Formerly known as the OSEL Summer Institute, the Healing-Centered Conference is the Office of Social & Emotional Learning reimagined summer learning experience for Chicago educators. The conference was attended by teachers, school leaders, social workers, school counselors, and other practitioners in our District. Brittany Jones, Managing Director of Justice Initiatives, had an opportunity to represent KIPP Chicago at this year’s Summer conference. There were several deeply meaningful sessions that ranged from training on creating wellness ecosystems to healing circles to using social-emotional learning to leverage student and adult relationships better.

We look forward to applying our learning and continuing to collaborate with the CPS Office of Social & Emotional Learning to support our regional wellness goals.

How We Feel App

The Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence has collaborated with the non-profit How We Feel on an exciting App focused on emotional well-being. The App is called How We Feel and is available for free on iOS and Android. It incorporates principles from Mark Brackett’s book, Permission to Feel, has a Mood Meter, and dozens of research-based strategies to support healthy emotion regulation and emotional-tracking capabilities. KIPP Chicago continues using Yale’s RULER curriculum to support our social-emotional learning goals. You can find mood meters being used daily across the region. Several staff members have already benefited from the How We Feel App, tracking their experiences and emotions throughout the day. 

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This school year, KIPP Chicago was invited to participate in a forward-thinking, social-emotional learning cohort. In collaboration with BRYT (Bridge for Resilient Youth in Transition), the CPS Office of Innovation & Incubation is leading this opportunity for school and district leaders. The eight-month professional learning and practice series focuses on developing comprehensive school mental health support systems for students and adults. The learning sessions centered on utilizing a multi-tiered system of support (MTSS) framework to bolster trauma-informed, healing-centered practices at the building level. Two key goals are: understanding the relationship (differences and overlap) between SEL and mental health systems within the broader MTSS framework; and developing an action plan for increasing SEL and MH support across the tiers for students and adults. Involvement in this collaborative will involve gaining knowledge, planning SMART goals, implementing efforts to achieve real goals, and evaluating processes and outcomes within and out of session activities. Our community has been grateful for facilitator and social worker, Courtney Tucker. We are pleased to have Ashley Stone, Achievement Director of Diverse Learning, Brittany Jones, Managing Director of Justice Initiatives, and Colin Sallee, SEL Chair, participate. 

Outstanding Illinois Charter School Eighth Grader of the Year

Meet Santana, Illinois Network of Charter Schools Outstanding Illinois Charter School Eighth Grader of the year!

Santana is an Honor Roll Student at KIPP One Academy, where he advocates for himself and his peers. Over the summer, Santana voluntarily participated in summer enrichment to “have the best year in 8th grade.” He met with teachers and leaders to share what he wanted the eighth grade to look like and helped to create the eighth-grade vision. For the past two years, he has served as Class Captain, trusted by teachers and classmates to perform duties, encourage classmates, and help resolve conflicts. Currently, he is applying to high schools, researching his options, and meeting with alums to learn more.

Outside of school, Santana participates in The Bloc, where he has learned about challenging himself physically and mentally through boxing. Through his experiences at The Bloc, he is now equipped and independently employs strategies to adapt and overcome challenges. Congratulations, Santana!

SEL Chair Feature: Ashley Cupil

Tell us a bit about yourself. 

My name is Ashley Cupil. This is my fourth year at KIPP Bloom College Prep, where I serve as 6th grade Diverse Learner Teacher and Co-Chair for Social-Emotional Learning. I also serve as one of three coaches for our Model UN team. Aside from being an educator, I am also a birthworker. I am certified as a Holistic Fertility Doula, Reiki 1 Practitioner, and Pregnancy & Infant Loss Advocate.  

As SEL chair, what ideas, programs, or lessons are you most excited to bring students?

I am excited about all of the programming! This year, our students have been involved in many social-emotional learning opportunities both within and outside our building. We’re currently gearing up to offer our students the chance to learn about Restorative Justice through Peace Circles, which the Greater Chatham Initiative will run. More than anything, I am excited to introduce our students to new experiences, feelings, and ways of being. As Black kids, they have to know that there is more than what they’ve been shown. There is an entire world at their fingertips! I am overjoyed to have the chance to watch our students learn about new things, learn to care for themselves, and become compassionate, justice-inspired members of our community. 

