After attending the workshops at Niagara, I found they were very informative. The OCT Standard that I will be reflecting upon is Standard 5 - Ongoing Professional Learning.
Hearts and Minds Matter- Jackie Eldridge
One of the workshops I attended was Hearts and Minds Matter by Jackie Eldridge, I learned about trauma and strategies I can implement. Her talk got me thinking about the different forms of trauma children can experience and handle on their own. Jackie went over the different types of trauma that we can experience. We also discussed how we can create trauma-informed classrooms. One of the ways we can create trauma-informed classrooms is to be inclusive, this means that all students feel safe, and at home and we are intentional with what we do. Another characteristic is for students to feel smart and capable, for this, we need to have differentiated instruction and create learning opportunities where the students are problem-solving. The third characteristic is for students to be risk-takers, they should not be afraid to fail and know that they can learn from their mistakes. The fourth characteristic of a trauma-informed classroom is having love and appreciation for students, we can do this by teaching from the heart or having daily appreciation. The fifth characteristic is creating resilience, this can be done through having high expectations or mindfulness. This is how we can create trauma-informed classrooms.
Jackie also taught us many strategies, one of the strategies she taught was the folded line. This is when you ask your group an opinion question where they either agree or disagree such as “ Should students wear uniforms to school?”. The students then have to organize themselves in a single file line where strongly agree is on one end and strongly disagree is on the other. Jackie then folded the line and paired people of the opposite opinion to talk, listen, and re-state each other's point of view. This was a strategy that I had never seen before, I found it a great way to practice listening to different points of view. While being exposed to a different point of view is always encouraged in school, students do not always get to practice respectfully listening to their peers, this is a great way how it can be implemented. I left the workshop with strategies that I will use in my classroom and knowledge of how to create a trauma-informed classroom. I will try to make my classroom a place where students feel safe, courageous, appreciated and capable.
Parent-Teacher Interviews- Luke Palozzi
Another workshop I attended was Parent-Teacher Interviews by Luke Palozzi. I found this workshop very helpful as it taught me how to be prepared when conducting interviews. Some of the tips given were that interviews are a place where we should discuss the student's success, it should not be where for the first time, I address a student's behaviour. I should address a student's behaviour before the interview. Another tip is to refer back to the curriculum when discussing assessments, this way I am backed up and show parents that it is based on a solid foundation. Luke also went over some do’s and don’t while doing interviews. Some of the do’s that he mentioned were do speak to work samples and report cards, stay professional, take notes after meetings and be mindful of the time. Some of the don’ts were don’t speak negatively or pass judgement, talk about your personal life, compare children or allow for insults or abusive behaviours in interviews. I mentioned just a few and many other tips were given. I found this workshop very beneficial and something that I will refer back to. I learned a lot of information and feel less nervous about doing interviews, I now have a good framework that I can build off of and personalize as I continue growing as an educator and in the future when I am doing interviews.
Resources
https://heartsandmindsmatter.com/
References
Eldridge, J. (2023, March 20). Hearts and Minds Matter: The Importance of Trauma-Informed Practice. Niagara University Education Conference, Vaughan, ON, Canada.
Palozzi, L. (2023, March 22). Parent-Teacher Interviews. Niagara University Education Conference, Vaughan, ON, Canada.
Courtesy of Henrietta@NUO-491
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