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6 Low-Cost, Low-Stress, Family Events Your Community Will Love

Across the country, schools are making a powerful shift from punitive discipline to restorative practices and the results are transformative. Research shows that schools using restorative approaches see fewer behavioral issues, stronger relationships, and improved school climate. But the true power of this shift lies in what students are learning: how to communicate, resolve conflicts, build empathy, and take ownership of their actions.

Restorative practices only work when adults lead by example first. If we want schools to be spaces where students feel safe, connected, and accountable, we must first build that same culture among the adults. 

The power of positive interactions in education isn't just a feel-good concept – it's backed by extensive research.

These check-ins allow teachers to monitor student progress and well-being while fostering engagement.

A school culture that focuses on helping everyone understand and take ownership of student learning is facilitated by the principal and IC.

In the fast-paced and ever-evolving landscape of the world, leaders play a pivotal role in steering their organizations toward success. Beyond traditional metrics of profitability and growth, there is a growing awareness of the importance of organizational wellness. Just as individual well-being is crucial for personal success, a healthy organizational environment is vital for sustained prosperity. In this blog, we will explore the concept of organizational wellness and del

One of the most critical aspects of a successful education system is ensuring that students attend school regularly. Improved student attendance leads to better academic outcomes and overall student well-being. However, in recent years, absenteeism has been on the rise, posing a significant challenge to both school leaders and teachers. This blog will delve into the causes of increased absenteeism and provide practical strategies for school leaders and teachers to address thi

Working closely with students who have endured trauma can have a profound impact on the mental and physical health of educators. This type of work can lead to secondary traumatic stress, empathic distress, and even burnout. Recognizing and addressing this impact while integrating supportive strategies into the workplace is not only crucial for the well-being of these dedicated professionals but also for boosting morale, increasing job satisfaction, and ultimately enhancing pr

Over the past few years, I’ve heard the same question come up over and over – “how do we help our middle and high school students self-regulate?” It begins with understanding! Whether we reflect on our own experiences, have adolescents in our home, or work with students who are between the ages of 11 and early 20s, we understand that there are some significant shifts in behavior and functioning during this time! Students are seeking to understand themselves and how they fit i

Daily or weekly social emotional check-ins with students provide a quick way to include student voice, encourage self-awareness, and teach social awareness. Social emotional check-ins are an important part of the classroom environment, as they provide students with a safe and secure space to express their feelings and emotions while also helping teachers understand their students on a deeper level, allowing them to better meet their needs. Additionally, social emotional check

Let’s face it. Recruiting, hiring, on-boarding, and training new teachers is time consuming, expensive, and exhausting. Schools with a high turnover rate struggle to maintain a healthy culture. Additionally, the inconsistency in staff leads to gaps in programming, curriculum, and common language and understanding across the building. Teacher retention should be at the top of our to-do list as educational leaders. To help you achieve this goal, we’ve put together some top tips

With a growth mindset, students are encouraged to take on challenges and persist in the face of difficult tasks. It fosters a positive learning environment that supports risk-taking and self-improvement. By embracing a growth mindset, students can become more resilient, develop self-confidence, and learn to value effort over results. Research has also shown that students with a growth mindset are more likely to succeed academically and professionally.  

As we return to school after the hustle and bustle of the holiday season, we soon realize that there is a long stretch of cold and dark days ahead of us. Our dreams of a white Christmas are on hold until next December and the dirty slushy roads feel more dreary than magical. In anticipation of what might be referred to as the winter blues, we can create a plan to build fun, connection, and play into our days! What are the Winter Blues? Less sunshine, colder temperatures, and

Check out my free one hour session to gain a better understanding of the importance of a solid MTSS foundation and leave with a plethora of resources to support your efforts no matter where you are in building your school’s or district’s system! All of the resources mentioned in the video are linked below.  Click here or on the image below to access the video!

By William Reed Right now, teaching, and basically any job in education, can seem overwhelming. There are so many things we could be doing. It is very easy to lose sight of the big picture and not see the forest for the trees. One of the best ways to keep everything in perspective is to self-evaluate and set goals.    You need to write some Professional Goals and some Personal Goals . Yes, it is important to have both professional and personal goals. Professional goals impro

  They say, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I agree with that and would extend that saying for schools to say; “It takes all the subjects working together to fully educate a student.” Believing this and implementing this is the key. Administrators, teachers, and counselors must step outside their small, very busy spheres of educational influence. They must connect with other teachers in other subjects and collaborate to benefit BOTH their subjects and the students.

I was recently asked to come have a conversation with the staff at a non-profit agency about managing personal stress as they continue their great work of supporting their community. It turns out their CEO, very in tune to the stress of her employees, had decided to mandate paid self-care days. Can you imagine? Each employee was to take one day off every two weeks, paid, without using their saved personal days, to combat the stress of the intense workload they’ve been carryin

We are living through an incredible time of physical and emotional disconnection. Despite technological advances created to keep us connected, we seem to be moving in the opposite direction. We’ve seen it happening for years as smartphones become the focus at dinners, video games trump family game nights, texting takes the place of phone calls, and emojis replace the use of words.

As most of us learned in the past year, we can’t predict what will happen next and when we feel out of control or faced with a lot of new, potentially frightening, things all at once it is easy to get overwhelmed, burnt out, and disconnected. Perhaps, if we spend time looking inward rather than out for answers, we might find ourselves better equipped to grow through the tough times without losing ourselves. I believe this might be true for individuals, organizations, and ev