With bullying as the focus of one of our program goals, the Bully Circle lesson is one I feel is important and should continue to be taught. When looking at the perception data, it was interesting to note that while students learned the strategies for dealing with bullies and could identify adults that can help them, there were notable decreases in feelings of safety when it comes to bullying and the number of students who believe there is respect between students. The disconnect in the perception data shows that there is a need for additional lessons on bullying. I think these lessons will help ensure that our students understand what bullying is and have opportunities to practice the strategies we discuss so they feel safe and confident in dealing with these situations.
Although the division-wide survey did provide some information about the students’ beliefs, creating my own survey would give me the chance to ask questions that would help me better understand what is leading to these beliefs. It would also give me the opportunity to ask the students questions directly related to our school and the outcome data. I am interested to discover why students don’t feel safe when there has been a decrease in referrals and PAWS violations for bullying. I find that my lessons on bullying are often centered on how targets and bystanders can manage bullying situations; we don’t always talk in-depth about what students who are demonstrating bullying behaviors need to do. I think a lesson that includes teaching the self-management skill of “demonstrating the ability to assume responsibility” (B-SMS 1) would be a great addition. Students need to reflect on how they treat others, take responsibility for behaviors that have a negative impact on their peers, and change those behaviors.
This was the first year I did the Awesome Actions lesson with kindergarten and I like how it ties in with our bullying program goal. The perception data collected during the activity proved to be helpful as it gave me the opportunity to hear the students’ rationales for their answers, have valuable discussions with the class, and re-teach the concepts when necessary. The handout was a quick and easy way to check students’ understanding and allowed for individual discussions with students who had difficulty. I think the outcome data (paws violations and discipline referrals) will continue to be helpful as I can use that data to track improvements or declines in behavior during their elementary careers. It also has helped me to identify students that I need to monitor as they begin first grade next year.
With the perception data showing favorable results, I plan to keep this lesson as part of my kindergarten curriculum. I believe, however, that it would be more beneficial if taught earlier in the year. We often have students who start kindergarten without pre-school experience and this lesson could help with their transition and learning the school-wide expectations. I think a lesson that focuses on the ASCA self-management skill of “demonstrating self-discipline and self-control” (B-SMS 2) would be a good companion to this lesson. Students would learn that they have control over their actions and need to use that self-control to make good choices.
The second grade listening lesson is an old favorite of mine and the second-grade teachers. The positive results in both outcome and perception data show that is benefitting the students and should continue to be taught. The outcome data showed improvement in students’ work habits grades and I also noted on many end-of-year report cards (72 of 78!) that teachers did not mark “follows oral and/or written directions” as an area of difficulty. I felt the method for collecting perception data helped me measure the students’ abilities, however, I would like to add a pre- and post-lesson survey to see if students understand the impact that listening has on their academic careers. They tend to believe that you should listen so you do not get into trouble. To address this, I would like to work with them on the “belief in using abilities to their fullest to achieve high-quality results and outcomes” (ASCA Mindset M5). I want them to see how their ability to listen will help them become even more successful learners. I also want to focus more on the self-management skill of “demonstrating self-discipline and self-control” (B-SMS 2) and show students how that skill (and lots of practice!) will help them become better listeners.