What do you believe is needed for a student to thrive in a KIPP school from an SEL perspective?

For students to thrive at a KIPP school, students have to know that there is more to life than just KIPP. There is life outside of our walls. I think that once students realize that their vision must be bigger than the buildings that hold them, then there will be no limit to what they can do in any capacity! Of equal importance is teaching our students how to live, love, and learn in a community. Often, our students come to us with the mindset of going to school to get to the next position or to please their families. They are so far into the next moment (I love the ambition!) and haven’t yet learned to heal themselves and be themselves in the present moment. My goal for our SEL program is to teach our students that they have all of the tools within themselves to be present, prepared, and successful as whole people. 

Tell us a bit about your own journey and how that informs your work as an SEL chair.

I’ve always wanted to be a teacher, literally, my entire life. As a child, I looked up to the Black women who taught me, poured love into me, and provided me with a community of more mothers than I could count, always nourishing the seeds my mother planted. Now that I’ve reached this place and been so joyfully touched by my students who have allowed me into their lives, I want to show them as much as possible. I want them to see the beauty of being able to exist among their own people in a space of upliftment. That is why it’s so important to me that they gain self-regulation skills, learn empathy and compassion, and become even better people than they already are. As a mother (though I’m very new at it), I approach this work now, always hoping to be as loving and endearing to my students as I’d want someone in the world to be to my son. My greatest wish is that my students can take that love and transform it as they sew it into their families and friends, and the world.

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KIPP Ascend Primary School kicked off the school year with a Back to School BBQ and celebrated the ribbon cutting for a new mini-pitch. The mini-pitch was made possible through funding from the U.S. Soccer Foundation and The United for Girls initiative. Like us, these organizations know that extracurricular activities outside the classroom, like soccer, help kids develop healthy habits and critical life skills. Unfortunately, many children in underserved communities, especially girls, lack the resources, access, and encouragement to reap the rewards. In a message to our students, Principal Marquita Curry shared, “This mini-pitch is for you to have space to play because you are not only the future of soccer, you are the future of our community and our city.”

Once Upon Our Time Capsule 

In 2021, Once Upon Our Time Capsule partnered with KIPP Chicago and organizations across the city to support kids in telling their stories of living through the pandemic by contributing to a citywide time capsule. This year, they are partnering with us again to support students in Chicago and across the country to tell and share their stories annually to help them develop a stronger sense of agency, belonging, and empathy.

Three of our schools have started to participate in these workshops this school year. ​​Throughout the workshops, KIPPsters reflect on their life experiences over the past year, and utilize those reflections to tell their individual stories creatively so that they can be captured in the annual time capsule. With the leadership of teachers Angelica London, Essence Townsel, and Katie Schmelzer, this reflection and storytelling exercise helps kids strengthen their self-awareness and develop their sense of agency.

These workshops embed emotional identification and regulation as a primary focus. They also draw out students’ strategies for managing stress and negative emotions, focusing on their bravery and resiliency. Students then share those stories and use various tools to reflect on and appreciate their similarities, differences, struggles, and strengths to build a sense of belonging and empathy. In doing so, they build relational skills and social awareness. We are grateful to have this partnership continue to support our students’ social-emotional growth and our overall Whole Child Initiative. 

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We love seeing time dedicated to SEL activities, targeted to help students decompress. The purpose of this day at KIPP One Primary was to give KIPPsters an opportunity to exhale after a week of testing, emphasizing the importance of socioemotional and relationship skills. Each class period, teachers led a new social emotional activity that engaged different levels of expression and skill building. There was time for physical, emotional, social, and vocational activities. Students and teachers appreciated this time to unwind and reconnect with themselves and each other.

Bloom Peace Circle

In alignment with our regional SEL priorities, KIPP Chicago SEL Chairs who are trained as peace circle practitioners, have been launching community peace circles at each of our campuses. At KIPP Bloom, Susie Johnson has created a warm and safe space for students to come connect, relate, and care for one another. These circles have provided students an opportunity to problem solve, affirm and validate each other’s experiences, navigate the return to school, and celebrate successes.

