My How Might We Statement is the following: How might we help promote student’s academic resilience through our study of Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice? I was struggling with students who just assumed that they did not know and were incapable of finding the answers. This is still my goal, but was pushed aside a little bit in order to look as resilience as a whole.
Recently, our school undertook the musical “Heathers”. For those of you who do not know about it, it is a very topical musical with links to bullying, mental health, LGBTQ+ issues along with many others. This was a heavy production to put on by our senior school students, but they did such an incredible job.
Before the show, the director and teacher at our school wanted to ensure that students were emotionally prepared for such hot topics. We underwent numerous different projects such as guest speakers and “cookies and conversations” in order to prepare them a bit. The director also reached out to me to help plan some activities the week before surrounding topics of mental health. This is something that I am very passionate about and have a group of students who I rely on with activities such as this. There were 5 students and 1 teacher taking on this project for over 300 people. Here is how it went!
“Mirrorless Monday”
We challenged students to be aware that the things that matter are not found on the outside, but within. They had the opportunity to write uplifting notes on the covered bathroom mirrors instead of worrying about what they looked like on the outside.
“Take What you Need Tuesday”
Sometimes you just need a little something to make your day a little bit better. Tuesday was “Take what you need Tuesday!” Set up in the dining hall there was a bulletin board with some items that might have made students day better. They were encouraged to take a little patience, some piece of mind, or maybe even a little courage. At the same time, if there is something that they wanted to leave behind, grab a post it note, write it down and leave it behind for the day. They were asked to leave some stress about their test, anxiety about a presentation or some drama with friends!
“Word Choice Wednesday”
Wednesday was all about word choice. In chapel we showed this short video…
Words can be so powerful. We have all had moments where we have had something said that has hurt us, but sometimes we forget how powerful something kind or friendly can be. Sometimes we think that it’s the big gestures – but sometimes all you need is a smile, a hello, or a funny joke to make your day. You have no idea how powerful your everyday words can be. The challenge for this day was to let someone know that they have had a positive impact on you. We passed out a sucker to everyone and they were to use it as a conversation starter to thank someone for something they said or did to make the students day, or life better!
“Tag Us Thursday”
Again, in the dinning hall, we had a bulletin board set up for students to complete a random act of kindness. We challenged students to do an act of kindness for someone here at school. If they saw something kind happening on campus, they were to snap a picture and tag @RNS1877 on Twitter or Instagram.
“Freedom Friday”
To encourage students to be confident and proud of who they are, student were challenged to think about who they really are and to fill out a form with the word that they choose. The Art class helped us in making a large sign with “I AM” in the middle, and over the weekend, some of my boarding girls helped me fill in the words. Taking ownership in what you are can be so powerful and encouraging. This piece of 8×4 art will be displayed here at the school once the Head of School decides where he wants it.
My Take Away….
This may not have been the academic resilience that I was looking for, but having the ability to promote conversations among the whole school was a very powerful experience for me. I heard some great feedback from staff and students and it was an easy way to have these conversations come to the front. It was a bit of work setting it up, but did not take any time away from teaching time – which is usually the complaint I hear. I am still working on my original “How Might We” statement and am looking to put it into practice by the end of April!
Wow! This is awesome. I would love to do something like this in our girls’ boarding residence. Thanks for the inspiration!
@jdykerman Some really creative ideas here!
I especially like the Mirrorless Monday. What did students write on the paper? Were there any surprises from the week? What would you change if you had to run it again? What exceeded your expectations?
Thanks for sharing this action. Will you incorporate any of the ideas into your own Action Plan?
J
@gvoigh @gnichols
@jmedved – Mirrorless Monday was one of my favourite days too! It was easy to set up and the kids enjoyed it. We even covered the bathrooms that the staff uses. We started writing notes when we set it up jsut to get the ball rolling. The girls were great and wrote all kinds of things like “You don’t need that lipstick” or “You are more than the numbers on the scale” and lots of uplifting messages. The boys also took part but it seemed to be on a different level such as “looking good” or “keep lifting”! I am not complaining, but we did notice a bit of a difference.
@jdykerman That is really cool. Interesting insights that would have gone unnoticed with out this idea. I love the gender differences as well.
This is great perspective for all of us @jdykerman . We create these challenges or action plans within our practice but all of that is within the larger context of the many other things we do. The extent to which you allow yourself to be open to the moment and respond thoughtfully in the moment – in this case in a way that profoundly affected the broader community – is amazing. It also provides context on the lives of our students – context that is easily lost or even dismissed by the adult world in the day-to-day. Our students live complicated lives. While building academic resilience through the study of Shakespeare is a noble, important and lasting endeavour, it’s not as important as our collective health. I believe it’s our job to recognize when the other “stuff” matters more than classroom learning. Good for you Dykerman! And, if you really wanted to be creative I can imagine a clear connection between this endeavour and your action plan. I bet you could have some fun with that.
Peace!
@nbendle @tfaucher @gnichols @ddoucet
I echo the great comments above – well done, and what will you do now? What I really appreciate about this project was that it was an extended exposure to ideas, to ways of being that challenged students, in order to prepare them for receiving even more challenging ideas through the play.
I think that your action plan is a great one, but a little problematic. I say this not because it isn’t productive, important or thoughtful; rather, I say it is problematic because what you are struggling with is measuring any increase in resiliency. To do so, you need a baseline, then periodic measurements to show any change. I just don’t think that you’ll get it. Nor do I think that this is really what your action plan is about. I think that your action plan could be better phrased as: “How might we create intentional experiences, challenges and opportunities for students to develop resiliency in their own lives?” Or something like that. Get away from the measurement piece. Look at what Nicole, Justin and Graham have written – you are doing it!
It’s kind of like teaching – we won’t know, see or understand the impact that we have on our students for days, weeks, years and even generations.
Keep up the amazing work Jennifer!
garth.
Thanks Garth! I appreciate your kind words. I have definitely shifted my statement. You’re right – trying to measure my impact is not feasible nor important in my mind! I really liked your article as well. Thank you for sharing!
OH, and I just came across this GREAT article that supports your ideas too: https://www.chronicle.com/article/We-re-Teaching-Grit-the/242854
Jennifer,
Just wanted to let you know that I thoroughly enjoyed reading your blog. It was a lollipop moment for me. April 20th is arriving very quickly and your positive and uplifting post has inspired me to dig in and get going on my next steps. Thanks Jennifer!
Lisa.
Thank you Lisa. That means a lot to me! Good luck with the next couple of weeks – I am excited to see your progress!