At the beginning of the year it is easy to be curious when it comes to our students. As the year progresses we begin to feel that our students should understand and follow expectations and we be come less curious and more judgmental.
We need to stay curious. The clip below, from the show Ted Lasso, reminds us about being curious.
Instead of judgment regarding a situation, behavior, or even a student themselves; be curious. Back in December we had a blog on the question why, if you do not remember it I encourage you to look back and reread it. That blog asks us to begin exploring why things are happening and why a student behaviors the way they do, why we feel the way we feel, etc. Being curious means asking why, and not assuming you know the answer.
As we remember to stay curious we can be more open to building or if needed repairing relationships with students.
A simple way to connect, build relationships, or begin repair, is to engage in mindfulness with your students.
Before spring break we concluded our Inner Explorer mindfulness competition. During the month of March you were encouraged to do mindfulness daily with your students, and even invite admin to join. I hope that this does not stop. In fact, I would encourage you to continue to use mindfulness as we move into testing season. Continue the connect with a mindfulness before you start a test.
According to Edtopia.org a study conducted in 2020 showed that student teacher relationships are associated with outcomes related to academic achievement. The better the relationship, the higher the academic success.
If our relationships with students support their achievement then right now is a perfect time to refocus on your relationship building. You may have one student who really needs your encouragement before they begin taking state testing.
A study from 2022 showed that students are more likely and more willing to go the extra mile with their academics if they are being educated in a supportive environment and adults have built trusting relationships with them.
Below is a video I came across this week. It provides a good laugh and a little food for thought. How do you handle the student you can tell "hates" you? How do you build that relationship?
Build and bank relationship time.
Remember that emotions are contagious. A 2021 study suggests that teacher emotions have a powerful effect on students. The students will reflect them and more often than not it takes a greater amount of time to recover from negative emotions over positive emotions. Your mood can change the mood of your students in a positive and negative way.
Be the mood you want to see in your students.
When asking the why questions take a minute to separate yourself from a situation and ask if a student's behavior is a reflection of your mood? Could you be the why?
Making sure that we do our own mindfulness and are participating with our students can help us ensure we are always checking our attitudes, feelings, and thoughts. We can help our students by being the example of mindfulness and connect with them through mindfulness.