RULER 2022: Caring, Connecting, & Collaborating

This year our SEL Chairs were able to experience Yale Institute for Emotional intellengce’s RULER conference on March 9th and 10th. RULER 2022: Caring, Connecting, & Collaborating was filled with dynamic keynote speakers, RULER practitioners from the field, and experts from the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Each day opened with a message from Dr. Marc Brackett followed by the featured keynote. Afterwards, our team was able to choose sessions aligned with their individual interests and take key takeaways back to their school communities!

How We Feel App

Created in partnership with the Yale Institute’s RULER program founder, Marc Brackett, How We Feel is a free journal for your mental health created by scientists, designers, engineers and therapists. The app encourages you to check in with your feelings daily. Over time, you will learn the right words to describe how you feel, spot trends and patterns, and practice simple strategies to regulate your emotions in healthy ways.

SEL Chair Feature: Andrew Albert

Andrew Albert (He/They) has been teaching and leading in Chicago and Northwest Indiana for the past eight years. He began his career in education teaching 4th and 8th h grade science at his Teach For America placement school in Gary, IN. Prior to joining the team at KIPP One Academy, he taught 5th grade science and 7th grade math at KIPP Bloom in the Englewood neighborhood, and 7th and 8th grade science at KIPP Ascend Middle School in the North Lawndale neighborhood. Andrew has also served as a middle school science coach and content lead, teacher leader of school culture, grade level chair and musical theater director. Andrew received his B.S in Biology and a secondary teaching license from the University of Maine at Fort Kent. About six years ago Andrew was initiated as a Reiki Master and has an intense passion for supporting others in their search for peace, joy, self-love, and personal growth. Andrew has also been trained as a Mindfulness and Meditation Master Practitioner from the Natura Training Institute. He loves to talk about and practice the laws of the universe, metaphysics, and meditation/mindfulness and prides himself on his chocolate chip cookies.

As SEL chair for KIPP One Academy, what ideas, programs, teaching are you most excited to bring students?

What I have loved about rolling out SEL at KIPP One has been providing opportunities and training for staff to first LIVE the RULER tools. To be able to practice the tools for themselves in order to better understand the nuance and benefit that comes with emotional awareness before we roll out to students. I have also enjoyed looking for ways to embed the RULER tools in the systems that already exist within our schools. This has allowed our school to provide multiple daily opportunities for students to check-in emotionally with themselves (during every PDN in every class), practice emotional language, build community through Classroom Charter reflections and shout-outs (weekly in homerooms).

What do you believe is needed for a student to thrive in a KIPP school, from an SEL perspective?

I believe that students need a safe, predictable environment in which they can learn how to recognize and process all emotions. An environment that fosters a deep sense of community and belonging. Students need to be shown that feeling any emotion is never a bad thing, and from that awareness, they are empowered to take appropriate actions aligned to their best self.

Tell us a bit about your own journey and how that informs your work as an SEL chair?

Through my own healing journey, I found my way to meditation and Reiki Energy Work. This has propelled me on a path of self-understanding, learning how to meet my heart when my head is experiencing discomfort, and trusting in my own ability to sit with difficult emotions. This work has become a part of my entire life, and thus, in all areas, I bring the tools I have learned and continue to practice. I love creating spaces for others to feel safe and secure in feeling through their emotions and patterns.

Anything else you’d like us to know?

KIPP One Academy’s RULER roll out would not have been so successful if it weren’t for the “all-in” mentality from the staff. It has been a true joy for me to witness the amazing conversations, structures, habits, that our staff has built around supporting emotional intelligence for our school community. They are the reason our school has been able to care so deeply about our students’ academic and emotional growth.

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A KIPP Bloom College Prep student approached Susie Johnson, School Social Worker, and asked her to create an anime after-school club. Without knowing much about anime, but knowing a lot about RULER, Ms. Johnson, KIPP Bloom social worker and SEL Chair, combined anime and RULER to create Anime & Me club. This club is for everyone, anime experts and those who are still trying to figure out the craze around Japanese storytelling. The goal of Anime & Me club is to focus on how students’ favorite characters rise or fall in the face of hardships and challenges. It focuses on the strategies these characters use to stand in the best version of themselves.

Anime & Me club has 3 goals: celebrating students’ love for Manga and Anime, creating a safe space for students to explore their own version of their best self, and having fun. The main tenets of RULER used in this club are: creating a class charter, using the mood meter, and engaging in best self activities and discussions, all while using Anime as the guiding subject matter. We can’t wait to see the final art pieces that come from this incredible club!

