WHSA Recap

I attended some wonderful sessions at WHSA and will recap the highlights of my favorites here.

I attended a presentation by Wendy Young, Director of Kidlutions. This presentation covered some topics regarding behavior. If you click on her website, you should be able to get a copy of the WHSA handout there. Here are some of the things that I will be using from this workshop:

• Bug and a Wish--"It bugs me when ___________, I wish ____________."
• Two put ups for every put down
• Mad box (playdough, bubbles, paper, and markers) for a child when he/she is angry.
• Measuring anger with a string.
• Having a an anger thermometer.
  

There were MANY other things that I will try, those were only a few highlights. As I try them, I'll post my results. One of the main points she brought home was putting the solution to a problem in the child's hands. This is something that I do in my classroom, but I'm vowing to do it more.

I also went to a wonderful leadership training that was run by Dr. Tim Nolan from the Center for Leadership Excellence. His presentation was spent doing some reflective practice and was far too short! I will definitely be returning to the provided materials and spend some time in reflection.

I attended another presentation about social/emotional education and addressing behavior. They provided participants with many ideas and suggestions from CSEFEL. There were many ideas that I want to take back to my room and use but the main one that I will be using is the compliment/manners tree. Basically, myself and my teacher assistants will write on a leaf every time we see a child doing something such as helping a friend, giving a compliment, cleaning up their area, etc. I'll read them off during transition time and the child will get to tape his or her leaf up on the tree. At the end of the month, they'll get sent home so parents can see all of the positive things their children are doing. The powerful thing is that one thing must be found for each child. The goal is to catch children doing the right thing.

The final presentation that I want to write about was probably the most profound for me. At one point in time I worked for an Even Start Family Literacy program. I really enjoyed my time working for this now disolved program. The presentation that I participated in covered a program called Families and Schools Together. Much of what I saw there reminded me of the togetherness and support felt in the family literacy program. I'm intersted in learning more about FAST and I am hoping that my current employeer will take interest in starting a FAST program in our area.