De-escalation Strategies

We all know the importance of being able to de-escalate or diffuse situations when working with students.  To avoid power struggles, try some of the strategies suggested by pathways2success.  

www.pathways2success.com 

Hallway Body Breaks for Antsy Kids

We know that certain students benefit from movement breaks!
Look at this fantastic way of designing hallways to serve this purpose!
Many students are able to boost their learning with these types of breaks.

                                                               YouTube Video

Thanks for sharing, Tracey Parfect!!

Sensory Processing-Great Resource

The book "Sensory Processing 101 by Dayna Abraham, ClaireHeffron, Pamela Braley and Lauren Drobnjak. is a great resource for enabling us to better understand how children's' bodies process the world around them.  Relevent resources include:  top websites, books and communities for support, cheat sheets for all 7 of your senses, reference uides or sensory doughs, bins and bottles, red flag behaviour checklists and more.

Anger is not Rudeness

From Michael Reist:

Being angry is not being rude. Anger is an emotion. Rudeness is intentional offence. Disagreeing with what you say is not “giving attitude.” It is a difference of opinion.

Children have as much right to their feelings and opinions as we do.

Sometimes we accept our own anger and opinions as legitimate and shut down our children’s. We come to believe that unquestioning obedience is a virtue. We may have learned this from our family of origin. We certainly learned it at school where unquestioning obedience to authority is totally expected.  

We want to raise children who are capable of expressing their feelings and opinions. Unquestioning obedience is not good for one’s personal development nor for a democratic society. We need people who have the courage to talk back and say what they really think and feel – in healthy, constructive ways. Anger can be a motivator for personal change and social change. 

Feelings can be messy. That’s OK. 

We are comfortable with the light end of the emotional spectrum, but we often have a problem with the “dark” end. We deny difficult feelings like anger – both in ourselves and in our children. Repressed anger will come out in other ways. In males it comes out as emotional numbing, addiction and high-risk behaviour. In females, it comes out as depression. Boys act out. Girls act in.

We need to listen to our own anger and that of our children. Anger is a message from the soul: A boundary has been violated. An expectation has not been met. Something needs to change. Children learn how to deal with anger by watching us deal with ours.

3 Questions to ask yourself about your own anger:

1. Do I express my feelings in healthy ways? Remember the “Don’t freak out rule.” When you freak out, you send a message to your children – don’t bring me your “stuff” because I won’t be able to handle it. I will freak out and make the situation worse. 
2. Am I aware of my own emotional state?  Do I let my feelings about something else (my boss, my job, my life) affect my functioning with my children? Do I let my child’s anger trigger my own repressed anger?
3. Is this the best time to talk about this? Is my best self going to come out right now or am I likely to say something hurtful? Children hear with their hearts. “Mom’s mad. I’m bad.” Take a time out and come back to it later.

Anger can lead people to say rude things and do things that hurt others. The freedom to express your anger ends where the rights of others begins. Say what you feel. Control what you do. You can’t hit your little brother. You can’t call me names.

10 Ways to help you and your child express their anger in healthy ways: 

1. Use “I messages.” Talk about how you feel. Don’t attack the other person.
2. Cry (especially relevant for older boys)
3. Hit something (not a person and don’t break things)
4. Move (walk, run, ride your bike, play basketball)
5. Express yourself through art: draw, play an instrument, write
6. Breathe
7. Listen to music
8. Count to 10 (out loud so people know to stand back)
9. Walk away
10. Take a time out and come back to the topic when you’re not angry

Finally, at the end of a bad day, rebuild the interpersonal bridge by making nurturing contact with your child. The next day, push the reset button. No grudges or references to the past.

Anger is like a storm that passes. A storm can nourish life or it can be destructive. Which one it will be depends on how we respond.

What Boys Need...The Difficult Child

What Boys Need   A newsletter from Michael Reist www.michaelreist.ca

Difficult Child. Interesting Adult. When you’re feeling frustrated about your child’s behaviour, just remember, your difficult child is going to grow up to be an interesting adult. Wayne Dyer said, “When you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” Qualities that are difficult in a child might serve him well as an adult.  Stubborn = strong willed, sets goals and works toward them Defiant = is confident enough to speak honestly to authority figures Disorganized = is more interested in the big picture, not a details person Doesn’t listen = focuses well on his own projects, is able to ignore distractions Argumentative = intelligent, passionate, excellent verbal skills “Difficult” is in the eyes of the beholder. A difficult child is not a problem to be solved but a mystery to be understood. All behaviour is logical. What is the deeper meaning behind the difficult behaviour? I want more freedom and control in my life. This doesn’t mean letting them have everything they want. It means giving them more freedom and control – within boundaries. I feel that no one “gets” me. What does it mean to “get” a child? It means to feel empathy for them. It means to really listen to what they’re saying. I have energy I need to burn off. Get outside. Move. Exercise. I’m bored. I don’t feel challenged. This is especially the case with highly intelligent children. I need more attention from Mom and Dad. Some children need more attention than others – within the same family. If they can’t get it in positive ways, they will get it in negative ways. Give to each according to their needs. You cannot spoil a child with love. We think of children as difficult when they do not behave in ways we like. We need to provide them with two things: freedom within structure. The 4 F’s of discipline: Few: Your list of rules should be short. These are your non-negotiables, your battles worth fighting. Put them up on the fridge door. Review them periodically. Fair: Talk about these rules as a family. What are the logical reasons behind them? Let your kids participate in this discussion rather than decreeing from above. Decide in advance what the consequences will be – ideally with buy-in from your kids. Fast: When a rule is violated, follow the “Act, don’t yak!” rule. Simply impose the consequence. No need for long sermons or lectures. Make sure the consequences have a reasonable time limit (for example, one day without the iPad), so that you can start fresh again. Firm: Listen to the push back then let it go. It’s my job to set boundaries. It’s your job to push back against them. We’re both doing our job. The daily struggle to meet the needs of a “difficult” child will be just that, a daily struggle. Take one day at a time. At the end of a bad day, rebuild the interpersonal bridge by making nurturing contact with the child. The next day, push the reset button – no grudges or references to the past. Most of all, have a sense of humour. Maybe you don’t even have a difficult child – maybe you’re a “difficult parent.” lol