“Anime club is a cool place because it makes me feel more relaxed and less stressed. It is a place where I have a lot of friends which helps me feel better.” 6th grade student

“I like talking about our feelings because if someone is sad, we always find ways to cheer each other up” 6th grade student

“Feelings and anime go together because we relate to the characters and what they go through. Helps me feel better about what I go through” 6th grade student.

SEL Chair Features: KIPP One Primary’s Colin Sallee and KIPP Ascend Primary’s April Hudson

We’re so excited to highlight the SEL leaders who are transforming school culture. We’re grateful for Colin and April’s dedication to helping students learn emotional awareness and expression!

Colin Sallee has been with KIPP One Primary for 4 years and he is a bright light, steady, full of positivity and joy. Students and teachers both love working with Mr. Sallee.

Tell us a bit about yourself

I really struggle to write about myself. Seriously. I started writing this on Friday afternoon with full intentions of completing it. It’s now Monday morning, the writer’s block is very real. I guess I can tell you that I’ve always been a part of a team. Growing up, in all sorts of sports, clubs, family dynamics, etc. – I always felt like I had a role on a team. That foundation sort of translates across all facets of my life. The dynamic of the school naturally meshes with who I am. I played college baseball, and coached throughout most of it when I found the time. The ages ranged from 8-18, and I dealt with all sorts of people and parents. I’ve had the same friends since high school, and we treat each other like teammates. I love music, our students, my wife, golf, our pets, literature, leggos, challenges – in no particular order. I’m not a traditionally trained teacher, as I earned my degree from DePaul University in the School of Journalism.

Tell us about your KIPP journey (when did you start, what position, your kids in KIPP, where you are now with KIPP, etc.…)

I started with KIPP as a co-teacher in kinder, after serving as an in-house sub for a year at a school in Winnetka, IL. I was a novice (still am to a large degree). After 3 months in kindergarten, and some needs at the second grade level, I shifted upstairs and began pulling small group work using our MTSS Programming – both 1st and 2nd graders. The following year, I would assume the role of lead teacher at the first grade level. In 2020-21, I would loop with that cohort and become a lead 2nd grade teacher. When the role of SEL chair became an option for me as I entered year 4, it was a no-brainer.

As SEL chair for KIPP One Primary (lower and upper school), what ideas, programs, teaching are you most excited to bring students?

I think about these things a lot – and honestly my ideas and experiences are very fluid. I adjust to what it feels like we need. Mainly, the ideas I operate with are surrounding consistent emphasis on communication skills and emotional awareness. I want students to understand the power of relationship building and trust. That’s really where the cornerstone of our work lives. From there, ideas of empathy, curiosity, and self-esteem are what we try to foster and encourage. Using circle work, consistent team building, and authentic communication, we do our best to achieve/live out these ideas.

What do you believe is needed for a student to thrive in a KIPP school, from an SEL perspective?

A student will thrive if they understand that they are seen and heard by adults. Students who know that an educator will empathise with them and walk in their shoes are the ones we see thrive and grow into powerful members of their respective families/communities. If a student trusts that their teacher can meet them halfway and then some, they will be more inclined to find success.

Tell us a bit about your own journey and how that informs your work as an SEL chair?

As an athlete, you just become comfortable with failure and you start to realize that you have to be realistic with yourself, while also striving for more. This is a constant learning process. It will exist my entire time on this earth. I operate in a space of the present. I rely largely on instincts. I try not to think too much as I move throughout the school. That is not to say I just operate randomly – I reflect a lot on experiences and information. I actively listen, ask questions, and process. I prepare myself while I’m away from school, so that I can be prepared for all scenarios within the school. I’m ok with taking risks, remaining true, and failing.

April Hudson is a KIPP teacher and a KIPP parent who has also been with us for 4 years. Ms. Hudson has been a leader at KAP from day one, ensuring there are opportunities for students to be “exposed to the rich culture in which they have come from and live in daily.”

Tell us a bit about yourself

Hello, I am April Hudson. I was born and raised on the West Side of Chicago. I am a mother of 2 beautiful girls. Not only am I a KIPP teacher, I am a KIPP parent.
I have a not-for-profit organization, Devine and Conquer. Our goal is to assist Chicago youth and their families with resources, teach financial literacy, and coping skills. Teaching is my passion.

