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Help your students classify ideas and communicate more effectively with these free graphic organizer templates, available for download. They can be used to structure writing projects and help in problem solving, decision making, studying, planning research, and brainstorming.

Printable Graphic Organizers

Select a blank graphic organizer from the following categories depending on your curriculum needs.

Sequence of Events

Main Topic and Key Details

Compare/Contrast

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Free Downloadable Graphic Organizer Templates

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Use these graphic organizer templates to help your students classify ideas and communicate more effectively, structure writing projects, and more.

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Help with Dealing with Preventing Behaviors

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Help with Dealing with Preventing Behaviors

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Move students in and out of class and between activities smoothly to save valuable instruction time.

While facilitating a demo lesson in front of eight Georgia instructors, my credibility crumbled when 35 cranky middle graders gridlocked themselves in a failed attempt to move their desks into small groups. Charitably, the observing teachers pretended not to notice.

Botched transitions are not only embarrassing, they're lost time. If you save 15 minutes a day through more efficient transitions, that will result in 45 extra hours of instructional time per year. Therefore, shifting students from one task to the next is worth getting right.

There are essentially three types of transitions: entering class and taking a seat, switching from one academic activity to another, and exiting class. And just like any academic procedure, transitions are taught through explicit explanations, clear models, rehearsal, and review.

1. Secure students' attention: "Focus on me, please."

2. Explain the procedure: "In a moment, return to your desks and take out your history textbooks."

3. Prepare kids for the signal to start: "When I say 'smooth,' you'll quietly proceed."

4. Initiate the transition: "And... smooth." Don't say "go," warns Linsin, because that word cues students to race.

5. Observe: Watch to make sure all students are complying.

Whether students are transitioning from reading to math, or PE to the drinking fountain, author Mike Linsin recommends standardizing the process with five steps that I paraphrase this way:

Troubleshooting

Did I provide too many or too few directions?

Did the transition catch kids off guard when they were absorbed in an activity?

Did too many kids have nothing to do?

Are there specific students who created chaos?

When transitions take too long or learners misbehave, it's time to don your figurative Sherlock Holmes deerstalker hat and reflect on these questions:

After answering those questions, try some of the techniques described below.

When transitions take too long: To counter students dragging their feet, announce how many seconds are left before the next event begins. Teachers like Tyler Hester take out a stopwatch and challenge kids to beat the transition times of other classes ( see a video example at the 35 minute mark). And here's a personal secret: Slowly counting down from five in a booming voice never fails to accelerate transitions.

When procedures aren't followed: Lining up her students at the end of the day was a problem for one fifth-grade teacher. Her challenging class often erupted into fights, and the assistant principal chewed her out for delaying the buses. As a solution, she affixed black dots to the floor three feet apart for students to stand on and provided more time for packing belongings. After a few practice sessions, her students' dismissal behavior improved.

Any transition benefits from showing young students how to ninja walk. Other routines are equally engaging; Watch Madeline Noonan's fifth graders ready themselves in "super scholar style" or with "word of the day" signals.

A number of studies show that reminders called precorrectives reduce misbehavior during transitions. Right before a transition, ask a child to describe the proper progression of steps for, say, entering the class after recess. Or play " correct the teacher " by performing examples and non-examples while learners indicate incorrect actions with a thumbs-down signal. Then call on someone to articulate or model the correct procedure.

In another precorrective, described by the National Association for the Education of Young Children, a child walks through the procedure while the teacher narrates: "Let's watch Noel at the sink. First, she turns the handles a bit. What does she need next? That's right, soap! She pumps once because that is all she needs. Now she is rinsing off the bubbles and is ready for her paper towel. How many pulls does she need? Let's say it together-one, two, that will do!"

Finally, an effective strategy for reteaching transitions is simply to direct the entire class to start over. Budget extra time for do-overs during the first two weeks of class and be patient. As the Navy SEALs say, "Slow is smooth, smooth is fast."

When students don't want to quit what they're doing: Have you ever seen a boy wail when bedtime is announced? More than likely, he felt blindsided. In the classroom, many kids feel the same volcanic emotions when asked to stop doing an activity that absorbs them. However, displaying a countdown timer, like E.ggtimer.com, Online-Stopwatch.com, or Timer-Tab.com -when combined with verbal time signals-helps students anticipate and prepare for an approaching transition.

When younger children get distracted: In an article on transitions, Sarah E. Mathews cites a 2007 study that showed how "children appeared excited to engage in many routines that were part of music." Singing the following song, says Mathews, will help kindergartners straighten their work areas between activities: "A helper I will be. A helper I will be. / There's work to do. There's work to do. A helper I will be." Or play this clean up song.

Letting students take charge of transitions: Transitions don't have to involve an entire class. Watch how Wendy Hopf's sixth graders use hand signals: Raising one finger requests help, raising two fingers asks for a bathroom or water break, and raising three fingers indicates that a pencil needs sharpening. "I love it," says Hopf, "because I have the option of saying no."

Research suggests that successful transitions are quick and have clear beginnings and endings. Meeting those requirements will maximize learning time. However, don't be afraid to add in some whimsy, like the North Carolina teacher who greets each student with a charming individual handshake as they enter the classroom each morning, thus illustrating that transitions happen with kids, not to them.

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Move students in and out of class and between activities smoothly to save valuable instruction time.

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Toxic Stress and the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) Study

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As educators across the country prepared to welcome students and adults back to school in Fall 2020, they faced the layered impact of school closures, the COVID-19 pandemic, and racial inequities exacerbated by the pandemic and amplified by the nationwide mobilization for racial justice. The return to school this year will be unlike any other in our history. This moment called on all members of our school communities to deepen our social and emotional competencies and create equitable learning environments where all students and adults process, heal, and thrive.

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Reunite, Renew, and Thrive: Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Roadmap for Reopening School - CASEL

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As educators across the country prepared to welcome students and adults back to school in Fall 2020, they faced the layered impact of school closures, the COVID-19 pandemic, and racial inequities exacerbated by the pandemic and amplified by the nationwide mobilization for racial justice.

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KS Social Emotional Character Development Standards

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KS Social Emotional Character Development Standards

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KS Social Emotional Character Standards Roadshow Padlet

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KS Social Emotional Character Standards Roadshow Padlet

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Mindfulness and the Brain

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Explaining how mindfulness and the brain works can seem a daunting task, yet it can be one of the best ways to show how mindfulness works for us and how it helps our brain to function properly.

If you are in a hurry, you can scroll down to the big infographic.

So what is mindfulness? Mindfulness occurs when we pay attention to what is happening in the here and now. We observe our emotions, our thoughts, our surroundings, in an even-minded, nonjudgmental way. We apply this same focus of attention to situations both good and bad. This is being mindful.

Learning to be mindful of what's happening in the moment helps children make sound decisions rather than be ruled by their emotions.

Negative emotions can be tough for anyone to deal with. Fear and anger can hit us unexpectedly and when we do not have a prior plan for dealing with these feelings, we can be thrown off balance and react badly.

When a 4th grader reports that she felt she "was going to die" from test anxiety, she's telling the truth. The responses of her autonomic nervous system are the same whether she's taking a math test or sensing actual physical danger. - Mindful Schools

Here's what science has to say about it.

