5th Grade Explores their Strengths

 As part of our Career Exploration unit this 5th grade Life Skills, students have been reflecting on their interests and strengths.  This activity asked students to look through a long list of strengths people can have - character strengths, word strengths, people strengths etc. Students were asked to color the statements that they felt were a true "strength" of theirs - something that they did consistently and thought they were really good at.  I found this activity at Understood.org and thought it fit well when discussing how things we are strong at can show up in our careers.

Once they had colored all of the statements that applied to them, they cut these strips of paper out and formed "Strengths Chains".  Even our friends at home joined in and posed with their chains!  Look how many strengths our 5th graders have!!!

       

       

New Sensory Path on the Catwalk!

Anyone who has been in our building is sure to comment on the unique features we have here.  As a 100-year-old school, we have an auditorium, a beautiful atrim with a large skylight and even a catwalk around our cafeteria that once held spectators watching wrestling matches. 

We don't use it for spectators today, instead we have installed an additional sensory path!  You may have seen our atrium Sensory Path the past few years, so you may be familiar with this idea.  We have seen this tool benefit our students throughout their day and thought using the catwalk would be a great way to utilize the space!

A special thanks to Sully, Stella, Greta, and Oliver for showing us how it's done!!

It's All About Connections

 Willow River has always prided itself in having a "small school vibe".  Our 5th grade teachers interact and get to know our Kindergarteners through book buddies, talking in the halls, and going out of their way to get to know future 5th graders.  4th grade teachers have 1st grade check-in friends who they pump up for the day.  3rd grade teachers welcome former students and future students into their classroom to make positive connections.  Our Kindergarten teachers welcome back former students who help in their classroom.  It is a cozy, tight knit vibe that feels like family. 

This year has proven to challenge what we usually do.  Classrooms need to stay contained and we don't get to interact the way we used to.  However, connections at a time like this are ever more important. 

Our staff have learned that children's brains open to new information and learning - if they feel connected.  We have also learned that the best thing we can do for our kids who have experienced childhood trauma is to build connections and relationships.  We value this at Willow River and are constantly seeking to strengthen the connections our kids have to the grown ups here. 

Several years ago we tried an activity with staff when we reflected upon those students we have strong connections with in an effort to find what students were flying "under the radar".  This year, we have revisited that activity, using a modified version that was demonstrated at a middle school in Nevada.

We want ALL of our students to feel seen and will be making concerted efforts this year to make sure they do!

2nd graders Rock the Peace Path

No matter what the problem, we have a tool to help solve it here at Willow River!

Second graders learned how to use "I Statements" in solving conflict with the help from our Peace Path.  While we have one of these printed on our playground for recess disputes, we also have one in each grade level printed on a yoga mat for easy access during the school day.  The Peace Path is created by Soul Shoppe and it gives students sentence starters and language to talk through their problem, listen to each other, and resolve the conflict in a calm manner. 

Ask your 2nd grader about it today!

We also have a paper version of the Peace Path for easier access!

We always end the Peace Path with a handshake... but our 2nd graders came up with another method to part ways hygienically :)

Rock, Paper, Scissors!

 First graders reviewed our problem solving tool for small problems in Life Skills!  We read "The Legend of Rock, Paper, Scissors" by Drew Daywalt (same author as "The Day the Crayons Quit"), had some laughs, and played a Rock, Paper Scissors tournament in the class.  We ask students to use this problem solving tool for things like "was the ball in or out" or deciding who gets the last swing that's open.  

As one of my 4th graders put it so perfectly, "Rock, Paper, Scissors is fair, easy, and quick".  Are there small problems at home that can be solved with a quick game of R,P, S? :)

Reviewing our Problem Solving Tools!

 It has been AMAZING to be back with our Willow family - whether you are tuning in as an Independent Distance Learner or in our classrooms learning!  

As we have gotten "back into the swing of things" our students are reviewing the ways we solve problems with peers here at Willow.  We have "Stop, Walk, Talk" for disrespectful behaviors, "Rock, Paper, Scissors" for a quick, fair, and easy way to solve a small dispute, the Peace Path to talk through feelings with friends, and understanding when you need to get an adult.  I gave students different scenarios and they were asked to show me which tool they would use by doing a stretch pose with their bodies.  Here we see Ms. Buege's class showing the "Unicorn Stretch" to signify they would get an adult for a situation that involved a threat.  Even our friends at home joined us (and I hope they are having luck using these tools with their siblings 😉)

It was fun to get kids moving in Life Skills and remind us of the tools we can use together to solve problems!

