Primary "The Golden Rules"

Extract from Parents Bulletin 37

The Golden Rules 

The Golden Rules were designed by former teacher, now educational consultant, Jenny Mosley. Jenny has devised several programmes to improve behaviour and self-esteem, such as Golden Time and Circle Time. All of these programmes teach children and teachers about respect for self and others, reciprocal appreciation and allowing enough emotional space for children to flourish, while maintaining firm boundaries. 

There are just 6 Golden Rules and note the positive way in which they are worded: 

• Do be gentle 
• Do be kind and helpful 
• Do work hard 
• Do listen to people 
• Do look after property 
• Do be honest 

Although only six simple rules, they actually address almost every type of behaviour common in primary schools. The rules can be categorised into six areas: 

• Respect For Physical Safety – We Are Gentle 
• Respect For Emotional Safety – We Are Kind 
• Respect For Self – We Work Hard 
• Respect For Others – We Listen 
• Respect For The Environment – We Look After Things 
• Respect For The Truth – We Are Honest 

Once these rules are embedded in a school, Jenny believes that children truly access the deeper, more complex, universal values such as tolerance, justice, compassion and fairness. This is why the Golden Rules are displayed and applied in all TIS Primary classrooms. We even have a giant poster in the Servery which our incredible Parents Association bought for us last year. 

By following the Golden Rules, the younger children can earn Golden Time, a special time at the end of the week when they can choose some favourite activities. Each day, children are guided to reflect on their behavioural choices. If they have followed the Golden Rules for the day, they keep their Golden Time. If they have chosen to break a Golden Rule, they lose 5 minutes of their Golden Time and are asked to sit and reflect for those 5 minutes during the session. 

By using their ‘Managing Distractions’ learning muscle and choosing to follow the Golden Rules, lesson time will be spent learning and play times will be happy and safe. Of course, children will always push to see how far they can go but thrive once they know where the boundaries are. 

As a parent you can really help your child to do well in every aspect of school life, and this is no different: A few ideas on how you can support Golden Time are listed below: 

• Discuss with your child how Golden Time operates in their class 
• Advise your child how you want him/her to behave in school 
• Discuss with your child his/her “good days” and any “bad days” 
• Be positive about the importance of Golden Time and encourage your child to do his/her best 
• Discuss our school rules with your child and explain why they are sensible and fair rules for one and all