An impulsive reaction, triggered by emotions like fear or anger, rises up from the amygdala and hippocampus-the most ancient parts of our brain. These parts evolved to respond with defensive action to threatening situations.

If we can delay this reactivity, the newer pre-frontal cortex of the brain can respond from a place of reflection and thoughtfulness. The PFC (pre-frontal cortex) is associated with maturity, including regulating emotions and behaviors and making wise decisions.

Mindfulness practice, as you may have guessed, diminishes the reactivity from the amygdala and strengthens the pre-frontal cortex. ¹

THE GROWING BRAIN AND MINDFULNESS

Author and anger management clinic director Dr. Ronald Potter-Efron explains that the newest parts of our brain-and the last parts to develop as we grow-likely evolved in response to an increased propensity to live in groups. "As we have learned to live together collectively, the human brain has been spurred to grow accordingly." ²

A lot of growth is taking place in the adolescent brain, and this growth is happening at the same time that the brain is reorganizing itself.

"Part of this reorganization process," says neurobiologist Dr. Arlene Montgomery, "includes the pruning of disused neural connections. This growth and pruning are affected by environmental experiences and reshape the adolescent brain." ³

This is one of the reasons mindfulness in childhood and adolescence can be so effective: the pathways that foster empathy and impulse control are being used and strengthened, which will serve the child throughout his or her life.

The amygdala determines emotional responses by classifying sensory input as either pleasurable or threatening. Input seen as threatening is blocked by the amygdala, prompting an immediate reflexive reaction: fight, flight, or freeze. ⁴

The amygadala does not see a difference between perceived threats and actual dangers. It often triggers "false alarms" and potentially problematic reactive behavior. We sometimes freeze in stressful situations, like public speaking or when taking a test. Though neither of these activities are life-threatening, we disconnect from rational thinking and become impulsive and reactive.

Even if we have conflict resolution skills stored in memory, we might not be able to access them due to the stress response, as the amygdala hinders access to memory recall and storage.

When we have the time to consciously process sensory input, we allow the prefrontal cortex to analyze the information. Instead of an immediate, impulsive reaction, we get to choose the best response instead. ⁴

Practicing mindfulness calms the amygdala and reconnects us to our calm, clear prefrontal cortex, so that we can make thoughtful choices for how to respond. Mindfulness helps us regain access to our executive functions: the intention to pay attention, emotional regulation, body regulation, empathy, self-calm, and communications skills-even when under stress arousal.

Mindful thinking happens when the prefrontal cortex can process the information. Following your breath or counting to ten when you're angry or sad gives time for the amygdala to allow the information to flow to the prefrontal cortex to be properly analyzed.

Mindful Schools reports that research has found improvements in anxiety, cognitive functioning and self regulation among children trained in mindfulness, suggesting that the corresponding parts of the brain may be changing as well.

A basic mindfulness exercise is to teach children to focus on breathing. Being able to control their breathing can help them become less reactive when stressed. Focused breathing helps calm the body by slowing the heart rate, lowering blood pressure, and improving focus. Controlled breathing can override the fight, flight, or freeze response set off by the amygdala, and instead enable mindful behavior. ⁴

My two-year-old son has learned to control his breath and to focus on his breath when he is frustrated-to my great astonishment. He is often able to calm himself when something doesn't go his way and he gets agitated. He even reminds me to calm down when I'm anxious. He says "Daddy" and does a long inhale and a longer exhale. It's pretty amazing. I started teaching him mindfulness with this simple breathing exercise.

HOW TO EXPLAIN MINDFULNESS AND THE BRAIN TO CHILDREN

The Amygdala - The Jumpy Superhero

The amygdala is like the brain's super hero, protecting us from threats. It helps us to react quickly when there is danger. Sometimes it's good to react-when there's a real physical threat, like when you see a football coming your way. The amygdala simply decides that there's not enough time to think about it and makes us react quickly: you move your head away from the path of the football. In this way, the amygdala can decide whether we get to think about the information our body gathers through our senses or not.

But there's a problem. The amygdala can't see a difference between real danger and something stressful. You could say it's jumpy and that it makes mistakes.

When we're angry, sad, or stressed the amygdala thinks there's real imminent danger. We then simply react without thinking. We might say or do something we regret immediately. We might even start a fight or just freeze when we're offended, or supposed to take test, or speak in front of the class. Fear and stress shuts down our thinking in this way.

The Prefrontal Cortex - The Smart One

The part of our brain that helps us make good choices is called the prefrontal cortex, or PFC. You could call it the smart one, as it helps you make smart choices and decides what is stored in your memory.

To make good choices, the PFC needs to get the information our body gathers through the senses-sights, sounds, smells, and movements. The questions is: will the amygdala allow the PFC to analyse the information early enough?

Remember: the amygdala, the jumpy superhero, often times hinders the information from going to the prefrontal cortex and we make rash choices. This can happen when we're angry, sad, negative, stressed, or anxious.

What we want to do is to help the jumpy superhero calm down. But how?
Here's the trick.
When we're calm, the amygdala is calm and sensory information flows to the prefrontal cortex and we can make better choices. Even our memory improves when we're calm and happy. We're able to remember better and make new, lasting memories.

So, how do we calm down so that the PFC, the smart one, has time to get and analyze all the information for us so that we make better choices?

Mindfulness Practice to the Rescue

Mindfulness helps us to calm down, and this, in turn, calms the amygdala so that it allows the information flow to the prefrontal cortex-that part of our brains that helps us make good choices. When we're calm, we can more easily be mindful and make good choices.

Scientists have figured out that the prefrontal cortex is more activated following mindfulness training and our high-level functions like the intention to pay attention, emotional regulation, body regulation, our communication skills, empathy, and our ability to calm and self-soothe are more available to us.

Pretty cool, right?

The more we practice mindfulness the more we'll experience calm moments, even if we weren't trying to be mindful.

How to Do It?

When you feel overwhelmed, stop for a moment, take a few deep breaths and exhale slowly. Name the emotion you are experiencing.

Focus on your breath for five breaths. See where you can feel your breath most easily-your stomach, your chest, or your nose.

Control your breathing for a short while. Do deep belly breathing for five breaths. Put your hands on your belly and feel how it expands as you breathe in.

Multiple short mindful moments per day trains your brain to become more mindful even when you don't try to be mindful. In other words, the more you train, the easier it will be to be mindful and self-soothe when you're actually in a stressful situation.

May you be happy and healthy!

Chris Bergstrom
P.S.
I'm super excited about this!! If you'd like to get notified when our "Brain Based Mindfulness Calm Down Kit with Amy, Tex and Hippo" is available then sign up below and I'll email you when it's done. It will help you explain the brain in a playful and engaging way with printable characters and offer activities that can be used immediately with kids to help them self-regulate; focus, feel better and calm down :-)

You can sign up below:

Chris Bergstrom is a bestselling mindfulness author, a leader in the field of mindfulness, the founder of BlissfulKids.com, a blog dedicated to children's mindfulness, and a dad who is thrilled to practice mindfulness with his son. He is a certified mindfulness facilitator and trained to teach mindfulness to students in K-12. He's also known as "the dad who tried 200+ mindfulness activities" and has taught meditation for more than 15 years.