Tell us about your KIPP journey

I began my work at KIPP in Fall of 2017 as a Kindergarten co-teacher. Since then, I have become lead teacher in Kindergarten, acted as festival coordinator for the grade level, and chair of Black History committee. It is important for me to ensure that the children in our building are exposed to the rich culture in which they have come from and live in daily. I am now the SEL chair for KAP Lower School.

As SEL chair for KIPP Ascend Primary, Lower School, what ideas, programs, teaching are you most excited to bring students?

I am so excited about our RULER curriculum. We are giving students the language and platform for labeling and expressing their feelings. In just a short time, we have seen students use the RULER lessons in tough situations, where they need to express their emotions. We want to continue to explore the Mood Meter, Classroom Charter and Blue Print Conferences as students grow and develop.

What do you believe is needed for a student to thrive in a KIPP school, from an SEL perspective?

Students need to know that they are entitled to their feelings and should be able to express themselves in an appropriate setting. Students should feel comfortable expressing themselves. It is important for me to create an environment where students are respected for who they are and how they feel. Students need to be exposed to healing practices and be in a trauma-informed environment. Some students have experienced so much trauma in their community. We want our school to be a safe and joyful place for our KIPPsters.

Tell us a bit about your own journey and how that informs your work as an SEL chair?

Being raised by strong African American parents, we were often taught to persevere through hardships and deal with our emotions later. Now that I know better, I want to teach others that we should deal with our emotions head on, in an appropriate manner. We know that research shows that being in touch with our feelings allows us to manage our feelings and be in control. This is what I want to teach children so that they can teach others, even their grown ups.

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As we introduce new SEL Chair roles across the region, we’re so excited to highlight the leaders in these positions who are transforming school culture. For example, Faith Anderson-Bullock has been with KIPP for 10 years in various roles. We are so thrilled to have her as the SEL Chair for KIPP One Primary, Upper School.

Tell us a bit about yourself.

I’m Faith Anderson-Bullock. Many of the KIPPsters like to call me Mrs. FAB. I am a mom of 3, with one on the way. I have my degree in Psychology. I heavily focus on the high-risk youth. I worked for Hartgrove Hospital as the Program Specialist for 7 years before joining KIPP on the learning support team. I’m the founder of L.O.V.E. Girls. I am a mentor in the community to many young ladies ages 8-21. I’ve partnered with many nonprofit organizations in the North Lawndale community. I strive to be the adult that I needed when I was a child. I really embody “it takes a village to raise a child.” I definitely have a strong village and I make sure I’m that same resource for my community.

Tell us about your KIPP journey (when did you start, what position, your kids in KIPP, where you are now with KIPP, etc.)

I’ve been a KIPP family for a really long time! My little brother attended KIPP Ascend Middle School in its founding years. He was in the class of 2014 (graduating high school). After that amazing experience, I always wanted to continue to be a part of KIPP. in the 2012-2013 school year I was honored to be hired at KIPP Ascend Primary on the learning support team. I then taught 4th grade (Writing, Science, ELA) for the last 5 years. This is my 10th school year with KIPP. I’m currently the SEL Chair at KIPP ONE Upper Primary. I have two middle schoolers at KIPP ONE Academy, Yashua in the 7th grade class of 2027 and Zakai in the 5th class of 2029, excelling and doing exceptionally well.

As SEL chair for KIPP One Primary’s upper school, what ideas, programs, teaching are you most excited to bring students?

Social-emotional learning (SEL) is the process of developing the self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success. Research shows that people with strong social-emotional skills are better able to cope with everyday challenges and benefit academically, professionally, and socially. From effective problem solving to self-discipline, from impulse control to emotion management, SEL gives a great foundation for positive, long term effects on students, adults and communities. With SEL in place students thrive, schools win, the workplace benefits, society strengthens!

Some ideas I have to make this successful are educating more teachers on stages of development and developmentally appropriate behaviors. I would love to bring about more trauma-informed classrooms. I’m excited to create spaces where students feel safe, secure, and comfortable enough to express their feelings and emotions adequately. I’m excited to give students the language to express themselves and advocate for what they need in those moments that are not the easiest. I’m excited to start creating small communities of students that can support each other through community circles. I also would love a world where there’s a bridge for parents to also have resources on SEL materials and classes on how they can support and implement these things at home, and have community circles that allows them to strengthen the relationship of the extremely diverse community we share at KIPP ONE. Finally, excited to support teachers, students, and parents in providing the tools needed for such a long-term impact on our future trajectory.

