All of us at PSI have been distressed and saddened by the on-going national and world events involving terrorism and other mass killings. Our partner schools often come to us for advice on properly communicating with students about these tragic events. We are aware that you want to individualize your school’s response, but we thought the following information from the National Association of School Psychologists might be of help. Please let us know if we can guide you in any way as we all navigate these turbulent times. As always, we thank you for your continued support of PSI.

 

Talking to Students About Terrorism

Due to the recent incidents of terrorism in Paris, children may turn to educators with questions and need support.  Our students may have known someone who has been affected by these recent incidents or other acts of violence.  They may be worried about a loved one who lives in an area where a terrorist act or threat has been made.  Our students may develop stress and anxiety due to media coverage of these incidents.  Some of our students may even be unfairly stigmatized due to a perceived resemblance of perpetrators who have enacted violence.

The National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) has provided to the public access to a variety of resources regarding school safety and violence.  A recent article posted by NASP, entitled Helping Children Cope with Terrorism – Tips for Families and Educators, may be useful for you in your schools.  Below is a summary of ways you can help support your students who are processing their thoughts and feelings regarding terrorism.  Please note that it is important to discuss your involvement in addressing these sensitive issues with your school administrator in order to ensure that your service aligns with their school policies and best meets the needs of the students.

Tips for Families & Educators:

1)    Be Conscious of Your Reactions – Children take their emotional cues from the significant adults in their lives. Avoid appearing anxious or overly frightened.

2)    Reassure children they are safe – Point out evidence that support this.

3)    Remind them that trustworthy people are in charge – Explain that emergency workers, police, firefighters, doctors, and the government are helping people who are hurt and are working to prevent this from happening in the future.

4)    Let children know that it is okay to feel upset – Explain that all feelings are okay.  Let children talk about their feelings in a safe and open environment.

5)    Tell children the truth – Don’t try to pretend that the event has not occurred.  Children will be worried if they think you are afraid to tell them what is happening.  It is a good idea to discuss ways to deliver this message to students in a developmentally appropriate way with the school administrators.

6)    Stick to the facts – Don’t embellish or speculate about what has happened or where another attack might occur.

7)    Be careful not to stereotype people or countries that might be associated with the violence – Talk about tolerance and justice versus vengeance.  Stop any bullying or teasing immediately.

8)    Keep your explanations developmentally appropriate – Early elementary children need brief, simple information that should be balanced with reassurances that the daily structures of their lives will not change. Upper elementary and early middle school children will be more vocal in asking questions about whether they truly are safe. They may need assistance separating reality from fantasy. Upper middle school and high school students will have strong and varying opinions about the causes of violence and threats to safety in schools and society. They will share concrete suggestions about how to make school safer and how to prevent tragedies in society. They will be more committed to doing something to help the victims and affected community.

9)    Maintain a “normal” routine – To the best extent possible, stick to a normal classroom routine, but don’t be inflexible. Children may have a hard time concentrating on schoolwork or falling asleep at night.

10) Monitor or restrict exposure – Monitor exposure to all forms of media, including social media. For older children, caution against accessing news coverage from only one source.

11) Observe children’s emotional state – Depending on their age, children may not express their concerns verbally.  Changes in behavior, appetite, and sleep patterns can also indicate a child’s level of grief, anxiety or discomfort.  Children will express their emotions differently. There is no right or wrong way to feel or express fear or grief.

12) Be aware of children at greater risk – Children who have a connection to this particular event, have had a past traumatic experience or personal loss, suffer from depression or other mental illness, or with special needs may be at greater risk for severe reactions than others.

13) Provide an outlet for students’ desire to help – Consider making get well cards or sending letters to the families and survivors of the tragedy, or writing thank you letters to doctors, nurses, and other health care professionals as well as emergency rescue workers, firefighters and police.

14) Keep lines of communication open between home and school – Schools are a good place for children to experience a sense of normalcy. Being with their friends and teachers is helpful. Schools should inform families about available resources, such as talking points or counseling, and plans for information sharing and discussions with students.

15) Monitor your own stress level – Don’t ignore your own feelings of anxiety, grief, and anger. Talking to friends, family members, religious leaders, and mental health counselors can help. It is okay to let your children know you are sad, but that you believe things will get better. You will be better able to support your children if you can express your own emotions in a productive manner. Get appropriate sleep, nutrition, and exercise.

To access the full version of the article Click Here.

New Brief from NCSSLE on School-Based Physical Fitness:  Its Link to Student Academic Outcomes and Improved School Climate

The National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments (NCSSLE) just released a new brief, School-Based Physical Fitness and the Link to Student Academic Outcomes and Improved School Climate, outlining the growing body of evidence related to the value of school-based physical fitness. The brief outlines research suggesting that physical activity (PA) and physical education (PE) programming offered within the context of the school day are not only essential for children’s healthy development, but are positively linked to children’s academic achievement. In addition the report indicates that, when carefully designed and implemented, these activities have the potential to positively impact school climate and conditions for learning in schools. To read the learning brief, click here.

 

1. Pasta discipline.

This technique starts with a large jar and a few boxes of macaroni—small elbow macaroni works best. When students are all working together well or independently on a task, grab a handful of macaroni and dump it into the jar as a reward. When the jar is full, the students have earned an agreed-upon reward. Possible rewards: Free activity time, a night or two without homework, or an ice-cream party.

2. Sh-h-h-h-h!

If students are a little talky, you might take advantage and whisper an instruction that begins “If you can hear my voice and (give an instruction), you can have ten minutes of free time at the end of the day.” The beginning of the whispered statement will get the attention of some or many students. Give the instruction just once; those who don’t give you their immediate attention or miss what you say because they were talking too loudly miss out on the reward.