Sources:

1 Mindful Schools - http://www.mindfulschools.org/about-mindfulness/research/
2 Healing the Angry Brain - http://www.academia.edu/5660269/Healing_the_Angry_Brain
3 Neurobiology Essentials for Clinicians: What Every Therapist Needs to Know - Montgomery, A. (2013). Neurobiology Essentials for Clinicians: What Every Therapist Needs to Know. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, p. 198.
4 Mindup - http://thehawnfoundation.org/mindup/
5 The Whole Brain Child, Dan Siegel - http://www.amazon.com/Whole-Brain-Child-Revolutionary-Strategies-Developing/dp/0553386697/ & https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vESKrzvgA40

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Mindfulness and the Brain-How to Explain It to Children - Blissful Kids

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See how mindfulness works for us and how it helps our brain to function properly. Check the fun infographic and explain mindfulness and the brain to kids.

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11 Ways Schools Can and Should Involve Families in SEL Learning

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11 Ways Schools Can and Should Involve Families in SEL Learning

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In their separate domains, educators and parents both understand the importance of social-emotional skills-that the ability to manage emotions, to empathize, and to collaborate is key to fulfillment and success, in school and in life. But schools and families are not always in sync on how to develop those competencies. As schools implement large-scale, research-backed SEL curricula, caregivers at home often have little guidance on how to help their children become resilient, mindful, and kind.

Consistency is key when it comes to building these skills, according to developmental psychologist Stephanie Jones of the EASEL Lab at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. When schools and families have shared behavioral expectations and a common language for social and emotional skills, it can be "easier for kids to transition smoothly and be successful across multiple settings with many different adults," she says.

Jones and her research team helped us compile advice on how schools can involve families in their SEL programming-and how families can apply those same practices and skills at home.

For Schools: SEL Practices That Engage Families

To engage families in social-emotional development, teachers and school administrators can't just send home packets and to-do lists. They need to create strong relationships, partner with families on goals for their children, and receive and provide ongoing support.

1. Start by learning about families. Use surveys, open houses, or phone calls to find out about family composition, special skills, concerns, and likes and dislikes. This knowledge can help teachers connect with families on a personal level throughout the year.

2. Invite families to generate SEL goals for their children. Ask families to identify what specific skills they would like their children to develop, and what kind of characteristics they would like their child to personify. Ask children, too, to write down their goals and the challenges they might face in achieving them. These goals can be connected to school or home.

3. Designate internal capacity focused on SEL and family engagement. Have a designated staff person-an SEL or school-family partnership coordinator-who not only oversees SEL program development, implementation, and evaluation, but also serves as a liaison between educators and families. That position can be part of a larger school-wide committee that is involved in SEL planning and decision-making, and that includes people from every part of the school community, including families.

4. Create a resource center for families. Schools should create a physical space where family members know they can go to pick up resources or books related to social-emotional development. This designated space signals to parents that they are welcome at the school-and that the school values their role in their children's development.

5. Plan ongoing SEL initiatives. Create opportunities for families to learn more about social-emotional wellbeing. At other family engagement events, such as holiday celebrations or class presentations, hand out a one-page SEL resource or ask parents to participate in a short activity about developing a specific skill. Provide examples of ways parents can build those skills at home.

Social-emotional skills support student achievement, but embedding SEL into the school day can be complex. If you're launching a new SEL program or enhancing an existing one, these tips will help you avoid common implementation mistakes.

Usable Knowledge makes education research accessible to teachers, school leaders, policymakers, and parents. Its action-oriented topics include:

For Families: SEL Practices That Continue the Work of Schools

To build on the work of schools, families should think about social-emotional learning as an all-day idea-rather than as a strategy to manage a singular stressful behavior or situation. In the same way that a strong school-wide SEL program helps children develop key skills for many settings, families can use their everyday interactions to build critical competencies that will aid children throughout their day.

1. Focus on your child's strengths. Especially when it comes to academics, it can be tempting to focus on problem areas. First, though, ask your child what she thinks she did well. A focus on accomplishment can build self-efficacy and help children persist when things get difficult.

2. Use visual aids to help your child plan. When something is new or hard for your child-completing homework, keeping his room clean-make visual reminders or step-by-step checklists that you can display prominently in your home. By showing children what they need to do to succeed, these practices also help children develop self-efficacy-and contribute to a sense of pride when goals are met.

3. Ask about feelings. Together, talk about emotions-what it feels like to be frustrated, worried, or excited. The ability to identify and label negative emotions can grow self-awareness. Encouraging your child to use "I" statements-"I'm mad," "I feel sad"-can help build self-control and communication skills, teaching her to pause and think when she's upset.

4. Stay calm when you're angry. Learn to recognize your own "trigger situations" and talk about coping with anger as a family. Show your children how you calm down: i.e., "I'm feeling very upset, so I'm going to take a couple of deep breaths before we talk about this." Modeling these cool-down strategies can help your kids develop self-control.

5. Be willing to apologize. When you do get upset, or make a mistake, apologize to your kids. Explain what you meant to do or say. In these moments, you're teaching social competence-that conflict is a normal part of life, and that it can be solved respectfully and calmly.

6. Encourage helping and sharing. Regularly talk with your children about what others might need, and how you could be helping. Think about big and small ways that you can help-whether by taking out the trash for an elderly neighbor or by volunteering at a local food pantry or at your church, mosque, or temple. These acts build empathy, cooperation, and a community-oriented mindset.

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11 Ways Schools Can-and Should-Involve Families in SEL Programming - EdSurge News

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In their separate domains, educators and parents both understand the importance of social-emotional skills-that the ability to manage emotions, to ...

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ILA CASEL Padlet

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It's time. Back to school is here. It's strange. Uncertain. Different. But it's here and that means Schedulin' Sunday is BACK! After 5 months, it's time to jump back into planning, prepping, and Schedulin' Sunday! And I'll just say: I'm excited to be back to a routine and a sense of normalcy but I'm overwhelmed with getting ready for virtual kindergarten. But we're plowing ahead and going to do it!

First Week Lesson Plans

As ALWAYS, our lesson plans are free to download. This year, we've modified the format to show the live teaching we're doing and the self-paced learning the kids will do. When we return to in-person learning, we will switch back to the regular lesson plan format. If you're interested in previous lesson plans, we have 7 years of our lesson plans in our Resource Center at the top of this page!
CLICK THE IMAGE TO DOWNLOAD THIS WEEK'S VIRTUAL LESSON PLANS!

Click the picture above to view and/or download my year-long plan for this year. You can see the order in which I am introducing letters during ABC Bootcamp this year. We're following district guidelines for intros this year, however, you can go in any order you would like. Studies have shown the outcome is the same...the students MASTER their letters and sounds within 26 days!!

A Brief Outline Of Our Plan

Here is a brief outline of the plan and schedule we're taking (this is district mandated but we're allowed to supplement and do what we need to support our kids...). As this unfolds, we will modify and adapt. AND WE WILL BE SHARING OUR JOURNEY WITH YOU AS WE ALWAYS DO. I'LL BE RECORDING LESSONS TO SHARE, I'LL SHARE WHAT WORKS AND WHAT DOESN'T. I'LL BE 100% REAL ABOUT IT BECAUSE I AM IN THE CLASSROOM GOING THROUGH HIS WITH YOU. I'M NOT SITTING ON THE SIDELINES TELLING YOU THINGS TO TRY. I'M DOING THE WORK. EXPERIENCING THE STRESS AND FEELING OVERWHELMED AND CONFUSED AND EXCITED AND SCARED.

