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00:00:00 --> 00:00:05 Welcome to Your Morning Boost, your daily leadership advice to help you lead your school community.
00:00:05 --> 00:00:09 Brought to you by AWB Education and sponsored by Grundmeyer Leader Services,
00:00:10 --> 00:00:14 where together we are transforming education, one leader at a time.
00:00:14 --> 00:00:16 Now here's your host, Adam Bush.
00:00:17 --> 00:00:20 Good morning, Boosters. Welcome back to Your Morning Boost. Happy Tuesday.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:24 Thanks for joining me today. I have a quick programming note to share.
00:00:24 --> 00:00:27 Tomorrow, we will debut a new feature called Your Booster Shot.
00:00:27 --> 00:00:32 These are some special episodes that'll allow us to delve a little deeper into
00:00:32 --> 00:00:36 some specific topics while still providing the quick tips and tricks we've promised
00:00:36 --> 00:00:37 to deliver you on a daily basis.
00:00:38 --> 00:00:41 So keep an eye out for that one coming out tomorrow. I'm pretty excited about
00:00:41 --> 00:00:42 this. This should be a good episode.
00:00:43 --> 00:00:49 In the meantime, let's focus on our topic for today, and that is to rebuild student connections.
00:00:49 --> 00:00:54 Now, a crucial aspect of creating a thriving and inclusive school community
00:00:54 --> 00:00:56 is building that student connection to school.
00:00:57 --> 00:01:01 Now, as we all know, the pandemic undoubtedly disrupted the social fabric of
00:01:01 --> 00:01:03 every school. I know it certainly did mine.
00:01:03 --> 00:01:08 I mean, many students, they just felt isolated and disconnected from their peers
00:01:08 --> 00:01:09 and less engaged in learning.
00:01:09 --> 00:01:12 And I realize we're a few years now removed from the pandemic,
00:01:12 --> 00:01:16 but we are still seeing some struggles for students connecting to school.
00:01:16 --> 00:01:19 And this disconnection, it can manifest itself in various ways.
00:01:19 --> 00:01:24 It can be from increased anxiety and social withdrawal to a decreased academic
00:01:24 --> 00:01:27 performance and just a general lack of motivation.
00:01:27 --> 00:01:32 So, to combat this, we need to prioritize a few strategies that will help rebuild
00:01:32 --> 00:01:33 those vital connections.
00:01:34 --> 00:01:36 Now, here are a few key approaches to this.
00:01:36 --> 00:01:39 Number one, prioritize that social-emotional learning.
00:01:40 --> 00:01:45 I realize that SEL activities can be a political hot-button topic depending on where you're at.
00:01:45 --> 00:01:50 But really, at the heart of SEL activities, we are just trying to go beyond
00:01:50 --> 00:01:55 the traditional lesson and the school day and seamlessly integrate some of these
00:01:55 --> 00:01:57 activities into what we're doing.
00:01:57 --> 00:02:02 We are talking about just prioritizing ourselves a little bit along with the academics,
00:02:02 --> 00:02:06 maybe some exercises in the morning routines that help us to be able to get
00:02:06 --> 00:02:10 our focus or help us just to reflect a little bit and conducting a few team
00:02:10 --> 00:02:15 building activities during a homeroom time or fostering some open and honest
00:02:15 --> 00:02:17 discussions about empathy,
00:02:17 --> 00:02:20 respect, and navigating social situations.
00:02:20 --> 00:02:24 We don't have to push anything related to a political agenda to just talk about
00:02:24 --> 00:02:26 how you think about yourself and others.
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 Another area to think about when we are talking about connecting students to
00:02:30 --> 00:02:31 school is restorative practices.
00:02:32 --> 00:02:36 Try to move away from the punitive measures and more towards restorative practices.
00:02:36 --> 00:02:38 Our kids are going to make mistakes.