What do you believe is needed for a student to thrive in a KIPP school, from an SEL perspective?

CONSISTENCY – knowing what to expect, high expectations, open and honest communication both ways (teacher to student and student to teacher), and feeling physically, emotionally, and mentally safe. I know that seems like a lot! But, unfortunately, our community is rooted in trauma that didn’t start during this pandemic. Unfortunately, there’s no magic pill to cure trauma. Still, there are many practices, especially through SEL, that can reset and reshape the brain to help students feel successful and tap into their highest selves.

Tell us a bit about your own journey and how that informs your work as an SEL chair?

I will try not to be long winded. I worked at Hartgrove Hospital as the Program Specialist on the Adolescent Girls unit. We got a high number of our referrals and patients from schools. I would often ask patients to name 1 adult that they trusted that they could go to at school, and way too often they felt they had no one. I would hear story after story of teachers speaking negatively out of frustration, feeling hated by school staff based on the tone and approach used, being labeled as the bad kid. I began to wonder where the break down was happening and even wondered if teens were just being teens. Then the more I got to talk to and know these patients personally, they were all humans that yearned for structure, in a firm but fair way. They wanted to be seen and heard but also helped with tools to be successful when they struggled. They wanted a listening ear and guidance. Wanted help but did not feel judged for doing wrong. I then made my unit with high expectations, firm but fair consequences, and a space to RESPECTFULLY disagree or create a trusting space where patients could come to me if needed. I was strict and hard on them but it was deeply rooted in love and nurture. And as adults we fail to realize children can sense when adults are nasty or nurturing. Once I was at KIPP, I was interested in doing the same thing I did in the hospital but in an academic setting. Could I create a space where students felt safe, but there was a high level of expectation and a balance of firm but fair consequences? Over the years, as I learned the structure of an academic setting (totally different from a hospital) I realized it was not only possible but a game-changer for the students that needed it the most.

In my homeroom, Central State, I created a space that felt calm and safe. Mindfulness music to help with regulating the brain for focus, essential oils that help us feel calm and relaxed, journals every morning for check-ins, real conversations around choices and consequences, community circles discussing the outside community and school community and Mrs Bullock put on her momma hat to discuss hygiene and self care and how it makes you feel better and perform better. To be able to have a space to do all of that made teaching that much easier. Did I have tough students? I did, but even more they were the ones who benefitted the most from these tools. Getting to a place where they could sit and learn, not because I created anything magical, but they had a place to feel safety, consistency and firm, but fair expectations.

I truly feel all classrooms can create this space and each one can and will look unique to the teacher but the environmental experience of it will be the same. As SEL chair I know that the more teachers are set up for this type of success the more success will come.

Anything else you’d like us to know?

I’m honored to be able to share a brief statement with you of something I’m truly passionate about. I’m thankful that KIPP is taking steps in an amazing direction. Being a part of an institution for so long allows you to be a part of the many strengths and challenges that may come. I just hope and pray I continue to be impactful to many children and families that I engage with daily and constantly be a tool for my teammates throughout the region, near and far.

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A team of teachers, social workers, administrators, and regional leaders collaborated to create a 35-page student workbook full of creative writing, poetry, coloring, drawing, and SEL activities, designed to help students reflect on and express their stories of living through a pandemic.

The workbook was designed to be a tool to open up conversations among students and teachers and provide a safe space for processing the past year. All students are utilizing this workbook in the final quarter of the school year during homeroom.

 
RULER Progress

SEL chairs and social workers continue to train school staff on the principles of RULER, from Yale’s Center for Emotional Intelligence, in preparation for utilizing the structures with students next school year. KIPP Bloom College Prep SEL chair, Darlene Santos, created an area in the teachers’ lounge with visual reminders of staff’s commitment to social and emotional learning and growth.