2 hours of live teaching each day using Microsoft Teams as our streaming platform

Schoology is being used as our learning management platform (attendance, grades, assignments, etc)

Florida Virtual School is our self-paced curriculum that students complete on their own time/at their pace each week

We will use the 2 hour live teaching to do our normal teaching-morning meeting, research projects, bootcamps, etc

Sending home weekly packets so students can do writing/drawing, puzzles, etc that we would normally use in the classroom

The First Day-Virtual Kindergarten

For our first day, we're keeping it simple. We will start with a morning meeting. I will introduce myself and teach the kids to say my name. All while also teaching procedures and expectations for our Teams meetings. We will read our first morning message and sing our songs. (I'm front-loading the songs by sending the links to families so they can practice at home!

Our first read aloud of the year is The King Of Kindergarten! We will read and discuss the story, focusing on what the boy in the book does to get ready for school and what he does at school and comparing that to what we did! The kids will share ideas and thoughts and we will make a graphic organizer.

Our first social studies activity will be about responsibility in the classroom and we teach that using crayons. We use our School Supply Research Project to share ways to use crayons and ways not to use crayons.

After we discuss how to use crayons we color a soccer ball to practice coloring. I use a soccer ball because it has lots of sections to color.

Grab your FREE soccer ball coloring page by clicking here!
The First Week-Virtual Kindergarten

We will use several read alouds to build community and talk about feelings for the first week of school. We are reading Miss Bindergarten Gets Ready For Kindergarten and Our Class Is A Family.

As we read we will discuss what's happening, our feelings and emotions, and how we are like the characters in the books. It's all about text to self connections and building community in the classroom!

We will also learn about pencils and scissors using our School Supply Research Project!

Finally, let's be real: this week is going to be lots of learning and hiccups with tech issues and teaching the kids the expectations and procedures for our live lessons. But we will figure it out. To help with the live lessons, I made this resource! The rules card will go home to the kids so they have it and families can use it to establish rules. The microphone cards will be used by me to tell kids when to mute and unmute. The sort is an activity we will do as a whole group to discuss what we can and can't do during our Teams meetings.

Clipart from:

These are the resources we're using this week:

For more information, check out these posts:

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The First Virtual Week: Schedulin' Sunday

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It's time. Back to school is here. It's strange. Uncertain. Different. But it's here and that means Schedulin' Sunday is BACK! After 5 months, it's time to jump back into planning, prepping, and Schedulin' Sunday! And I'll just say: I'm excited to be back to a routine and a sense of normalcy but I'm overwhelmed with getting ready for virtual kindergarten.

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Classroom Procedures to Head Off Behavior Problems

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What Does Anxiety in our Students Look Like?

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Linking Language using Linoit

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Behavior Expectations for Younger Children Graphic

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Behavior Expectations for Younger Children Graphic

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Crumple and Shoot Review Practice Activity

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Crumple and Shoot Review Practice Activity

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Deepening Culturally Responsive Teaching in Distance Learning

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Deepening Culturally Responsive Teaching in Distance Learning

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Hammond distinguishes the differences between culturally responsive education, multicultural education and social justice education. Each is important, but without a focus on building students' brain power, they will experience learning loss.

When it comes to distance learning, applying culturally responsive teaching requires "remixing" education by borrowing from the best practices in how kids learn (Montessori, project-based learning, etc.) in a way that repositions the student as the leader of his own learning. By giving students more agency, the idea is to disrupt old routines around teaching and learning that make the student dependent on the teacher for receiving knowledge.

"It's going to stretch us a little out of our own comfort zones, but it's worth it in the long run if we can get students to continue to do that thinking," said Hammond.

She advises three strategies to help students gain that independence:

1. Deepen background knowledge

Many educators are understandably wondering whether they should teach new content or review familiar material. Hammond encourages educators to do the latter because cognitively dependent learners often have gaps in their background knowledge . "A lot of our students are compliant learners," she said. "They're having a hard time shifting right now [because] they're used to the worksheet, but that doesn't mean they're always processing information."

She advises teachers to help students connect new things they're learning to their brain's existing schema - also known as background knowledge - that comes from home, their community, their interests. Teachers can then give them authentic tasks that help them make meaning and connections. This helps turn new inert information into usable knowledge. "You cannot give another person background knowledge," she explained. "They have to acquire it, but as teachers we can help guide the process." This can be done by building upon student interest.

"Survey your students if you don't know what they like," said Hammond. Ask them what books they enjoy reading or what topics get them super excited. She said It doesn't matter if their interests are broad or narrow; it's important to learn what interests them so that you can use that information to:

Assign non-fiction books that build on student interests.

Create a "Netflix" playlist of documentaries, nature shows, historical events, etc.

Encourage kids and parents to do a walk-about, if that's possible in their community, following social distancing guidelines. Encourage parents and students to seek out community curiosities (landmarks or interesting sights) relevant to students' interest.

With each of these activities, it's important to give the students direction so they know what to look out for. "You have to tell the brain what to pay attention to," Hammond explains. She suggested questions like, "What was your biggest surprise from this book/show?" or thinking routine sentences like "I Used to Think ___. But, now I think ____."

She said to always make sure that students do something with the knowledge as well. She suggested having them share interesting facts they learned either during video conferences or via an audio/video clip. For those students with limited internet access, encourage them to share what they learned with their parents.

2. Cultivate cognitive routines

Growing students' brain power during distance learning starts with building cognitive routines. These routines are essential to processing and hardwiring information in the brain.

"Be the personal trainer of their cognitive development," Hammond said. To do this, she suggested having a routine set of prompts in each packet that become a regular part of the way students think. That way, students begin to think that way even when you're not in the classroom to reinforce that way of thinking.

One example is to ask students to connect the "unknown to the known" or across concepts by asking questions like, " What's the relationship or connection between these things?" or "How does this part fit into the whole? What are the parts of this whole?" These may seem simple, but these questions are critical when it comes to processing information so that students internalize these prompts until they become almost instinctual.

She said students should also be encouraged to sketchnote or doodle to actively process what they're learning as an alternative to note-taking. Sketchnoting can encourage people to make deeper connections to what they're hearing.

3. Build word wealth

Building a student's vocabulary is a key tool in equity strategies for schools. "Kids have different interests in words so find out where their energy is. You can have a differentiated assignment around word collecting, but the idea is to get them actively involved in word consciousness," said Hammond. She said there are many small but high-leverage ways to do this, such as introducing robust word study. A teacher can help students engage in wordplay, word consciousness and word knowledge. This should not happen through a worksheet assignment, but rather begin with building word consciousness of words in their community, home and home language.

