Homeworkopoly

In order to motivate students to turn in their work on time, I use Homeworkopoly. This has been a lifesaver. Overall, fifth graders are given more responsibility from their parents (aka parents don't check over all their assignments). Last year, I remember quite a few struggled with turning in assignments on time. At the same time, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to assign for homework. Though it seemed like a disaster at first, I figured it out (and students figured out how to complete their homework), and thus, Homeworkopoly in 5th grade began. Here's the link to the explanation on teach.net.

 

I'll tell you how it works for me. Every Friday (sometimes Monday, depending on our schedule), the students who turned in all assignments on time get to shake dice and move their clothespin around the board in hopes of drawing a "free-homework card" or a "sit in the teacher's desk all day card." I don't spend any money on homeworkopoly. I have personalized the game so all the rewards have to do with something in the classroom. I have the "Citizens of the Week" in charge of making sure everyone gets a turn and no one cheats. It works well. And if I forget, I have more than enough students reminding me that we have to play. At first it took about 15 minutes for 17 students to go (I let everyone play the first week), but eventually we got it down to 5 minutes.

 I have a hard time hanging things up on the walls in my classroom, so I hang the Homeworkopoly board on a movable chart. It's not the prettiest, but it does the job!

Here's a list of the rewards: (sometimes I duplicated the reward by changing the time)

• Decorate or change something in the classroom
• Write the homework on the board for the entire day
• Have Pickle (the class’ stuffed animal) on your desk for 1 hour
• Draw on the board for 10 minutes
• Sit anywhere in the classroom for 1 hour (need permission from your teacher)
• Homework Pass! -1/2 assignment
• Choose music for work time
• Write in pen the entire day (except for math)
• Stay in recess and play with a friend
• Operate the projector and PowerPoint for a day
• Choose an activity for the entire class to do for 15 minutes
• Sit in the teacher’s desk the entire day
• Switch seats with someone for ½ day
• Move your desk to a chosen location for ½ day
• Special time to teach the class something or share something
• Eat lunch inside with a friend