Modification of school attendance for an elementary population.

A K-3 public school wanted kids to show up. Teachers gave each class a big star chart in the hall.

Every day with perfect attendance earned a star. Fill the month, win a popcorn-and-movie party.

The study tracked years of attendance before and after the stars-and-party plan started.

Attendance jumped. The school soon posted the best rate in the whole district.

The star chart plus monthly party kept the gain going all year.

Glynn (1970) tried a token system seven years earlier. High-school girls picked their own rewards and learned more history. The 1977 study moves the same idea down to elementary kids and uses group stars instead of individual tokens.

Deshais et al. (2019) later tested two kinds of group token plans in first grade. Both raised worksheet compliance, matching the positive effect Barber et al. (1977) saw for attendance.

Richman et al. (2001) asked who should hand out the tokens. Student-delivery worked as well as teacher-delivery. That result nudges today’s teachers to let kids help run the star chart.

Peltier et al. (2023) let kindergarteners run the Good Behavior Game themselves. Kids liked it and behavior still improved. Together these papers show simple group contingencies work whether teachers or students manage them.

You can lift attendance, work completion, or behavior with one chart and a cheap party. No extra staff, no fancy tech. Try a public star chart, set a group goal the class chooses, and deliver a fun payoff at the end of the month. Let students color the stars or pick the reward to add self-management practice.