Blackmore Elementary offered VIP passes to special activities for students to purchase with their Bear Bucks this year as an added attendance incentive. The first VIP events occurred Nov. 20, 2024, and were dodge ball or lunch with Principal Arnold.
While the Bear Bucks are not new, the VIP awards were added as an additional incentive to encourage students to come to school every day and arrive on time. As a bonus incentive to parents, students who purchase the VIP passes get their name put into a drawing to earn a prize for their parents for helping get their children to school on time each day.
Students earn 1 Bear Buck for each day that they arrive on time and stay at school all day. At the end of the week, they get an additional 5 Bear Bucks if they had perfect attendance all week. Overtime Bear Bucks can be earned for attending special school events such as the Family Fall Festival in October.
The earned Bear Bucks can be used to purchase items off the Bear Cart such as pencils, erasers, or other small items, or they can be saved up to purchase one of the VIP passes. The cost of the pass is different each month to ensure there are enough school days for students to earn enough bucks to purchase the VIP pass in a given month. October’s VIP passes were 40 Bear Bucks.
Students had to work hard to earn the bucks and practice restraint in not spending them on the Bear Cart items if they wanted to participate in one of the VIP events. Over 30 students chose to purchase dodge ball tickets and around 25 chose to have lunch with Principal Arnold.