00:02:38 --> 00:02:42 They're students, right? They're learning. We're learners. We make mistakes.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:47 They are certainly going to. If we don't have to punish it, and instead we can
00:02:47 --> 00:02:51 use that as a moment of learning, try to implement those restorative practices.
00:02:51 --> 00:02:55 Maybe these are restorative circles with other students that are also struggling
00:02:55 --> 00:02:57 with similar behaviors or choices.
00:02:57 --> 00:03:02 Or maybe these are conferences with our parents or with other people to try
00:03:02 --> 00:03:04 to address the conflict constructively.
00:03:04 --> 00:03:07 Heck, it might be a good opportunity for us to think about this with our staff
00:03:07 --> 00:03:12 as well. Circles like these provide a safe space for people to share their perspectives,
00:03:12 --> 00:03:17 understand the impact of the actions they're having, but also to repair the relationships.
00:03:17 --> 00:03:21 Good opportunity also to reignite those extracurricular activities.
00:03:22 --> 00:03:24 If you're in an area of the world or the country where the winter is starting
00:03:24 --> 00:03:28 to set in a little bit, we kind of get in the day-to-day of just kind of repeating
00:03:28 --> 00:03:30 the same thing, rinse and repeat, right?
00:03:31 --> 00:03:33 Encourage and support some participation in some other things,
00:03:34 --> 00:03:38 clubs, sports, any other extracurricular activities that might be available at the school.
00:03:39 --> 00:03:42 These provide invaluable opportunities for not only social interaction,
00:03:42 --> 00:03:46 but also the skill development and really a sense of belonging.
00:03:46 --> 00:03:49 It might be an opportunity to reboot some mentorship programs,
00:03:50 --> 00:03:53 pairing some older students with younger ones, connecting students with community
00:03:53 --> 00:03:57 members if they're available for you, or even create some peer-to-peer mentoring
00:03:57 --> 00:03:59 programs even within the same grade level.
00:03:59 --> 00:04:03 Sometimes these relationships, they just, they offer valuable guidance,
00:04:03 --> 00:04:05 support, and again, a sense of connection.
00:04:06 --> 00:04:09 What we're trying to do here is just to build strong relationships.
00:04:09 --> 00:04:13 And just remember that that takes time and it also takes consistent effort.
00:04:13 --> 00:04:17 It's not a quick fix. It's not something that just even doing that this week
00:04:17 --> 00:04:18 is going to just make this all better.
00:04:18 --> 00:04:22 No, we're going to have to constantly work at trying to create this culture
00:04:22 --> 00:04:24 of connection throughout our school.
00:04:24 --> 00:04:26 It's going to be in your classrooms, going to be in your hallways.
00:04:27 --> 00:04:31 School-wide events, and community partnerships if possible. If you're looking
00:04:31 --> 00:04:35 for some further inspiration, I recommend reading The Power of Full Engagement by Tony Schwartz.
00:04:35 --> 00:04:39 It's a really good book. This book emphasizes the vital role of relationships
00:04:39 --> 00:04:44 in fostering a thriving and engaged workforce, and its principles can just be
00:04:44 --> 00:04:48 readily applied to any of our school communities. I'd recommend checking that one out.
00:04:48 --> 00:04:52 Hey, that's it today for your morning boost. I hope these tips inspire you to
00:04:52 --> 00:04:55 prioritize student connections today and try to help create a more positive
00:04:55 --> 00:04:58 and supporting learning environment for all. Thanks for listening today,
00:04:59 --> 00:05:00 and we will talk with you again tomorrow.
00:05:01 --> 00:05:05 You have been listening to your Morning Boost by AWB Education in partnership
00:05:05 --> 00:05:06 with Grundmeyer Leader Services.
00:05:07 --> 00:05:11 You can find out more about our services by clicking on the links in the description.
00:05:12 --> 00:05:16 Remember, you are doing this vital job that only a few can do.
00:05:17 --> 00:05:21 So until next time, thank you for your service to your community.