Word games like Scrabble, Heads Up, Taboo or even word searches are small familiar but high-leverage activities because they're fun but also require a high cognitive load. You can create your own versions of these games and have students do this in any language. Students can also do word collecting activities like scavenger hunts, or make poetry using magnetic poetry. Students can also do a contrastive analysis, by comparing words they might find in Urban Dictionary to those they might find in a standard dictionary.

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How to Develop Culturally Responsive Teaching for Distance Learning | KQED

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Culturally responsive teaching is a powerful way to help students become independent learners, and it can be especially valuable during distance learning.

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Remote Learning and Digital Equity Practices

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Remote Learning and Digital Equity Practices

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Tech & Learning talks with Diane Doersch and Kali Alford of Digital Promise about remote learning and digital equity.

Diane W. Doersch is technical project director at Verizon Innovative Learning Schools and Digital Promise.

Kali Alford is associate director of professional learning, Verizon Innovative Learning Schools and Digital Promise.

Equity now is an active consideration for educators immersed in remote learning. Thanks to COVID-19, educators should not assume that all students face comparable challenges in terms of being prepared for the school day. The unique challenges and responsibilities that students face at home need to be considered when designing learning activities, assessing mastery, and in the way learning support is made available.
Below is the full conversation
What are some best practices teachers should be thinking about with digital equity and remote learning?

Alford: Getting rid of busy work. As many district leaders were trying to find solutions to the equity gap as it pertains to technology and access, their knee-jerk reaction was to put together and distribute paper packets to parents and students, and then find a way for the parents to return the completed work so that students can have some measure of accountability and instruction. But really, worksheets, graphic organizers, and things of that nature have minimal impact to the learning experience.

This is an opportunity for teachers to push the needle a bit, to make sure that they're not just giving these uniform assignments that can be easily Googled, but to really dig deep and put a level of rigor into these assignments.

With many students facing limited access, educators need to make sure that the amount of time to complete assignments is ample for everyone.

Another best practice is to use this as an opportunity to have some dialogue with students. One of the best tools any educator can have in their toolbox is a good rapport with their students. That's something that will help you year over year, whether those students are in your classroom or not. Inevitably you're going to have a conversation with a colleague who's asking you, 'What kind of things can I do with this one student?' We've all had a student or subset of students who are a challenge for us--no fault of the student, we just have to refine our approaches.

Doersch: As we think about equitable practices, allow students to show that they learned. For example, maybe a teacher has students read a few chapters in a book and wants a reflection or some sort of analysis. Well, the teacher could have the student write a two-page paper--hard to do on Mom's phone--or maybe they can do something like , in which they can record a video of their reaction and then it's stored in the cloud very simply and easily. So allowing students to use the resources they have available to them.

Another best practice for students' self-agency is allowing them to say, 'Hey, I want to use these tools to do that thing.' It helps a student take better charge of their learning and it's not the teacher dictating things.

Another thing I saw is a teacher saying, 'Well, in my district, we're not allowed to teach new things,' so she's having students go back to their digital work and reflect upon that work. They're looking at why they came up with an idea, what were some hardships, what did they like best, if they had to do it again, what would they do differently.

Those are all self-agency techniques that are also life skills our kids are going to need because when we were in the classroom face-to-face, there was this push to just get assignments done, and maybe not enough intention put toward quality. Now, allowing time for quality and reflections, and a few days to master a few tasks, is not a bad thing.

Alford: I often talk to teachers about the idea of embedded assessments, and I'll use analogies such as video games, where there are many different kinds of assessments for a player--the score is there, depending on the game, maybe there's a clock or a health bar, progression meters--and those things help them stay engaged.

In this time, when you don't have the face-to-face component with your students, an embedded assessment would be a great resource.

It doesn't have to be anything too involved; it could be as simple as a gallery of work that has been submitted and graded. We give back work and give students grades, but they don't always have an opportunity to compare what they did to what another student did, to assess themselves versus their peers.

If you're using an online platform, an LMS, Google Classroom, etc., you can take a student's graded work with your feedback and post it in a place where other students can see and compare it. 'Oh, this looks really good. I should've done that. Next time, I'll now.' Or, 'I never would've thought to use that tool.' That's a great opportunity for learning as well.

Doersch: Another thing school might want to consider: E-Rate has allowed us to update and modernize the infrastructure we have in schools. Many schools have purchased exterior access points that can be mounted outside, say around a parking lot, and can provide access to the school's network. Kids can have their parents drive them to the school, and by staying in the car, can maintain the six-foot social isolation distance and get access.

Using the resources that we have--because there's not going to be a lot of new hardware coming out in the next few months--it might be good to repurpose old equipment. For example, if you have an old phone, can you use it as a hotspot? There are a lot of things like that which can be done as well.

More best practices from Digital Promise

Check access. Don't assume that all students have continual access to WiFi as some may only have it at times. Also don't assume that students have more than one internet-enabled device in the home--in many cases, even if they do, devices are often used by more than one person in a home and may need to be shared. Remember that when students or families say they have the internet at home, they may just be talking about Mom's smartphone. Be sure to define what internet access means when you survey families regarding resources available.

Flexible scheduling. Don't assume that students are able to submit or complete work in accordance to a daily schedule. As there are too many variables involved, expecting that students can complete remote learning assignments within 24 hours may be too optimistic. Maintaining this expectation may create undue pressure on students that could, in turn, cause them to disengage with class or school. In the same regard, give students extra time and opportunities for reflection upon work they have already done. Know when to use synchronous and when to use asynchronous learning. Assigning asynchronous activities can provide flexibility in a student's day, especially important for students with limited internet access.

(Re)define classwork. Busywork has only provided minimal benefits to learners and as a component of distance learning, provides even less. Take a moment to rethink the purpose of assignments, perhaps imagine yourself answering the all-too-common question, "Why do I need to learn this?" Instead, design learning experiences that are rooted in inquiry or authenticity. In these unprecedented times, teachers will be vying for students' attention like never before and more robust learning experiences is a great means of keeping students engaged.

Employ situational awareness. Group Zoom conferences can amplify equity issues by asking students to open a camera that exposes less-than-ideal living conditions. Remember, students need access to the internet, hardware, and parental permission to participate, and not all may have those items.

Free expression. Allow students to show what they've learned in different ways so they may use the resources available to them. For example: a video reaction to a chapter is easier to do on a smartphone vs. having them try to type a one-page paper on a smartphone.

Mental health checks. Take time to check in with your students and their SEL needs. A short survey form students fill out a few times a week can help you learn about what their needs may be during this time.

Create connections. A school district can act as a resource by connecting families to internet service providers or telecommunications companies who are offering free Internet during this time. Districts can also share businesses that may have outdoor Wi-fi where students could work (keeping safe distance from others, such as from the family car).

Some rules still apply. Such as when you're in your classroom, make sure all content you use with students comes from a culturally responsive lens. Choose activities that benefit all students, not just a select few who may have the learning resources at their fingertips. Use activities and examples that reflect the faces of your students. Observe which online activities or resources are most liked by your students.

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Remote Learning and Digital Equity: Best Practices

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Tech & Learning talks with Diane Doersch and Kali Alford of Digital Promise about remote learning and digital equity. Diane W. Doersch is technical project director at Verizon Innovative Learning Schools and Digital Promise. Kali Alford is associate director of professional learning, Verizon Innovative Learning Schools and Digital Promise.

