I use many different classroom management strategies in my classroom on a daily basis. One of the rewards my students can earn is the privilege of going to my prize box on Friday afternoons. Students can earn tickets throughout the week while we are learning. Each time they earn a ticket, students write their name on it and put it in our Classroom Lottery Box. Every Friday, I pull out 5 names that get to go to my special prize box. I hope these 10 Prize Box Ideas will help motivate your students as much as they have motivated mine! You can find the links by clicking on each picture.
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Prize Box Idea #1: Zipper Bracelets
My students, especially those who need to get those fidgets out, LOVE these! They are bracelets that you put on your wrist. You’re then able to zip and unzip the bracelet to your heart’s delight. I wore one to try it out and found myself doing it all day long.
Prize Box Idea #2: Squishies
I don’t know what it is about squishes…the cuteness factor? The squishiness? Maybe both? But boys, girls, EVERYBODY loves these in my class. My class adores putting these on top of their pencils (yep, this set even comes with a hole in the bottom as pencil toppers!) or putting them on top of their desk as a desk pet.
Prize Box Idea #3: Rainbow Scratch Bookmarks
I don’t know who loves these bookmarks more–me or the kids! These bookmarks come totally blank. I don’t have to customize them on my computer and print them out. I can literally hand them out to kids and THEY do the hard work (drawing all of the details on the bookmark). And students don’t consider this work, they consider this art — aka FUN! That’s a win-win in my book!
Prize Box Idea #4: Sequin Keychains
I’ve noticed a trend starting to build the last few years. Sequins that are reversible on shirts, bookbags, really on anything! When I saw these rainbow sequin keychains, I knew my kids would be obsessed…and I was right. Nearly two-thirds of my class has multiple of these hanging on their bookbags. They also love playing with their own keychain while they’re walking into the building, packing up, or when they are grabbing a drink of water from their cubbie.
Prize Box Idea #5: Wind-Up Butterflies
The name sounds kind of lame until you realize the magic of these. These are butterflies that you twist to wind up their wings. Twist the butterfly’s wings about 30 times (takes about 15 seconds). Place the butterfly in a book and that’s when the fun starts. The next person to open that book will be surprised by a flying butterfly that pops right out. My students adore these because they can use them in school, on friends, and at home with their siblings.
Prize Box Idea #6: Sports Stress Balls
I always have students in my class who enjoy sports. They may play soccer, football, or something in between, but anything with sports motivates them to do their best work. These stress balls are also great for silent ball or kids who need something to fidget with. We learn to use these as tools instead of toys in my classroom and they’ve worked out fabulously.
Prize Box Idea #7: Mini Slime
Slime has been popular with elementary students as a prize box idea for a while now but they’re certainly not going out of style anytime soon. This slime above is RAINBOW which means it sparkles. For the silly kids, there’s also the added benefit that when you squish it around in the container, it’ll make funny noises. This one is always a favorite choice from the treasure chest / prize box.
Prize Box Idea #8: Dog Keychains
Say the word puppies in any elementary classroom and you’re guaranteed to have your class’s attention. My kiddos love anything even remotely cute and these were a huge hit when I introduced them. Along with those sequin keychains, there are plenty of these hanging on bookbags in my classroom. I have a lot of children in my class that like to try to collect all of the different kinds of dogs so they can own the whole collection.
Prize Box Idea #9: Emoji Keychains
Can you tell keychains are popular with kids? I feel like keychains are the new beanie babies. Kids like to show their peers which ones they have but putting #allthethings right on their backpack. Emoji keychains are great as prize box ideas because their simple, cute, relatable, and kids enjoy choosing their favorite out of all the options.
Prize Box Idea #10:
“Write in Pen” is one of the most popular coupons kids can earn in my classroom. What does it mean? They get to write with a pen instead of their pencil all day long. My students really enjoy writing with these particular pens because there are so many colors all in one writing utensil. With one click of a button, they can switch from red to purple to anything in between. These are also handy for anytime we’re coloring or free time when students want to draw. I highly recommend them.
I hope this list helped you find some new ideas for your prize box! You may also like to learn about 5 classroom management strategies for teaching during covid.
Still looking for ideas? Check out how I use a Mystery Prize Machine in my classroom!
@thelifetimelearnerI made a prize machine for my classroom! ##teacher ##teachers ##teachersoftiktok ##teachersoftiktok2021 ##teachertiktoker ##classroomtransformation♬ A-Punk – Vampire Weekend