3. Three strikes!

Each student starts out the week with three index cards. The blank sides of the cards have their names printed in large letters. If a student disrupts or breaks a rule, instruct the student to write on the lined side of the card (on the first available line) the date and the disruptive behavior. Then the student must drop that card in the fishbowl at the front of the room. Establish a reward for students who still have three cards at the end of the week and consequences for those who have two, one, or no cards left. The next week, the students get their three cards back and start fresh. The cards also serve as a record when report card time comes or when a parent conference must be arranged.

4. RESPECT.

Write the word RESPECT on the board at the start of each week. Each time the class gets out of hand or is off-task enough to be disruptive, put a big X through one of the letters. The class will have discussed and agreed in advance on the rewards and consequences for “keeping” or “losing RESPECT” during the week. Other words—such as REWARD, BEHAVE, or the name of the school&*212;might work as well. You can extend or shorten the time frame, depending on class goals.

5. Bell work.

Many teachers provide “bell work”—activities that students jump into as soon as the bell rings to signal the start of the school day. Such assignments get the day off to a purposeful start by focusing kids’ energies and attention. The activity might be written on the board; it might be a review of a skill taught the day before. Other teachers might expect students to come in each day and spend the first ten minutes writing in their journals; there might be a question on the board to prompt those students who can’t think of anything to write. One teacher posted a Daily Numbers sign (from the state’s lottery game by the same name) in the back of the room. Students walk into the classroom and go immediately to the back of the room to grab their “daily numbers”—a half-sheet of ten math problems that review math operations and a variety of other concepts including measurement, telling time, and money. As the students finish the work, they get immediate reinforcement or correction. When they finish their daily numbers, they start right in on the day’s work. When the teacher finishes correcting everybody’s math problems, the morning meeting begins.

6. The buddy room.

Many teachers use the “buddy room” concept. Two teachers agree to be buddy room partners. This works best if the buddying teachers are in adjacent rooms. If a student is being disruptive, the teacher takes the student to the buddy room. There a special seat is assigned for such circumstances. Nothing needs to be said; the student heads directly to that seat. Some teachers leave the student there until he or she is ready to return to class; at that point, the student raises a hand and the buddy teacher takes the student back to class at the first opportunity. Other teachers leave a stack of “think sheets” in the desk in the buddy room; the offending student completes a think sheet—which has places for the student to describe what he or she was doing wrong, the effects the behavior had on the class, and what he or she will do to correct the behavior.

7. Behavior book.

On the first day of school, many teachers provide questionnaires for students to complete. The questionnaires collect important information—such as phone numbers, addresses, and the like—as well information about hobbies and other interests. Some teachers collect those sheets and keep them in a binder. Teachers who have multiple classes use simple notebook dividers to separate one class from another. When a student disrupts the class, breaks a class rule, or does something positive, the teacher reaches for the binder and jots a note on the back of that student’s questionnaire. Those notes serve as a record for grading or planning parent conferences. One teacher buys three-holed plastic sleeves and inserts each student’s questionnaire into a sleeve. She keeps a pile of scrap paper on her desk. Whenever a student does anything negative or positive, she scribbles a dated note on a piece of the scrap paper. At the end of the class period, she drops those notes into the students’ plastic sleeves. Those notes serve as a record of the student’s year.

Gary Hopkins

Education World® Editor-in-Chief

Copyright © 2010, 2015 Education World

– See more at: http://www.educationworld.com/a_curr/curr261.shtml#sthash.zNj6Jpq4.dpuf

 

 

For the past 23 years Rick Dillman has been the Director of Pupil Services for the Bedford School District. It has been a long journey in education that began 47 years ago, 1968 to be precise, when he began his career.

Having graduated Union College of Barberville, Kentucky with a degree in History and a minor in Psychology, Rick soon got a teaching position in special education in a small Kentucky town that didn’t even have a traffic light. His first administrative post came soon after as Director of Special Education for the Goosecreek Consolidated Independent School District of Kentucky, a locale that may not be too familiar for most of us.

As to how it happened that a youth with a History degree got to work with children with disabilities, Rick says, “I liked both history and working with kids. At the time, they needed a special ed teacher and I looked like I could do the job.”

With his long and varied background to draw upon, Rick’s advice to those who today are considering a career in education is to have a passion for teaching and a willingness to accept the rewards that kids will bring. “The rewards are simple and clear: showing that they’ve learned what you’ve taught them!” He adds, “It’s tougher now with all the accountability demanded at every turn. Testing is not the only way to evaluate the experiences of a child in the classroom. Evaluations are all done on computers, and not all students do well because of that.”

The Bedford School District is 85 percent African-American, with the administrative staff equally black and white. The district has 3,400 kids pre-K though 12, eighty percent of whom are from families that are under the poverty line.

 

For about fifteen years PSI has been involved, helping to staff Nursing, Clinic Aides, English as a Second Language and Child Abuse Training. “One of the things PSI has done for me is that when I put a new program in place, I can get the right people and quickly.

Rick’s accomplishments number being the Chair of the National Membership Council for Exceptional Children and President of the Ohio Association of Pupil Services Administration. Next year will probably be his last.

As with everything everywhere, the new technology has made its mark. While a lot of Bedford students don’t have PCs and keyboards, they do have iPhones and tablets. “Our schools have a wireless network. We have become a Google Application District, meaning kids get free Google accounts and storage that any device can access.”

What can be problematic about the job is that the buck stops at Rick’s desk when it comes to expulsions. “It happens more often than you like. It used to be mostly boys, but unfortunately that’s changing.” Most students return after being expelled for a certain amount of time.

Where is burnout in all this? “I don’t have that problem. I like what I do and I like the people. Besides, I’m an optimist and I enjoy the challenges.”