Written by Allen Davidson, Assistant Superintendent of Employee Services
CASSA – Conference July 2-4 Montreal, QC.
An integrated approach to student
wellness across subjects. Well-being is best-understood and developed with
attention to knowledge of brain functions and the importance of active lifestyle, skills for social functioning, and emotional self-regulation. It also involves a
positive sense of spiritual
well-being that respects the importance of culture, equity, social
justice and personal dignity.
This session highlighted our
responsibility as educators to consider the wellness of our students when
designing and preparing for learning. All Principals with the Simcoe Muskoka
Catholic School Division (20,000 students) are required to submit Mental Health
Literacy plans. They shared one example of a school that gathered data on
students who were having chronic behavior issues which resulted in staff
developing Morning Mindfulness Session for students to attend:
·
Morning Mindfulness
Club/Session (10-15 min). – Students identified as needing mindfulness
preparation were involved in stretching, breathing, discussion/sharing circles,
etc. These sessions, all supported by brain research, were designed to ready
students for the rigours of the school day. Result: Eliminated/Reduced
explosive behavior in almost all of the identified subset of students. Students
start the day with a positive space to create environment for learning.
Resource:
Carney, Patrick (2015) Well Aware –
Developing Resilient, Active and Flourishing Students. Pearson,
Canada. (link
here)
The presenters also directed our
attention to the Brain Science that tells us what we must know about the Brain
and it’s functioning when we put challenges (intellectual, emotional, physical,
etc..) in front of our students. They focused on Dr. Dan Siegal‘s Brain Hand
Model here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0T_2NNoC68
No comments:
Post a Comment