Establish communication between parents and teachers. A daily report card is only effective if both the teacher and parents participate in its creation, application and enforcement. Both parties need to plan a time when they can sit down and discuss the child's behavior in class and at home and develop a plan of action.
Select behaviors to monitor. For younger children, focus on a fewer number of behaviors to modify. Older children capable of displaying self-control may be able to focus on a wider range of tasks. Discuss behaviors that can carry between the classroom and home, such as completion of homework, speaking out of turn or frequency of tantrums.
Determine the form of report card. The age and responsibility level of the child should be considered when passing the report card between the teacher and the parents. The teacher can send a notebook with the child containing daily comments which the parent can initial and return the notebook with the child. Something this substantial is harder for the child to lose than a single sheet of paper. For older children, a daily email may maintain the flow of information between teacher and parents more effectively.
Create method of tracking behavior. The child can be given positive points for behaviors completed and negative points for inappropriate behaviors or not completing tasks. For smaller children, giving and removing stickers for positive and negative behaviors is a visual way to help the child monitor his own behavior.
Develop a punishment and reward system that will be enforced at home and in the classroom. For example, not completing homework causes a loss of recess time at school and loss of television time at home. A day without interrupting other classmates results in extra art time in class and 30 minutes of extra playtime at home.
Evaluate the daily report card regularly. The teacher and parents should agree on regular evaluation points once a month or once every three months, depending on the ability of the child to adapt and the goals of both the teacher and parent. Some parameters may need to be narrowed or dropped. If the child has learned to turn in homework according to classroom procedure, this behavior can be dropped from the report card unless a problem reoccurs.