K-12 Community Meetings

Extensions and Activities to Help Build and Deepen Your Classroom Community

Portland Public Schools, Office of Multi-Tiered Systems of Support: Fall 2020

When and Where of Community Meetings

PPS has identified the following times as opportunities for Community Meetings:

• K-5th Grades: 30 min/day, SEL Time
• 6th-8th: 45 min/day, Advisory/Small Group Time
• 9th-12th: Determined at School Level

(See PPS Instructional Schedules for more information.)

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Suggestions (Not Requirements) for Use:

• Here is the official communication about Community Meetings. Details about the below bullets are included in the communication.
• Finish teaching all Soft Start Activities first.
• Use this Community Meeting format to guide your allotted SEL time.
• Please ensure you have developed a strong community prior to engaging in RESJ work.
• Resilience & Coping Strategies can be used to support this work..

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Resources from CASEL and Responsive Classroom have been compiled and shared here to support Community Meetings.

Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Incorporating Social Emotional Learning (SEL) into Community Meetings with Support From Some Available Resources

Rationale for Use:

• Strong framework for fostering a supportive environment and promoting SEL
• Simple model that can easily be put into practice
• Enhances SEL skills which can serve as a lever for academics and racial equity/social justice work

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Responsive Classroom

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✽ Developer of community

meeting resources.

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✽ Focus on Positive Community

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✽ Grounded in Evidence-Based Practices

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✽ Extensive work done to support teachers in the Comprehensive Distance Learning model. Free Virtual Resources Here!

Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

CASEL’s 3 Signature Practices:

WARM WELCOME • Activities for Inclusion

ENGAGING ACTIVITY• Sense Making, Transitions, Brain Breaks

OPTIMISTIC CLOSURE • Reflections and Looking Forward

In the following pages is a compilation of options for community meetings from these resources.

3 Signature Practices: Social Emotional Learning

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(2-10 minutes)

Activities for Inclusion

Ritual openings establish safety and

predictability,support contribution by all voices, set norms for respectful listening, allow students to connect with one another and create a sense of belonging. To be successful these activities must be: carefully chosen, connected to the learning of the day, and engagingly facilitated

Warm Welcome

• Smile warmly and greet each person by
• their preferred name
• Whole-group greeting activities
• Bell Ringer (prompt related to topic)
• Name & Motion
• Synectics
• Two Truths, a Lie, & a Dream

(3-5 minutes)

Reflection and Looking Forward

End the day by having students reflect on, and then name something that helps them leave on an optimistic note. This provides positive closure, reinforces learning, can connect school to home, and create a moment of looking forward to returning tomorrow.

Optimistic Closure

• “Something I’m curious about…” (prompt)
• “Something I learned today…” (prompt)
• Future Me
• One-Word Whip Around
• Suit Yourself

Purpose

Examples

Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

(1-15 minutes)

Sense-Making & Brain Breaks

Engaging practices are brain-compatible strategies that can foster: relationships, cultural humility and responsiveness, empowerment, and collaboration. They intentionally build student SEL skills. These practices include opportunities for brain breaks that provide time for integrating new information into long-term memory, otherwise it is soon forgotten. Balance opportunities for quiet reflection and writing with more active movement activities

Engaging Activities

• Think, Ink, Pair, Share (silent time to reflect; time to write; partner discussions; close with a group share out)
• Private think-time (facilitator wait-time)
• Gallery Walk
• Save the Last Word
• Mindful Minute Brain Break

Warm Welcome

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Alliterative Name Greeting (p.113)

Participants take part in thinking of positive adjectives that can be used to describe them and begins with the first letter of their first name.

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When and Why:

This activity allows students to apply and practice the classroom rules and targeted social and emotional skills in a fun and appropriately challenging meeting.

• Define an adjective to students
• Generate a list of positive adjectives with students, ensuring there are several that begin with each letter of every name in the class
• Have students think of a positive adjective that can describe them and begins with the first letter of their first name. For example: “Savvy Sierra.”
• Students pick an alliteration for their greeting and give a thumbs up when they’re ready. Tell students it’s OK if someone picks the same adjective.
• Begin by saying, “Good morning everyone, I’m [your own alliteration].” All students greet back, “Good morning [your alliteration].”
• Continue until everyone is greeted. When students introduce themselves, they should unmute, but they should remain muted when they greet others.