 
Intentional SEL practices
Our schools are working to create more intentionality around students’ social and emotional needs throughout the school day. In Primary schools, teachers are scheduling lots of movement breaks and guided stretches and breathing exercises. Schools are also reviewing development by grade level, noting the opportunities to adjust classroom routines accordingly. For example, learning that 4th-grade students become more interested in socializing with peers allows teachers to build more turn-and-talks into the day. Schools are also emphasizing the importance of free play and recess for our students’ development.

Space for helping students to re-center themselves at KBP and a student taking some deep belly breaths.

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Audrey Marshall, teacher and SEL Chair at KIPP Academy Chicago Primary (KACP) supports the team in providing social/emotional support to students. She provides fellow staff members with techniques, strategies, and environmental tools for promoting social emotional growth and learning. Audrey says:

“I see the social-emotional advisory role as one where knowledge pertaining to the emotional wellness of KIPPsters is driven by data and up-to-date literature, and is disseminated regularly and with useful strategies and techniques that can be implemented within the classroom setting. In addition to generating the monthly newsletter, Social-Emotional Corner, I aim to provide any additional support necessary to directing families toward useful resources for supporting their child. I see this role as a way to also build partnerships between local professionals in various related fields like that of child psychology, social work, family planning, and community health.”

KACP students are introduced to a Mood Chart to better identify how they are feeling. Checking in with students about how they are feeling has many benefits. First, it teaches children how to identify their moods and communicate their needs to adults. Second, when a teacher asks a student how they are feeling, it builds trust and strengthens the relationship. Finally, noticing students’ moods helps teachers identify patterns so they are able to help them navigate through difficult emotional states.

Resources

We are encouraging our teachers to use the Mind Yeti and Headspace apps and programs in their classrooms to guide mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness has been defined as “the awareness that emerges through paying attention on purpose, in the present moment, and nonjudgmentally to the unfolding of experience moment by moment.” Practicing mindfulness has benefits for children and adults as it has been found to support attention development, positive relationships and social connection, and improved emotional awareness.

Pure Edge offers strategies for educators and learners to support social, emotional, and academic development through mindful movement and rest. They also provide a free online curriculum that can be found here. Pure Edge has been a wonderful partner for our teachers on Regional Collaboration Days.

Updates

The importance of SEL teacher training is critical and we’ve identified a potential partner for a region- wide implementation of SEL curriculum in the year 2021.

We also will add additional social workers at every K-8 campus in the 20-21 school year to ensure that students’ SEL needs are met.

Additionally, a Wellness Director will be added at every K-8 campus within 3 years to offer support, strategies, and communication techniques for continued SEL training.

• Return to the cover page.
• Click here for the PDF.

Other articles in this issue:

• Increasing family and community partnerships
• Embracing an inclusive and challenging curriculum
• Sharing resources from our CMASJ
• Integrating Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
• Cultivating identity development practices
• Addressing food insecurities
• Enhancing teacher wellbeing
• Holiday performances
• Principal of the Year Award
• Jarell Lee on Minnesota Public Radio
• Alumni Feature: Ramya Herman
• Sewing and Giving
• Robotics Club

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We have made great progress in training all staff members at two schools so far. As each SEL leader from our other 6 schools completes their training, they will lead their whole staff through the workshops. When school staff work through the training together, it creates a sense of shared experiences and empathy that will translate to students’ connection. To date, staff completed 5 training sessions, including:

Emotions Matter: What is emotional intelligence? And why does it matter?
The Charter: Community Agreement Tool and living document. How we want to feel and actionable steps, we will take to achieve those feelings.
The Mood Meter: Tool to Recognize, Understand, and Label your emotions
Meta-Moment: Tool to stop & breathe, see your best self in every moment, and strategize how to regulate your emotions to be your best self.
Blueprint: Conflict Resolution Tool

Our next goal is to ensure all students are subsequently trained after teachers have had time to internalize the shared language, experiences, and practices.

Darlene Santos, 5th grade Math Teacher, and Grade Level Dean, shared her thoughts on the strengths of the RULER program:

“This whole effort has to do with building a community within your classroom, and it’s largely student-driven. When we’re talking about how we are living up to the charter (that students create), it’s their feedback that drives the conversation. They will be able to tell other students, “hey, I don’t think we’re living the charter we created…” This process allows for a lot of student input, and I will need to remember that as their teacher. To ensure investment, I will let them build it. I am here for support, and I will be teaching them how to regulate their emotions and use the RULER framework, but they will be driving the process.”

