As I look back to by first post for Cohort 21 last September – I definitely find myself thinking differently about the “Urgent vs. Important” concept discussed today. Rather than putting something in one category – I found pulling it apart into smaller pieces easier to see what might be urgent, important, both, or neither by being more specific about the type of task or responsibility involved in the larger umbrella of unit planning or parent communication for example.
Reflecting on my post from last year – a lot of those ideas are still very important in my teaching – such as teaching to my students’ interests and developing that relationship. This year I’m hoping to further develop my project from last year with a greater focus on students’ emotional wellbeing. After seeing the projects from my students last year a lot of them used it as a tool for personal expression and it helped them face emotions that they were struggling with. As middle school students go through so many changes it would be great to see how this song writing unit can evolve for students be able to use it more as an SEL tool.
Happy to see if any of you have any ideas of what you may have done that’s similar or how to approach something from a more SEL lens with Grade 8 boys…can’t wait to dig in!
Hi Denise
I love the idea of you building on what you did last year. My question though is are you interested more in the concept of what is happening to a middle school student psychologically/emotionally or are you hoping to reflect on how to make a safe space to explore SEL? I think that focusing on either is a wonderful avenue, especially regarding boys.
Looking forward to seeing what you do next!
Please
@dsimpson – it was so great to hear about your song writing unit when you presented last year. The amount of student agency and choice built into the assignment was inspiring. Looking forward to where you will take the project this year to develop a sense of personal expression and identity. Have you thought about collaborating with anyone in your student services team on this to get a counselling/health centre perspective on your project? @ljensen
Denise, I’m thrilled you’re back at Cohort as a coach this year. I’m looking forward to connecting about boys, emotional well-being, relationships and how songwriting and music can support their personal expression and vulnerability. Let’s chat at the next face to face!