In-Depth Examples

Good Morning to Anyone Who…(p.107)

A greeting activity where the teacher will name categories that describe students and if the category describes them they stand up and greet others with, ‘Good morning!’

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When and Why:

This activity can be used when a new group is coming together. It will help participants get to know a little bit about one another and find out what they have in common.

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• Teacher will explain to students that they will find out more about their classmates through this activity.
• Students are informed that the teacher will name categories (for example, ‘someone who learned something new last week’) and if the category describes a student they should stand up and greet others by unmuting their mic and saying “Good morning.”
• Teacher will go on naming categories that help reflect on the first week of school, and ensure everyone is included
• For example,

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“Good morning to anyone who . . .”

• Met someone new last week

• Was glad to be back in school

• Learned something new last week

• Is a fourth grader

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Warm Welcome - Additional Ideas

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Warm Welcome - Additional Greetings

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Engaging Activities

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Meet in the Middle (pg. 33)

Students stand behind their computer and follow directions to “meet in the middle” and do a specified activity as a class.

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When and Why:

This activity provides a quick pick-me-up to bring up energy. It allows students to move around, get blood flowing, and laugh so they are ready to learn again!

• Students stand up about six feet back from their computer
• Teacher calls out an activity to do (for example, “give a left-handed high five to the screen!”)
• Students stand up, walk up to the screen and complete the activity
• After completing the activity, students turn and walk back to their original places.
• Add one activity each time.
• For example:
• First time—meet partner in the middle and do a right-handed high-five.
• Second time—right-handed high-five, add left-handed high-five.
• Third time—right-handed high-five, left-handed high-five, call out a favorite physical activity they like to do.

Depending on time, add more activities: left-handed low-five, over the top (back to back), tap right shoe sole, tap left shoe sole, etc.

In-Depth Examples

Four Corners (Pg. 11):

Participants reflect on a statement, image, or prompt and indicate the "corner" that matches their choice by holding up their fingers or indicating their choice in the chat box. Students from each ‘corner’ may share their rationale for choosing that corner with the class.

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When and Why:

“Corners” is helpful in promoting the importance of divergent perspectives and the value of having all voices heard. Participants have the opportunity to connect with others, while hearing a variety of reasons for being drawn to the common category.

• Before the activity, indicate a hand signal (or number that students may put in the chat) to correspond with one of four different images, numbers, or words that will be displayed. Each should correspond to the choices you will be giving.
• Ask participants to silently reflect on a statement or question prompt that is aligned to the content of the engagement.
• Share response choices with the group on a poster/slide (quotes, pictures, etc.).
• Instruct participants to choose one of the responses, then ask them to indicate their choice by showing the corresponding hand signal or typing the number into the chat.
• Invite two or three participants to share their choice and rationale with the whole group

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Engaging Activities - Additional Ideas

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Engaging Activities - Additional Topics

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Optimistic Closure

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I am Curious (pg.39)

At the end of an engagement, participants are asked to reflect on something that they are curious about as a result of their day/meeting/lesson. They will then share their reflection with the class.

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When and Why:

This activity respects participants’ learning processes and is a quick way to find out what questions they might have. It is useful when you want to solicit input on planning for future engagements

• At the end of a class or an engagement, ask participants to complete this sentence: "I am curious to learn more about..." or, "I am curious about..."
• Give participants a minute or so to think and write a "note to self" that they will share aloud.
• Debrief by inviting participants to share their “curiosity” with the class.
• If your group is small enough, allow more time for reflection and discussion and/or hear from everyone. It will give you and the group a sense of shared learning and help prepare for the next engagement.
• You can debrief this option by asking whether anyone notices any themes or recurring curiosities raised by the group.

In-Depth Examples

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My Next Step (pg.40)

This activity allows the teacher to close the engagement or class by asking participants to make a commitment to take immediate action.

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When and Why:

This activity encourages participants make a commitment to action in the near future and share it with classmates.