My Grandmother’s Hands by Resmaa-Menakeem

In November, every KIPP Chicago staff member received My Grandmother’s Hands: Racialized Trauma and the Pathway to Mending our Hearts and Bodies, a story of the journey through the labyrinths of trauma and its effects on modern life, especially for African Americans. Resmaa’s insight into trauma is profoundly impactful, but even more powerful and useful are his strategies for addressing it.

As the KIPP Chicago senior team reads the book together, Jennifer Hodges, Director of the Whole Child Fund, cites chapter 20, Cultural Healing for African Americans, as especially pivotal.

This chapter resonated with me because it underscores the importance of acknowledging African American contributions to global society. Telling a complete story of African American history is critical to psychological strength and self-confidence. Our history did not begin with slavery. I believe teaching from slavery diminishes African American students’ confidence and promotes subordinate self-worth and diminished self-efficacy. I desire to identify or design a curriculum that intersects African history with African American history and present-day experience. Through the Inclusive and Challenging Curriculum priority of Whole Child, my goal is to create an accurate African American curriculum that will nurture confident, proud, and empowered children leaders.

Because of this, it is important that we practice and model self-care, giving ourselves permission to pause and check-in and hold space for our students to do the same. The book says, “Learning to settle your body and practicing wise and compassionate self-care is not about reducing stress; they’re about increasing your body’s ability to manage stress, as well as about creating more room for your nervous system to find coherence and flow.” We look forward to the impact it will have on our entire region, our students, and our families as we read it together. Our entire region will have read the book and gone through three subsequent learning sessions by fall of 2021!

Though it looks different for everyone, we can actively model self-care for students in whatever way feels authentic. Here are some ways you can model self-care:

• Tell students you are going to take a minute to take some deep breaths and have some hot tea
• Provide several moments of pause or quiet
• Ask students to share their coping strategies and model some of your own
• Give students options for how they engage in class that day, ie, submitting journal reflection vs. actively participating in the discussion
• Provide time for creative visual representations of their thoughts
• Demonstrate emotional and mental release through physical activity like stretching, jumping jacks, etc.
• Use CMASJ coloring book to color with students

The post Integrating Social and Emotional Learning appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.

As we head into this school year, the Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) we offer our students is imperative. Two groups of educators from KIPP Academy Chicago Primary and KIPP Bloom Primary have completed Yale’s Ruler Program. The rest of our schools will send a wellness team to training in December. RULER is a systemic approach to SEL developed at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. RULER aims to embed the principles of emotional intelligence in preK to 12 schools, informing how leaders lead, teachers teach, students learn, and families support students. RULER is an acronym for the five skills of emotional intelligence: Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing, and Regulating. As these cohorts of trained teachers implement the learning in their own schools and classrooms, they will also receive remote coaching and online resources to lead RULER implementation in their school community.

In addition to receiving training and beginning to implement the RULER approach to social emotional learning, many teachers and leaders across KIPP Chicago bring impactful SEL learning strategies and expertise to our classrooms each and every day. Doing so allows staff to identify student needs while also teaching students how to identify, process, and regulate their feelings on their own or with the support of a caring adult or peer.

Offering a platform for acknowledging feelings

Kindergarten and first-grade teachers at KIPP Academy Chicago Primary use four faces along with a list of feelings words to begin virtual learning with their class each day. After being given the list of words and matching images, students enter class letting her know how they are currently feeling. Acknowledging and allowing for the feelings students’ have is a great way to normalize talking about feelings and their temporary states. This also allows Ms. Marshall to gauge the needs of individual students as they move through the day.

More social workers

We are keeping our promise of adding more social workers to schools and we’re thrilled to say that we have more than doubled the access to social workers for students from last school year! With one social worker at every KIPP Chicago K-8 school, social workers will work in collaboration with teachers, leaders and families to ensure that all students feel a strong sense of belonging and have support to address the unique needs of each student and family.

Resources

One tool the Yale Institute’s RULER program uses in their emotional intelligence practice is Mood Meter, an app helps you identify your emotions throughout the day and supports you when you’d like to shift to a different emotion. Using the Mood Meter helps you expand your emotional vocabulary and discover emotional nuances.

The post Integrating Social and Emotional Learning appeared first on KIPP Chicago Public Schools.