The HBWAY, STARS and Our Mountain of Character and Learning
Developing positive learning behaviours, metacognition and self-regulation at Harper Bell
At Harper Bell Seventh-day Adventist School, we want every child to understand how to learn well, how to behave well and how to make positive choices independently. The HBWAY and STARS provide a simple, shared language for these expectations, while our Mountain of Character and Learning helps pupils reflect on the habits and strategies that enable them to make progress.
Together, these approaches support metacognition and self-regulation: pupils learn to recognise what successful learning and positive behaviour look like, monitor their own choices, respond to feedback and increasingly manage themselves without relying on constant adult direction.
The HBWAY
The HBWAY sets out the behaviours and attitudes we expect from every member of our school community. It gives pupils a memorable framework for showing care, responsibility and readiness throughout the school day.
- H – Help others feel valued – Use kind words, kind hands and kind feet.
- B – Be patient – Wait for your turn and do not shout out.
- W – Wear the correct uniform – Take pride in yourself and your school.
- A – Attention to our environment – Help to keep our school tidy, welcoming and cared for.
- Y – You should only be asked to do something ONCE – Listen carefully, respond positively and take responsibility for your choices.
The HBWAY and Self-Regulation
Positive behaviour is not simply about following instructions. We teach pupils to pause, think, make an appropriate choice and understand how their actions affect other people. Because the same language is used consistently across school, children are supported to notice when they need to adjust their behaviour and, over time, take increasing responsibility for doing so independently.
STARS
STARS supports pupils to develop the learning behaviours they need to participate successfully in lessons, discussions, collective worship and wider school life.
- S – Sit Up Straight – Be ready and prepared to learn.
- T – Track the Speaker – Look towards and focus on the person who is speaking.
- A – Active Listening – Think carefully about what is being said.
- R – Respect and Respond – Value the contributions of others and respond appropriately.
- S – Speak Loudly and Proudly – Share ideas clearly and confidently.
STARS and Metacognition
STARS makes successful learning behaviours visible and memorable. Rather than simply telling pupils to “listen” or “concentrate”, adults explicitly teach what these behaviours look like. This helps children notice their own level of attention and participation, recognise when a strategy is not working and make deliberate adjustments to re-engage with learning.
Our Mountain of Character and Learning
Our Mountain of Character and Learning helps pupils understand that becoming a successful learner is a journey. Just as climbing a mountain requires effort, perseverance and reflection, learning involves setting goals, responding to challenge, checking progress and deciding what to do next.
The Mountain brings together character and learner skills. Pupils are encouraged to demonstrate Love, Learning, Laughter, Prayer, Progress and Purpose while developing the habits of an effective learner.
The learner skills on our Mountain have a strong link to metacognition and self-regulation:
- Be a responsible learner – take increasing ownership of choices and learning.
- Show perseverance – keep going when learning is difficult and try an alternative strategy.
- Self-check my learning – pause to consider whether work is accurate and whether understanding is secure.
- Reflect on my next steps – identify what has been achieved and what needs to improve.
- Work cooperatively – recognise how learning with others can support thinking and understanding.
- Communicate effectively – explain ideas, listen to others and articulate thinking clearly.
These skills move pupils beyond simply completing a task. We want children to think about how they are learning, which strategies are helping them, how they know whether they have been successful and what they can change if they become stuck.
Metacognition: Planning, Monitoring and Evaluating
Across Harper Bell, we support pupils to develop three important metacognitive habits:
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PLAN What am I trying to achieve? What do I already know? Which strategy could I use? |
MONITOR Is my strategy working? Do I understand? Do I need to change my approach or ask for support? |
EVALUATE How successful was I? What helped me? What would I do differently next time? |
The Mountain provides a child-friendly framework for these processes. Perseverance helps pupils respond when their first strategy does not work; self-checking supports monitoring; and reflecting on next steps develops evaluation and future planning. STARS helps pupils monitor their readiness and attention, while the HBWAY supports them to regulate their choices and behaviour.
Questions We Encourage Pupils to Ask Themselves
- Am I ready to learn?
- Am I actively listening?
- Have I followed the HBWAY?
- Do I need to change what I am doing?
- What strategy could help me next?
- How do I know whether I have been successful?
- Have my choices helped other people to learn?
One Consistent Approach Across Harper Bell
- STARS helps pupils to be ready and engaged.
- The HBWAY supports responsible choices.
- The Mountain develops reflection, perseverance and ownership of learning.
Adults explicitly model these behaviours and strategies, use consistent language, provide prompts and feedback, and give pupils structured opportunities to reflect. As children become more confident, this support is gradually reduced so that they can plan, monitor and evaluate their own learning more independently.
This is how metacognition and self-regulation become part of everyday life at Harper Bell: children are not only taught what to learn, but also how to become thoughtful, resilient and responsible learners who can recognise what helps them succeed.
“I lift my eyes to the mountains; my help comes from the Lord.” Psalm 121:1
Rising up in faith, character and learning
Love, Learning and Laughter