Talking about Race and Racism with Our Kids

With the news from our neighbors Minneapolis, I have been wrestling with how to talk to my 8 and 5 year old.  I want to choose my words wisely - not wanting to scare them, but also attempting to explain why I've been so sad lately. 

Today, I went to pay my respects, donate items, and see what used to be my post-college home.  When I picked my girls afterwards and they asked me how it went, I stumbled with my words.  There was destruction, but there were also those "helpers" Mr. Rogers talks about looking for in scary times. It was a roller coaster of emotions and I wanted to be able to share that with them, but wasn't sure what I should be sharing with them so they can be a part of the solution with me.

Perhaps you're finding yourself in the same boat.  Or maybe you've been having discussions about race in your home prior to this and you are offering ideas to family and friends.  Wherever you are on this journey, you aren't alone.  I'm right here with you.

As parents, we struggle with how much information is too much given that these little people do not have the perspective and wisdom that we have.  We have been navigating this with COVID-19 for the past several months now and that has not been for the weary!  But this this conversation hits nerves and can make some of us very uncomfortable.  I'm here to tell you - it is okay to be uncomfortable.  I encourage you to push through the discomfort and have the tough conversations with your kids.  So where do we even start? 

I have below a variety of resources for you to look through.  Children's books that celebrate diversity and online articles with ideas for the conversations.  Ask your child about any of my Life Skills lessons and they will likely tell you about a book we read!  Books are great ways to talk to kids about tough topics and I often suggest books to parents who request help for anything from changing families to grief.  You can sometimes view a sample of these books online or even check them out at the Hudson library to see if it suits your family and your child's developmental stage. 

These are just a small sliver and are resources I have come across thanks to the wonderful work of our Wisconsin School Counselor Association (WSCA), counselors from across the country in an Elementary School Counselor Exchange group as well as from my Hudson Elementary Counseling team.  There are many more resources out there - but I offer these as a starting block if you are looking for ideas.

These little people will be our teachers one day.  Our social justice workers.  Our clergy.  Our social workers.  Our lawyers and judges.  Our police officers.  Our artists, scientists and polar dog sled drivers.  So the conversation is critical if we are to see change for their generation.  It calls on us as adults to be okay with the discomfort and remind ourselves this is not just a one time conversation to explain the next few news cycles.  It is an ongoing conversation and we will learn and grow together as we go.

We teach kindness at Willow River because all people deserve kindness.  We teach standing up for others (UPstanders) - even though its scary and uncomfortable.  We teach peaceful conflict resolution so that one day they may listen to another person's viewpoint and be respectful of it.  We do not teach these things to simply keep the peace at recess.  We teach these skills because they are critical to our society.  They are critical for our children to feel empowered and strong and safe.  When we do the right thing, we feel it in our bones.  It may be solving a conflict over a coveted snowball from a snow fort across the playground today, one day it could give them the language to speak up when they feel hurt rather than lash out in anger.  My hope is that if any Willow students should ever appear on "What Would You Do" with John Quiñones, they would be the ones using their "I statements" to confront the injustice before them.  

I have all the confidence in the world in our kids and in you as their caregivers.  We've got this.  

Mrs. Flier

Children's Books about Race and Racism  https://www.embracerace.org/resources/26-childrens-books-to-support-conversations-on-race-racism-resistance?fbclid=IwAR387wx6P7wXdzxy1d32Pf3Pyr0Q5zUQflaOphs-wDHhqe7fm0DCrUUpxwU

Talking to Kids about Race (National Geographic): https://www.nationalgeographic.com/family/in-the-news/talking-about-race/

52 Diverse books: https://www.facebook.com/stefanie.kellum/posts/10112692158963725

The Parent Toolkit: How to Talk about Race and Racism

https://www.parenttoolkit.com/social-and-emotional-development/advice/social-awareness/how-to-talk-to-kids-about-race-and-racism

Sesame Street - racism: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovoilDJethU&disable_polymer=true

Something Happened in Our Town: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcOhOFGcWm8&feature=youtu.be