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Getting to 100% Engagement in Distance Learning

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Getting to 100% Engagement in Distance Learning

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Photo: Mills Teacher Scholars

As we all speculate on what schools will look like in 2020-21, one thing is becoming abundantly clear: distance learning will continue to be at least part of our reality.

This new medium of learning failed to include a large percentage of students in its first few months. How can we change this for next year? What strategies can teachers and leaders employ in order to engage all students in distance learning?

I am a third-grade teacher in a public school near Richmond, CA, where 90% of students qualify for free and reduced lunch, nearly half are English learners, and many families are grappling with the health and economic challenges of the Covid-19 pandemic. Over the past two months I have researched, created and collaborated with colleagues on a winding journey towards my goal of 100% student engagement in distance learning.

As the school year comes to an end, I can now celebrate that all of my 22 students engaged in distance learning daily. Along the way, I have learned many things about what students and families need from me in this uncertain and unusual time.

While recognizing that every community may be experiencing this pandemic differently, I have compiled my learning into some tips that may be helpful to educators seeking to reach all of their students in this time of distance learning.
Partner with students, families and colleagues
Family and teacher communication is foundational to supporting student learning - and more essential than ever in distance learning. I plan to begin the new school year by meeting virtually with each student and their family, listening to their needs and daily routines, collaborating on student learning goals and making a communication plan together.

I have found that some students spend the school day with parents, while others may be in the care of an older sibling, grandparent, or friend. Teachers' ability to get in touch with each student's primary caregiver during the school day is critical to building and sustaining student engagement.

Teachers are adapting to this new form of education at a rapid pace, and collaborating with one another benefits all of us. My school has partnered with Mills Teacher Scholars in order to facilitate rich collaboration during both in person and distance learning. Through my conversations with colleagues I have worked through challenges, shared my strategies and learned from the successes of others.
Engaging and social lesson plans
All children need unstructured social time with friends, both for their emotional well-being and to support their engagement in school. Before my daily lesson, I offer open social time for my class on Zoom. This supports their social and emotional needs while simultaneously incentivizing on-time attendance. Using this method, I have 100% attendance most days for my remote lessons.

Over the months, I have experimented with many technologies in order to make my lessons as interactive as possible. Students lose interest in lessons more rapidly when online than in person, so I have found that keeping lessons dynamic with the use of multimedia, screen-sharing and breakout rooms supports engagement and motivation in students.

Students and families send me photos of their art and science projects and I regularly post them on our ClassDojo. This public honoring of their work is both motivating and an expression of care.
Be clear, caring and flexible
Before rolling out new procedures, I created tutorial videos in both Spanish and English to walk families through each component of a typical agenda. I also send weekly updates and reminders to families to keep the communication alive.

In this deeply challenging time for families, flexibility from teachers and schools is not only compassionate, it is essential to making remote learning work. Apart from a one-hour live lesson in the morning, I don't have a set schedule for students or a time the assignments are due.

I offer time guidelines but leave it up to families when they want their child to be doing the work. I also offer "must do" assignments that consist of our core learning and "may do" assignments for families who want more ideas to engage their students in learning.

I know some students need more hands-on support, and so I offer daily office hours via Zoom as well as small group time after whole-group lessons.

As we head into a new school year, let's remember to partner with our students, families and colleagues in order to establish a caring classroom community, even if it's from a distance. I believe that with attention to social and emotional needs and creative planning, we can engage all of our students in successful distance learning.

***
Jessie Welcomer is a 3rd grade teacher at Montalvin Manor K-8, a Title I public school in San Pablo, California. She and her colleagues partner with Mills Teacher Scholars To get more reports like this one, click here to sign up for EdSource's no-cost daily email on latest developments in education. to support their professional learning and collaboration.
The opinions in this commentary are those of the author. Commentaries published on EdSource represent viewpoints from EdSource's broad audience. As an independent, non-partisan organization, EdSource does not take a position on legislation or policy. We welcome guest commentaries from teachers about how they are adapting to distance learning. If you would like to submit a commentary, please review our guidelines and contact us.

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COMMENTARY: Getting to 100% student engagement in distance learning

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Photo: Mills Teacher Scholars As we all speculate on what schools will look like in 2020-21, one thing is becoming abundantly clear: distance learning will continue to be at least part of our reality. This new medium of learning failed to include a large percentage of students in its first few months.

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When asking students to explore issues of personal and social identity, teachers must provide safe spaces where students are seen, valued, cared for and respected. It is also important that students have opportunities to learn from one another's varied experiences and perspectives. To create this learning environment, teachers need to skillfully draw on student experiences to enrich the curriculum.

Teachers can show they value students' lives and identities in a variety of ways. Some are small, like taking the time to learn the proper pronunciation of every student's name or getting to know young people's families. Others require more time and investment, like building curriculum around personal narratives or incorporating identity-based responses into the study of texts. At the community level, it is important to understand neighborhood demographics, strengths, concerns, conflicts and challenges. Like students themselves, these dynamics may change frequently.

For teachers whose experiences differ from those of their students, it is critical to exercise sensitivity. They must bring the following to the effort:

An asset-based view of youth and unfamiliar identity groups

A commitment to avoiding and challenging stereotypes

A sense of openness and cultural humility

A willingness to let students define their own identities

Connection to Anti-bias Education

Honoring student experience supports three of the four anti-bias domains: Identity, Diversity and Action. Students who feel their experiences are unwelcome, judged, stereotyped, disrespected or invisible find it extremely difficult to engage in meaningful discussion of identity and justice issues. Those whose stories and voices are heard and reflected in the classroom are more likely to engage with anti-bias curriculum and translate their learning into action.

Knowing and valuing students' lives provides other benefits:

Ability to identify potential "hot spots" on key topics.

Development of caring student-teacher relationships that support effective identity-based learning.

Development of intergroup awareness and understanding.

Direction in the selection of texts that are relevant to a particular class.

Appreciation of student contributions to discussions.

Strategies

Classroom-Reflective Texts Coupled with Nonjudgmental Dialogue

Choosing texts that reflect classroom demographics and following the readings with discussions or reflective writing assignments can provide teachers with powerful information about their students' hopes, concerns, strengths and life circumstances. These practices also open channels of understanding among students. Successful conversations about issues of identity frequently lead to deeper dialogue about students' own backgrounds and the experiences of others.

Share Stories That Make Room for Student Sharing

Personal anecdotes-respectfully and thoughtfully shared by teachers-have great power. Stories should be chosen carefully, kept brief, and told at a level that invites appropriate student sharing.

Community Study or Student-Led Walking Tour

Community studies usually address up to three questions; structure can vary greatly and may involve research, interviews, art, writing, video or other media. A walking tour should also focus on a few themes and ask students to highlight neighborhood places they find meaningful in relation to a relevant social issue. Student age and physical limitations should be taken into consideration when planning a walking tour.

Without saying a word, classrooms send messages about diversity, relationship building, communication and the roles of teachers and students. Consider the different messages sent by these two classrooms:

Classroom 1

Desks are arranged in a U shape. The teacher's desk is in the front center of the room. On the wall is a poster of U.S. presidents, a copy of the Declaration of Independence and inspiring quotes from Winston Churchill, Robert F. Kennedy and Albert Einstein. Students are working quietly on an independent assignment.

