Schools and clubs across the UK are using bespoke badges and medals to reward students for their efforts and accomplishments. Which when you think about it is really no surprise – students appreciate recognition and enjoy getting these special rewards. Fun and inspiring rewards like badges and medals made to order can be used to engage students of all ages and reward their achievements in school activities and clubs. In this post, we identify a few unique ways that teachers and leaders can use badges and medals to tell their students, well done and keep it up!
Reading Owl to Science Scholar: Creative Ideas for Badges and Medals
Today, bespoke badges and medals are available in a range of sizes, styles and materials to create the perfect items for you. Badges and medals can be part of an effective motivational system and serve as an alternative to a trophy or plaque. And there is no shortage of clever ideas for ways to identify and reward students. For example, you could create special badges for participation in school activities, like a School Council Badge, a School Buddy Badge, a School Ambassador Badge or a Hall Monitor Badge. These badges will help others identify these special students and also provide them with positive recognition for their efforts.
Activity-based badges and medals are a great way to recognise and reward students for their participation. You could create badges for all members of a sports team or club, or special badges for sports captains. When there is a competition or match, you could create medals to award the first, second and third place winners, or, create an Achievement Badge in the shape of a trophy to award all participants for a job well done.
Academic badges are a great way to reward students for hard work in a particular subject, like an Art and Creativity Badge, Science Scholar Badge or Math Skills Badge. Trying to meet a specific goal in your classroom? Maybe you’re encouraging students to visit the school library and read ten books by the end of the school year. Break this goal up into achievable milestones and award a badge for each step. Maybe every student gets a Reading Owlet Badge (a baby owl!) when they read five books, and when they get to the goal of ten books, they get a special Reading Owl Badge.
Another clever idea is to create more general badges that can be given to students who demonstrate good behaviour in various school and club activities. For example, you could create a High Five Badge, a Star Badge or a Pupil of the Week Badge.
Badges and Medals are Little Cheerleaders
Did you know that badges and medals can help build a sense of community or school spirit? Periodically, you could award special Perfect Attendance Badges for dedicated students. Or, create personalised name badges for teachers and faculty to help students form a better connection. For all incoming students, you could create bespoke badges featuring the name and colours of your school as a welcome gift. Likewise, create a Graduate Badge every year – perhaps include the year or level of graduation and award these to students at end-of-year ceremonies. And what’s best is that all of these different types of badges and medals are entirely customisable, so you either select from existing, popular designs or you can make them to fit your creative ideas.
The entire school can get involved with badges and medals, too! One intermediate school we read about developed laminated cards that were distributed to all staff, including teachers, bus drivers, administrators, office staff, cafeteria workers and custodians. Any of these adults could give a reward card to a student who demonstrated good behaviour. Students turned these cards into their homeroom teacher, who gave out a special badge, like a Super Star Badge, for a certain number of cards.
Bespoke badges and medals can help establish a positive classroom setting and engage learners of all levels. They also add fun and motivation to your school activities and clubs and can help foster a sense of community. The options are endlessly customisable and creative, so you can design the perfect badges and medals for your school and activities.
Whether you want a specific badge or simply want to applaud good behaviour, your friends at Rocket Badge can help you find the perfect badges and medals to inspire students and children of all ages!
For more information about how to create the perfect badge or medal to fit your budget or needs, please get in touch through our contact form or by calling 0333 7000 132. Our local team of badge and medal experts have years and years of experience and are ready and waiting to put their experience to work for you!