• Ask participants to think of their first next step based on what they learned during the engagement. It might be a conversation, more reading, or thinking more about a topic.
• After giving participants a minute to think about what that step would be, ask them to share their next step with a partner or at their table.
• Ask participants to write their “next step” on a sticky note and post the note somewhere they will be reminded of their task, such as on their desk, inside the cover of their related text, or in their assignment notebook, or take a photo with their phone.
• Help participants set up an “accountability partner” from the group to check in on their action step during the following week.

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

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Optimistic Closure - Additional Ideas

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Optimistic Closure - Additional Closing Prompts

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Examples of reflective questions to ask during Optimistic Closure:

• “I am glad I learned about….”
• “I would like to learn more about…”
• “Something I want to share with my grown-up or peers is…”
• “Something I enjoyed about the day was…”
• “Someone who was kind/ helpful to me was…”
• Share an appreciation for someone or something (related to class or personal life).
• “One wish I have about tomorrow is….”
• “Someone I was able to help today was…”
• More examples of Optimistic Closure here

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

A Couple of Tools to Help Make Community Meetings Successful

Here is a weekly template that may be helpful in organizing/planning the activities you would like to use in your community meetings.

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Student facing slides have been created in multiple languages to help outline the 3 signature practices of your community meeting. A template, example and link to multiple languages can be found in the following slides.

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WARM WELCOME

ENGAGING ACTIVITY

OPTIMISTIC CLOSURE

Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Multiple Languages Available Here

Example of a Community Meeting Template

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Today we will greet each other with a smile and a thumbs-up!

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“Hello, class! Nice to see you!” Class: “Hello, ____. We are happy you’re here!”

WARM WELCOME

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What is one thing most people don’t know about you? (type your answer in the chat, someone will read them aloud at the end).

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At the end we will reflect:

How does it feel to share this with your class? Did you learn anything new about anyone today?

ENGAGING ACTIVITY

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It was so fun to learn new things about each of you today. We are all different from each other, and that makes our classroom special and unique. The word, Diversity means differences. In our class we celebrate and appreciate diversity. We will keep learning about diversity as the week goes on.

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What was one thing you learned about someone in our class today?

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OPTIMISTIC CLOSURE

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MONDAY

OCTOBER 5, 2020

Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Tips on Helping All Students to Participate in Community Meetings

• Invite all students to answer the question, either in written form or verbally if they feel comfortable doing so.
• Let students know that if they do not feel comfortable answering the question may simply say, ‘pass.’
• Ask students to write responses in the chat box.
• Invite a student to read aloud chat responses.
• Call on students and invite students to respond in alphabetical order.
• Create a google doc for all students to use to respond to the prompt simultaneously.
• Invite students to write or draw individually and send it to you.

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More Information on Creating the Optimal Space

Moving From Safe Classrooms to Brave Classrooms - Article

CASEL: A Supportive Classroom Environment - Site

Anti-Defamation League (ADL) Anti-Bias Tools & Strategies - Site

National Center on Safe Supportive Learning Environments: Creating Safe and Respectful Environments in Our Nation’s Classrooms - Site

Teaching Tolerance Questions for Reflective Practice - Questionnaire

Teaching Tolerance Professional Development Plan: Critical Practices for Anti-Bias Education - PDF Manual

Trauma Learning Policy Initiative - Site

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

AN INVITATION TO BRAVE SPACE,

by Micky ScottBey Jones

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Together we will create brave space

Because there is no such thing as "safe space"

We exist in the real world

We all carry scars and we have all caused wounds.

In this space

We seek to turn down the volume of the outside world,

We amplify voices that fight to be heard elsewhere,

We call each other to more truth and love

We have the right to start somewhere and continue to grow.

We have the responsibility to examine what we think we know.

We will not be perfect.

This space will not be perfect.

It will not always be what we wish it to be

But

It will be our brave space together,

And

We will work on it side by side.

More Information on Class Agreements

A number of resources were consulted and compiled to develop a protocol that teachers may choose to use when establishing Class Agreements with their students.

Check out the Protocol here.

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

Questions & Comments?

Contact the PPS SEL Team:

Liz Tracy, SEL TOSA

Tracey Brown, SEL TOSA

Jill Bryant, SEL Assistant Director

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Check out the PPS SEL Website for more information and resources!

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As always, we love your feedback and suggestions as you utilize these resources.

Thank you for taking a moment to share with us on this Feedback Form

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Portland Public Schools: Fall 2020

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