Classroom 2

Desks are arranged in clusters of four with students facing one another. The teacher's desk is in the back corner of the room. On the wall is a display of student self-portraits, a copy of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and inspiring quotes from Maya Angelou and César Chávez. Students are working with their table-mates on a group project.

Classroom setup should be student centered. Specifics will vary from teacher to teacher and class to class, but common elements include these:

Classroom milieu. Classrooms should be decorated with multicultural images that mirror student backgrounds and showcase the diversity of our society.

Arrangement of furniture and supplies. The arrangement will look different depending on age group and subject, but all teachers can draw on these goals when setting up a classroom: supporting collaboration, fostering dialogue, encouraging ownership and ensuring comfort.

Student roles and responsibilities. Classrooms will be most effective when structured to maximize student voice and participation.

Classroom norms. Norms and expectations should take into account different cultural and communication styles, as well as gender differences, language needs and the desire to challenge stereotypes. Students should be involved in setting classroom norms to generate buy-in.

Connection to Anti-bias Education

Thoughtful classroom setup and structure supports two of the four anti-bias domains: Diversity and Justice. A welcoming class space sets the tone for participatory engagement. Diverse images affect students' conscious and subconscious understanding of classroom values. Expectations and practices that honor diverse backgrounds also create a more just and equitable educational experience.

Strategies

Classroom "Audit"

A (nonjudgmental) classroom audit involves "reading" the messages conveyed by the images on the walls, the books on the shelves and the arrangement of the furniture with an eye toward diversity, equity and student empowerment. The audit also includes considering the types of interactions that teachers have with students and that students have with one another.

Student Jobs and Ownership of Classroom Space

Many daily tasks can be done by students who, given the opportunity, may create new and interesting ways to approach them. Real-world lessons related to work and responsibility can be reinforced in a classroom. Students can apply for a position and be rewarded or promoted for a job well done. Some classroom jobs might involve passing out materials, documenting or taking notes, managing a classroom library, filing papers or helping with a bulletin board. The job of "peacemaker" can work nicely in classrooms where students have been trained in conflict resolution. Jobs in a responsive classroom can accommodate multiple learning styles such as artistic, kinesthetic and verbal.

Gender-Neutral Practices

Many teachers, especially at the elementary level, seat or group students along gender lines. However, not everyone fits traditional gender categories. Some students may feel they are truly a different gender than their physical bodies suggest; others might not fit neatly into either the male or female identity category. Using gender-neutral categories or allowing students to choose the group with which they identify affirms the experiences of all students.

Differences shape who we are and what we know. Life, history, society and power cannot be understood from a single perspective; we need multiple viewpoints to truly see the world. Because of this, inclusive classrooms must function as learning communities built on shared inquiry and dialogue.

Dialogue is more than conversation. It is also different than debate, in which someone wins and someone loses. Dialogue requires openness to new ideas and collective learning. This is not an easy practice; for students (and teachers) to engage in dialogue, they must build and exercise specific skills:

Listening. Deeply listening to what others say and to the feelings, experiences and wisdom behind what they say.

Humility. Recognizing that, however passionately we hold ideas and opinions, other people may hold pieces of the puzzle that we don't.

Respect. Trusting the integrity of others, believing they have the right to their opinions (even when different from your own) and valuing others enough to risk sharing ideas.

Trust. Building a safe space to explore new ideas and work through conflicts, controversy and painful moments that may arise when talking about issues of injustice and oppression.

Voice. Speaking the truth as we see it and asking questions about things we don't know or understand, particularly on topics related to identity, power and justice.

Connection to Anti-bias Education

Shared inquiry and dialogue support two of the four anti-bias domains: Diversity and Action. Building the skills necessary to explore multiple perspectives fosters critical thinking, complex textual understanding and appreciation for diversity. Dialogue also supports active listening, respectful sharing and conflict resolution. A culture of shared inquiry offers a lived example of meaningful collaborative work and a model for community building.

Strategies

Naming Shared Inquiry as a Goal

Because many students experience classrooms that do not value shared inquiry and dialogue, it is important for teachers to create a safe environment before asking students to engage in this work. Safety can be established by discussing principles of engagement, demonstrating the teacher's commitment to collective learning or creating a set of discussion agreements.

Teaching Active Listening Skills

Active listening is a way of hearing and responding to another person that requires the listener to stop thinking about his or her own ideas and focus on the speaker. Active listening behavior includes asking good questions, listening without judgment and paraphrasing. These behaviors can be modeled through the use of talking circles or ordered sharing. Short practice activities can also strengthen active listening skills.

Rethinking Participation Norms

To most teachers, class participation means contributing to discussions, volunteering to answer questions or otherwise engaging in verbal exchanges. However, participation does not have to be verbal; gender, culture and ability may affect student comfort levels with verbal communication. Modeling equity and inclusiveness calls for a broader definition of participation that includes active listening, written response, artistic response and involvement in small groups. These options should all be valued as classroom participation.

Addressing Conflicts and Hurt Feelings

Teachers need to prepare for possible conflicts or hurt feelings when exploring personally or politically sensitive material. Teachers can encourage students to publicly or privately name "ouch moments"-times when comments or reactions (usually unintentional) cause upset or discomfort. It is also helpful for teachers to check in with students who seem upset as a result of a class activity or conversation.

Social-emotional learning, respect and safety are as important as literacy and critical thinking skills when exploring an anti-bias curriculum. Research shows that students need to feel both physically and emotionally safe to learn. This includes safety from stereotype threat, harassment and exclusion.

Creating a safe climate takes time and work. These are some of the most important components:

Active teaching of social-emotional skills

Attention to creating positive relationships

Bullying prevention and intervention

Community building

Explicit focus on understanding and appreciating differences

Meaningful conflict resolution

Teaching students to challenge bias and exclusion

Upstander training

Work on classroom climate and social-emotional learning cannot simply focus on empathy, kindness and inclusion. Social difference and bias underlie many unsafe and exclusionary behaviors; these issues need to be discussed explicitly. Appreciation for multicultural perspectives is also critical when teaching about relationship building, conflict management and community. This helps students learn to draw on many traditions and experiences and address social divisions in the classroom.

Connection to Anti-bias Education

Prioritizing social and emotional safety supports three of the four anti-bias domains: Identity, Diversity and Action. This practice supports a classroom community in which students feel secure enough to engage in respectful, productive conversations about identity and diversity. This work also models actions necessary to nurture inclusive, respectful connections across lines of difference.

Strategies

Classroom Contracts

A contract of norms and behaviors can help define the classroom community as a socially and emotionally safe place. Students should participate in shaping the contract, identifying a list of agreements about how class members will treat one another, talk together and so on. Issues such as identity, difference and power should be addressed explicitly. For example, a contract could include "Listen with respect to the experiences of others," "Try to understand what someone is saying before rushing to judgment" or "Put-downs of any kind are never OK."

Explicit Anti-bullying or Community-Building Curricula

Many powerful anti-bullying and community- building curricula, when integrated into the regular school curriculum, can build social-emotional skills and teach students to manage conflict. Below are a few suggested resources. Not all address diversity or bias issues specifically; be sure to add these issues to the existing materials if they're missing.

