can do them.
• Positively Interact with Students
• Send Morning Inspirational Message
• Frequently Visit the Classrooms
• Organize Assemblies
Positively Interact with Students
Principals should demonstrate a positive pattern of interaction with students. Making students feel welcomed at school by meeting them in front of the entrance way early in the morning is the stuff which great performing students are made of. Students need positive interaction with the most powerful person in the building. Many students arrive on school grounds with low energy, a sense of boredom and lack of belief in themselves. By seeing that you are always in the mood to receive them, students will feel encouraged to perform well every day.
Distribute Inspirational Cards
Handing out little cards with inspirational words throughout a school day to students who are performing well will go a long way in turning underperforming student around. Principals who go out of their way to make positive contracts with students who were referred to them by the teachers are heroes. A positive contract may include a movie or a base game on the weekend if the expectations of the contract is successfully fulfilled. The classroom teacher isn’t the only one who can help positively change a student’s life by going beyond the normal call of duty. The impact of a principal does more than is expected of him will definitely build closer, genuine relationships with the students.
Give a Great Morning Message
Principals who can deliver a passionate morning message over the intercom or via satellite T.V will motivate students to succeed in the classroom. Hearing the voice of the principle lets them know that they are important to the school and its success. Students want to know that they are valuable too. Many students never hear their parents speaking messages of inspirations to them. Instead they hear negative, condescending messages regarding their character, their performances and their very identity as a unique human being. Therefore, principals who desire to build closeness among students should give them a big cup of hot inspiration in the before classroom work begin.
Building a Closer bond with Students means Visiting the Classroom
When you visit the classroom, you reward the children with your presence. Frequent visits to their classroom shows that you are not only a feared principle, but also a caring person who has their best interest in mind: becoming excellent. I know principals who visit each classroom on a daily basis, even if it is only a minute or two, just to say hello. Children will perform better academically when they motivated to be all they can be. When principles make visiting the classroom and work along with the teacher a priority, students will appreciate the value of attending school and performing to their best ability to please the ones who cares for them.
Organize Assemblies
Bringing all the students together in order to promote good values as well as a hunger for academic success is a heroic effort. In assemblies, students develop a common vision for the school and the classrooms. The aim of the principle is to instill within the family of students a sense of unity and strength as well as the determination to make the school one of the best performing institution in the community.
In the assembly, the students are given daily, weekly and monthly goals and rewards for achieving them. The rewards could go to the best performing classrooms, or classrooms that show great respect for substitute teachers.
Allow Students To Shine with Responsibility
Honors could go to classrooms that produce innovative ideas for teacher and parent interaction. All these are orchestrated by the principal. When students can play a significant role in changing he atmosphere of the school, the can appreciate that their efforts are worthwhile.
Principal who go out of their way in building a closer bond with students will not regret the time and sacrifice invested in winning the minds of the next generation. Students in such schools will experience increased moral, greater self-discipline and accelerated academic achievement levels. School who achieve 360 degrees unity will not only be a role model for other schools, but will be highly sort after by parents and students alike.