Golden Time

Golden Time

Golden Time is a fantastic, manageable, positive behaviour management strategy in its own right, appreciated by many teachers and children up and down the country. Many teachers who use Golden Time have told us that:

  • it works.
  • it is manageable.
  • when carried out well, it carries on working.
  • when done well, it can be a wonderful aid to teaching and learning.

Golden Time can help teachers and classes achieve their full potential by optimising positive behaviour management (see Behaviour Management Training). When Golden Time is fully implemented, teachers tend to spend less time on behavioural issues and more time teaching. Golden Time is a whole school (or class) activity session to celebrate keeping the Golden Rules or school values. Golden Time activities are special activities that the children have chosen to do. With a consequence for their actions, children learn about the difference between positive behaviour and keeping to the golden rules, and disruptive or unhelpful behaviour that stops everyone moving forward.

Research tells us that the removal of a privilege or treat is the best sanction or consequence, and therefore along with a colourful visual warning system, minutes of Golden Time may be taken away for persistently breaking the Golden Rules. Our Golden Time resources feature a practical book (Better Behaviour through Golden Time) on how to fully implement this behaviour management system. The book has lots of ideas for Golden Time activities and ways of best introducing and maintaining this popular system. Our catalogue features sand timers as a visual display of time lost, warning systems, a celebratory golden class book and celebratory Golden Time certificate pads.  The best thing is that children love it Golden Time activities – they understand the system, the system is fair, they adore Golden Time and everyone wins!  On Facebook nearly 50,000 secondary pupils joined a site dedicated to the Golden Time that they loved in primary school!

Jenny Mosley’s Golden Time Book

As the originator of Golden Time, Jenny’s book documents how to run this strategy properly, and takes into account different classroom situations. The book provides a step by step route for setting it up and gives many examples of how to make it flourish and work for you.

Foreword To Better Behaviour Through Golden Time by David Blunkett 

“The main task of primary schools is to ensure as many children as possible achieve high standards, especially in literacy and numeracy, which underpin learning across the curriculum at secondary level and beyond. Over the last few years, both as Secretary of State for Education and Employment and as Home Secretary, I have visited many schools.  I am constantly struck by the importance of building a strong school ethos.

Those schools which expect high standards of behaviour, which insist on respect for and between all the individuals of the school community and which encourage children to make a contribution to improving the lives of others, also expect high academic standards.  In short, they bring the best out in people. This is easy to write in a foreword but requires great commitment and skill from heads, teachers and their staff in the schools that succeed.

This book provides practical guidance for school staff on how to achieve high standards of behaviour.  I’ve seen the concept of Golden Time in operation in schools I’ve visited and been impressed by the difference it makes.

The Golden Rules are simple, common sense but every teacher knows that ensuring every child abides by them in the modern world is a constant challenge.  This book, which is full of case studies, will help teachers meet that challenge. In fact, when I read through the Golden Rules which include: “we listen to people,” “we don’t waste time” and “we don’t interrupt,” I thought I might seek to promote them in the House of Commons too!  Whether this would work, I don’t know.  I do know however, that in primary schools where these rules are followed, the lives of both children and teachers become more rewarding and productive.”

The Right Honourable David Blunkett, MP  Former Secretary of State

Buy the Golden Time book! 

Golden Time

Phone to find out how we can help you 01225 767157 or email circletime@jennymosley.co.uk

How One Headteacher Describes Using Golden Time As Part of Jenny Mosley’s Whole School Quality Circle Time Model

Over the last few years we have had many positive comments from Headteachers extolling the virtues of using the Quality Circle Time model and how this has positively affected their OFSTED inspections and reports. Most recently we received this report below from one of ‘our’ Golden headteachers, Trudie Cawthra of Brockenhurst C of E Primary School who very recently gained ‘Outstanding’ for PSHE and SMSC:

Why we use the Jenny Mosley Whole School Quality Circle Time model (WSQCTM)

“I have been a head teacher for over 16 years and have always used Jenny Mosley’s Whole School Quality Circle Time Model and have been consistently graded outstanding for Personal Social and Health Education PSHE development or Personal Development Education (PDE) and Spiritual Moral Social and Cultural – an important OFSTED section (SMSC). Although I know some schools prefer their own teachers to run Circle Times as it gives them a chance to form stronger bonds with children based on fun! The golden rules are a moral guidance for all children; it teaches them morality in simple terms.

Golden Time is a chance for everyone including adults who run the clubs, to be creative and exciting.  It’s a show case opportunity to share talents and skills for everyone. My parents run mine with TA support while teachers have their PPA time. I take the whole school for worship for 20 mins, then the children go out to play then they have golden time and the clubs range from woodwork / first aid / cooking / art n crafts/ animation n cartoon / film appreciation (from ‘Love Films’ company), football (my caretaker takes that!) / gardening / drama / social (which is a load of children bringing in lego or games from home / DT club (we made an American fort out of large boxes)  poetry club / sock puppets / embroidery / fashion design/ all our children are really keen to  participate and only a few children occasionally miss Golden Time as they all love it so much. It’s mixed phases so they get to work alongside their brothers / sisters and other friends.  I will always run this model in any school because it works on so many levels.”

Golden Time and Golden Incentives

This Golden Incentives range includes several approaches for recognising and celebrating positive behaviour that your children will love. From congratulatory notelets and stickers to putting marbles in ‘Jar of Good Choices’, show your children that you have noticed what they are doing well and reinforce those positive behaviours first!

All of our resources compliment our unique and tailor-made training courses. For all training enquiries please phone 01225 767157 or email circletime@jennymosley.co.uk.

Golden Time Training

OPEN CONFERENCES: Jenny holds very affordable, 1 and 2 day conferences around the country for Quality Circle Time and Better Behaviour for Learning, as well as Powerfully Positive Dining Halls and Playgrounds and Vibrant Circle Times for Early Years.  See our Open Conferences.