Tribes Learning Community. Research-based approaches to classroom and school-wide community building, social-emotional education and the development of positive learning communities (all grades).

Respect for All Project (GroundSpark). Award-winning films, curriculum guides and teacher training on issues of bias-based bullying, family diversity, gender role expectations and LGBT inclusivity (all grades).

Steps to Respect/Second Step (Committee for Children). Research-based social-emotional learning and bullying-prevention programs (pre-K through middle school).

Bullied: A Student, a School and a Case That Made History (Learning for Justice). Documentary and teaching guide about one student's ordeal at the hands of anti-gay bullies and his fight against hate and harassment (middle and high school).

A Guide to the Film Bully by Lee Hirsch (Facing History and Ourselves). Film and discussion guide on bullying and its profound impact on several different students and families (middle and high school).

Participation in Mix It Up at Lunch Day

Mix It Up is a Learning for Justice program designed to help students identify, question and cross social boundaries. Launched in 2001, Mix It Up recognizes that some of the deepest social divisions in schools are found in the cafeteria. Each fall, Learning for Justice sponsors a national Mix It Up at Lunch Day when schools around the country encourage students to move out of their comfort zones and share a meal with peers who are different from them.

Discipline and behavior management are central to classroom culture. How are students encouraged to treat one another? What happens when they make poor choices or present behavioral challenges? What shapes student-teacher interactions? And what happens when conflicts arise?

This critical practice asks teachers to think about behavior management in light of five key principles:

Belief in the dignity of every person

Community building

Equity and fairness

Respect for cultural differences

Respect for the safety and inclusion of all individuals and groups

These values can be creatively infused into disciplinary practices. However, in general, responsive classrooms address three key aspects.

First, behavior management systems must support safe, inclusive communities by enforcing high standards for respectful interaction; incorporating student-generated discipline policies; teaching conflict resolution; and actively addressing all instances of bias, bullying, exclusion or disrespect.

Second, disciplinary incidents must go beyond punishment and be treated as opportunities for growth, restitution and community building. This is not to say that rules violations should not be met with consequences. However, if community respect is to be a core classroom value, students should not be cast out of the group, even if they struggle to live up to expectations.

Finally, behavior management practices must reflect fairness, equity and cultural awareness. Research shows that students of color and special education students face disproportionate rates of discipline, suspension and expulsion. These patterns have devastating social consequences. Applying disciplinary rules fairly requires self-awareness and willingness to suspend judgment (positive as well as negative) about individual students. Culture also plays a role in disciplinary judgments; in some cases, "inappropriate behaviors" may reflect a cultural mismatch between the norms of the school and the norms of a student's home culture. Teachers can better understand the relationship between culture and discipline by working on a related critical practice: self-awareness and cultural competency.

Connection to Anti-bias Education

Taking a values-based approach to behavior management and discipline supports one of the four anti-bias domains: Justice. This practice exposes students to community-building goals and to a system of justice that values all people and builds connections rather than creates divisions.

Strategies

Student-Generated Agreements and Contracts

Involving students in the design of classroom discipline policies can go a long way toward establishing buy-in and shared ownership of classroom culture. Ideally, students will work on the policies as a class, but teachers can also work individually with students who need extra support.

"Zero Indifference" but Not Zero Tolerance

Although zero-tolerance policies are popular, mounting evidence suggests that this approach does not make schools safer. An alternative (recommended by the American Civil Liberties Union; GLSEN; the Anti-Defamation League; the Respect for All Project; and Learning for Justice) is taking a "zero-indifference" approach to bullying, harassment and other disciplinary issues. Zero indifference means never letting disrespectful conduct go unaddressed; school staff always name and respond to behaviors, but they do not implement automatic suspension, expulsion or other punishments.

Restorative Justice

Restorative justice is an approach to school discipline (and criminal justice) that emphasizes repairing harm and restoring relationships rather than simply punishing those who have engaged in misconduct. Restorative justice spans a wide variety of practices and strategies, including peacemaking circles, peer jury processes, mediation, conferencing and classroom discussions focused on building empathy.

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When asking students to explore issues of personal and social identity, teachers must provide safe spaces where students are seen, valued, cared for and respected. It is also important that students have opportunities to learn from one another's varied experiences and perspectives.

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Carrie Underwood - The Champion ft. Ludacris (Official Lyric Video)

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Read Aloud of "The Invisible Boy" by Trudy Ludwig

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Read Aloud of "The Invisible Boy" by Trudy Ludwig

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The Kansas Department of Education (KSDE) and Drs. Amy Gaumer Erickson and Pattie Noonan partnered to offer the Kansans Can Competency Framework Project, inviting Pre-K - 12 educators throughout the state to participate in professional development. The project aims to support Kansas schools in implementing the College and Career Competency Framework (Gaumer Erickson, Noonan, & Soukup, 2013).

Kansans Can Competency Framework Professional Development Options
There are numerous professional development options available through the Kansans Can Competency Framework project, for individuals, school teams, and entire schools/districts. To receive information about 2018-19 professional development opportunities, complete this form.

The Kansas CCC PD Options flyer has full details on all available professional development options. Some of the options include facilitated online courses (5 weeks of online learning & discussion and 2 weeks of teaching students competency content), competency-specific training packages (multi-week process including face-to-face training, support in creating and implementing instructional plans, and feedback and coaching throughout the process), competency installation team training packages (multi-week process including a planning call with building/district administration, on-site, face-to-face professional learning, support and feedback in creating and implementing instructional plans, coaching and support for scaling up instruction, etc.), and school-wide or district-wide competency training packages. If you have questions, contact Pattie Noonan at pnoonan@ku.edu.

KS CCC Trainer/Coach Training
Are you passionate about the competencies and interested in training others? Apply to participate in intensive professional learning to become a Kansans Can Competency Framework Trainer. Trainer/Coach candidates will work directly with Drs. Noonan and Gaumer Erickson to expand their expertise through observation, coaching, performance-based assessment, and small-group learning. Once trained, Kansas Recognized Trainers provide high-quality professional development specific to competency expertise. For information on becoming a Kansas CCC Framework Trainer, contact Pattie Noonan at pnoonan@ku.edu.

Independent Book Study
Want to learn more but unable to participate in training? The Skills That Matter: Teaching Interpersonal and Intrapersonal Competencies in Any Classroom (Noonan & Gaumer Erickson, 2018) provides middle and high school educators with resources, tools, and practical examples to teach key intrapersonal and interpersonal competencies, including self-regulation, goal setting, self-efficacy, assertiveness, and conflict management. Readers will find competency-specific, evidence-based instructional strategies with examples, as well as guidance on embedding competencies within content-area instruction. The book can be purchased from Corwin Press at https://us.corwin.com/en-us/nam/the-skills-that-matter/book255639.

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The Kansas Department of Education (KSDE) and Drs. Amy Gaumer Erickson and Pattie Noonan partnered to offer the Kansans Can Competency Framework Project, inviting Pre-K - 12 educators throughout the state to participate in professional development. The project aims to support Kansas schools in implementing the College and Career Competency Framework (Gaumer Erickson, Noonan, & Soukup, 2013).