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09/01/2020 05:35 PMAs students of the Regional School District 4 (R4) started the 2020-’21 school year on Sept. 1 during the COVID-19 pandemic, administrators knew many would have anxiety beyond the typical first day jitters.
Superintendent of Schools Brian White, at a special meeting of the joint Board of Education (BOE) for R4 in early August, said that understanding the emotional needs of students is something that the district is anticipating and planning for.
“We’ve spent a lot of time not just at the administrative level, but with our staff and teachers across the district really being thoughtful about how are we going to receive our students as they prepare to come back to us, recognizing that there is heightened anxiety and for good reason,” said White.
“We recognize that we have kids that are afraid. We recognize that we have kids who are going to have to acclimate to the routine of school, to being back with their peers and frankly that looks different for every student regardless of age,” he added.
The educational tenets of taking into consideration the wellbeing of a child as he or she progresses academically is categorized under social and emotional learning or SEL.
As defined by the Connecticut State Department of Education (CSDE), SEL is “the process through which children and adults achieve emotional intelligence through the competencies of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making.”
Research documenting the benefits of SEL has been conducted by numerous educational organizations.
These benefits include “better academic performance, improved attitudes and behaviors, fewer negative behaviors and reduced emotional distress,” according to a backgrounder on SEL from the National Education Association’s Policy and Practice Department.
The goal of integrating SEL practices into the classroom and school environment isn’t something new for this school year, but a special focus and awareness is being paid to this area as the pandemic has already changed so many of a child’s regular school routines and will continue to do so, especially if the rates of infection dictate school closures later this year.
“We recognize this will be a very important area for us to be focusing on, not just as we prepare for the re-entry, but throughout this school year knowing that there is a lot of uncertainty in a continued way and quite frankly knowing that there will be changes ahead that we are going to have to navigate together,” White said.
As part of each school’s reopening plan for the 2020–’21 school year, CSDE required schools to include SEL as an integral component. To view the R4 school district’s full reopening plan, visit reg4.k12.ct.us.
The importance of forging connections and building relationships with students throughout the school year, but especially at the start when schools reopen in a hybrid configuration, has been highlighted by R4 school officials.
Matthew “Matt” Espinosa, principal at John Winthrop Middle School (JWMS), said at a special meeting of the R4 BOE on Aug. 18 that the first minutes of the school day will be devoted to check-ins with students to assess their social and emotional needs.
“We are going to spend a significant amount of time in the first two weeks really making sure our students are in a good place, getting them back to a place where they can learn, and then that piece will continue throughout the rest of the year, building upon it and we’re taking it from a bunch of different curriculums to make sure it matches our students and our population,” said Espinosa.
Chester Elementary School Principal Tyson Stoddard helped the district plan professional development days for teachers on SEL.
“We adopted ‘Choose Love’ last year, which was met with a lot of positive reaction from staff and students and that is what we are going to continue with so a lot of our professional development the first couple days back is how do we embed that across the spectrum in all of daily practice,” Stoddard said at a special meeting of the Chester BOE on Aug. 18.
The Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement is a nonprofit organization that offers free SEL programming for students in pre-school to 12th grade. Scarlett Lewis created the organization after the death of her six-year-old son, Jesse, who died in the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown in 2012.
The program “teaches educators and their students how to choose love in any circumstance through wonderfully simple yet powerful themes and practices for the classroom that naturally evolve into a culture where students feel safe, nurtured, connected, and empowered,” according to the Jesse Lewis Choose Love Movement web site.
In addition to school counselors and school psychologists, general education classroom teachers or “tier one support” will help implement the program.
“So, talking about tier one of choose love, utilizing responsive classroom, how do we build in brain breaks for our students, and developing some morning routines along with check-in and check-out, and part of this too is really wrapping in parent involvement, also making that a big piece, making sure that we have open communication lines between home and school,” said Stoddard.
With three days of e-learning at home each week at the start of the school year, a parent’s involvement in his or her child’s education is more important than ever.
The National Association of School Psychologists has issued the following tips for parents on “Helping Children Cope with Changes Resulting from COVID-19”: (1) Stay calm, listen, and offer reassurance, (2) Monitor television viewing and social media, (3) Take time to talk, (4) Be honest and accurate, (5) Keep explanations age-appropriate, (6) Stay connected to school, (7) Know the symptoms of COVID-19, (8) Model basic hygiene and healthy lifestyle practices, and (9) Be aware of your children’s mental health.
For more information on schools and physical and mental health, visit www.nasponline.org.