Virtual teaching is new to most teachers. It’s a challenge to learn another delivery system to educate our students. For me, it’s required logistical and emotional adjustments as I transitioned from in school groups to leading the SocialEyes Together® SEL groups via video on Google Meet. It wasn’t easy. Still isn’t easy. And it’s far […]
During a SocialEyes Together®SEL group recently, our third and fourth graders responded in a way that was not surprising. We asked them to think about this situation: “You’re late for recess because you had to finish some work. Some kids in your class are playing your favorite game. You ask if you can join them. […]
One of our 3rd graders, an animated, petite, dimpled boy named Nate (not his real name) had been physically restrained almost daily in his former public school. Nate is a disrupter. His file reads like a menu from the DSM-5. You can almost see his mind churning with turbulence as he moves throughout his day. […]
When our students were little, they had a fairly easy time being themselves. By late elementary school, groups started to form such as the popular kids, the athletic kids, the kids who sat alone, the rich kids, the bullies, the smart kids, etc, and they wondered, where did they fit in? Some of them started […]
So much is not happening right now! Events that were coming soon have been released into an unknown future and some are gone forever. It’s the stuff of great disappointment. We are collectively mourning. And that’s the way it is. For now. It will pass. But until it does pass, here’s what we can do […]
Almost everything stopped and we all fell off the roller coaster that was our lives this year. We didn’t ask for this, but now we get to peek behind the curtain and see ourselves more clearly (perhaps too clearly at times) without the rushing around and the usual distractions. As I’m sure you know, our […]
When I was a little girl, I had a recurring daydream: The earth was inhabited by joyous, peaceful people. We sang and danced and lifted each other up as we celebrated life. Love was ALWAYS in the air. I wanted my daydream to be real so badly. But instead of finding this imagined utopia, I […]
My thoughts raced as I made my to-do list. Stock up on medications, check food supplies, cancel almost everything. When I have a task or project to do, I’m on it. In normal times, I go about my life in a basically balanced way. These are not normal times. I slowly but surely lost my […]
Many of our students react to uncomfortable situations by turning them into catastrophes. It’s easy for teachers to dismiss this as drama on their part. In a way, it is. And it also isn’t. It’s a “socially acceptable” pattern they’ve adopted to avoid uncomfortable feelings. Their story expands and gathers momentum as it’s shared with […]
Want your students to be more mindful and present? Try some improv! The brain is very efficient. Our students learn to pay attention to what’s necessary. They notice the steps ahead, the moving cars in the parking lot, the people in their way. They learn the patterns and the important signals that the people around […]