How to "Chunk" your Lessons

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/scaffolding-lessons-six-strategies-rebecca-alber

Edutopia shares ways to chunk lessons and then provide the tools and structures for each chunk.  Read 6 Scaffolding Strategies to Use with your Students to find out how!

Tips for Grading and Giving Feedback

What educator could not use Tips for Grading and Giving Feedback? (Edutopia)

http://www.edutopia.org/blog/grading-tips-student-feedback-heather-wolpert-gawron

How to Give Effective Feedback

"When John Hattie reviewed over 500,00 research studies, he found that feedback had more impact on student results than any other teaching strategy." (The Australian Society for Evidence Based Teaching). Learn How to Give Effective Feedback by clicking on this link.

What To Do When...You Worry Too Much: A Kid's Guide to Overcoming Anxiety

In her book, Dawn Huebner teaches school-aged children cognitive-behavioral techniques to reduce and overcome anxiety, fears, and worry, through writing and drawing activities and self-help exercises.  This book includes information for parents! 

Positive Brains Are Smarter Brains

The article "Positive Brains Are Smarter Brains" gives students tools to take charge of their thoughts, feelings and even change their brain chemistry.

Positive Brains Are Smarter Brains by Donna Wilson

Explaining Death to Children

"Lifetimes" written by Bryan Mellonie and Rober Ingpen is a "beautiful way to explain death to children."

53 Ways to Check for Understanding

Great ways to verify what students have learned!  Edutopia shares 53 Ways to Check for Understanding.  Take a look at the strategies suggested!

http://www.edutopia.org/resource/checking-understanding-download?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=socialflow

Occupational Therapy: Apps for Kids

The Inspired Treehouse shares apps to promote fine motor and  motor visual skills in students.  Find 20 awesome apps at Occupational Therapy: The Best Apps For Kids!

http://theinspiredtreehouse.com/occupational-therapy-best-apps-for-kids/

The Power of Keeping Your Cool

Rebecca Albers insists that we are responsive, not reactive.  See the tips in her article The Power of Keeping Cool.

Edutopia

Never lose sight of your dream!

Invest in yourself!  Believe!
An inspirational video!


YouTube

7 Ways to Boost Kids Emotional Intelligence

Dr. Michele Borba provides 7 ways to enhance children's abilities to read nonverbal messages thereby helping them to fit in and handle everyday life situations.  Check out her article 7 Ways to Boost Kids Emotional Intelligence.

http://micheleborba.com/blog/the-emotional-iq-deficit-110-kids-unable-to-read-nonverbal-cues-why-its-a-big-deal/

5 Characteristics of an Effective School Team

5 Characteristics of an Effective School Team

Why does an effective school team matter?

• retaining and sustaining teachers
• learning from one another and more!  

Aguilar of Edutopia explains why they matter and shares 5 Characteristics of an Effective School Team.

Fostering Resilience and Grit

Edutopia shares Resilience and Grit: Resource Round Up on topics including nurturing resilience, fostering grit, teaching growth mindset, managing stress, learning from failure, and responding to trauma and tragedy.

Edutopia

What is Summer Reading Loss?

Prevent the reading slide that can occur when young minds sit idle during the summer months. Reading Is Fundamental indicates that such reading loss is cumulative (http://www.rif.org/us/literacy-resources/summer-reading-slide.htm).  Incorporate reading into your activities!



YouTube

37 Ways to Help Kids Learn to Love Reading!

• Share your interests
• Use funny voices
• Read items other than just books
• Create a movie or a poster

Edutopia presents 37 Ways to Help Kids Learn to Love Reading that can easily be done at home and in the classroom!

http://www.edutopia.org/discussion/37-ways-help-kids-learn-love-reading?utm_source=SilverpopMailing&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=052715%20enews%20summreads%20ngm%20remainder&utm_content=&utm_term=fea3hed&spMailingID=11487392&spUserID=ODIzNzExNzg4NDAS1&spJobID=541804031&spReportId=NTQxODA0MDMxS0