first of all, punishing yourself if you don't remember anything is bad. if you're going to do something like that then you should reward yourself if you DO, and then only if you do.

you have dreams during REM, and the legth of each REM period increases the longer you sleep. I think you should get at least 5-6 hours of sleep before you try to recall your dreams.

when you first wake up, lay still and keep your eyes closed. (getting up and moving around can make recalling dreams more difficult.) consentrate only on remembering what you just dreamed about, nothing else. if you can't remember anything, think about things you've been thinking about alot lately. dreams are a reflection of your thoughts during your everyday life. also think about places you go to alot and people you often see. if you get anything at all, no matter how much or little, write it down. writing it down can help you remember more. it can be frustrating at first, but don't get stressed out...keeping a god attitude about it and avoiding stress is really, really helpful.