Part 1

Part 2

I was super excited to interview Chris Wejr. He is one of those principals that I have been following for a long time and his take on discipline and behavior is inspiring.

  • Moving from a lower SES school to a higher SES school.
  • If kids are driven by rewards, then they are across all areas.
  • It is very easy to go too far with rewards, and focus only on providing rewards for kids to "get us through the day."
  • The problem with determining how to properly implement PBIS.
  • The complexities of correcting a student's behavior by giving them a reward when they behave correctly.
  • How important it is to have sense of belonging to help students avoid negative behaviors.
  • Strategies to help students who struggle with negative behavior overcome those struggles.
  • It sometimes takes 2 years to get kids to overcome their struggles.
  • How to buy yourself some time to make decisions and help get through the day to make sure you help kids who are struggling.
  • The bouncy ball trick that worked for me every time after I interviewed him.
  • The difference between a program and a system.

This is a great interview. Chris is amazing! In this second part of my interview with the amazing Chris Wejr, we go deeper into the ideas of student discipline and learning. We also discuss some other cool things that are happening at his school.

  • Punishment. How to approach it correctly.
  • How do we help students with disabilities.
  • How to deal with parents of victims that are upset that there are not visible consequences for misbehavior.
  • If we don't teach this child, he will continue doing this.
  • Following up with parents a couple weeks after an incident to ensure it is not still happening.
  • Restorative practices - should be tied to negative behaviors.
  • Finding opportunities for kids to serve others.
  • Be proactive to find opportunities to prevent problems that may arise.
  • FedEx Prep - giving teachers time to be innovative and productive on their own with their own passions.
  • Advice for being a transformative principal. "It comes from the teachers, of course. I can't transform something in a classroom."
  • Something in his office that motivates him. I asked him to send me this picture. !Chris’ Paddle