Developing Strong Student to Student Partnerships

As the school year begins, many of us are talking about how to build strong student to student partnerships in our classrooms. When students collaborate in effective partnerships, learning increases and a sense of belonging is nurtured. In this post, I want to share some partnership ideas.

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Envisioning Language

This summer I had the privilege of attending part of a Responsive Classroom® training. This opportunity helped strengthen my understanding of how to nurture conditions that include the four domains of a responsive classroom: engaging academics, positive community, effective management, and developmentally responsive teaching. A key strategy to support all four domains is Envisioning Language. In this post I want to summarize some of what I learned about such language.

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What Are Strategies to Support Behavior?

I am not a behavior expert, although I have had some training in Nurtured Heart Approach and Morning Meeting. I do have a deep understanding of pedagogy, building relationships, and learning. So when I attended several sessions this week at my site, given by my principal and other leaders, on Responsive Classroom and behavior, I learned a lot. And I was able to make connections to culturally responsive learning and to my prior learning. I’d like to summarize some of the big takeaways here, in an effort to review my learning and share with others.

In order to be successful in and out of school, students need to learn a set of social and emotional competencies—cooperation, assertiveness, responsibility, empathy, and self-control—and a set of academic competencies—academic mindset, perseverance, learning strategies, and academic behaviors.
Responsive Classroom

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