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Hello Families!
I hope that you were able to see our Dean of Students, Sarah Gordon’s, presentation on March 30 where Sarah explained how our school encourages positive behaviors. Academic learning, of course, is very important and the core of what we teach. However, teaching students to regulate their emotions, display positive behaviors, and resolve conflicts is critical to setting them up for success.
The PBIS system (Positive Behavior Intervention and Supports) is the cornerstone of how we ensure that all students understand what is expected of them, in order to contribute to a positive school climate. All students receive Tier 1 instruction, which means they learn what being respectful, accountable, supportive, etc. looks like in all school settings. PAWS is used with Elementary students to explicitly teach and reinforce these expectations, and ROARZ creates the same common understanding in the Middle School and High School.
Sarah explained our PBIS systems to families, so that you will know about the social-emotional learning that we encourage in all of our students. She also informed families about the ZOR curriculum (Zones of Regulation) that is used with Elementary and Middle School students to teach them how to identify and regulate their emotions, as well as to navigate social relationships. When students display difficulty with social-emotional learning, targeted interventions are used to provide them with the support they need. There might be small group meetings, a social coach may be provided, individual counseling could occur, or we use restorative approaches to help them in learning to be a positive member of the community.
Sarah plays an integral role in ensuring that students receive the support they need to help them in developing self-awareness and social skills. Along with other school leaders, Sarah follows up with all reports about behaviors that are not positive, and works with me to develop an appropriate plan of action so that all students can become their best selves.
The information that Sarah shared on March 30 is available on our website, as well as embedded in this newsletter. I highly recommend that you review it and become familiar with the curriculum and approaches that we use. Being able to use the same language as school, when talking with your children about their behavior and social interactions, has been proven through multiple research as being very powerful in affecting overall success. When children are able to self-regulate, calm themselves and resolve conflicts, they are happier and more confident. We see this often at RSD, and a great deal of the effective outcomes of our endeavors is due to Sarah’s hard work. I know that our staff echo my sentiment that our students and our school are fortunate to benefit from her skills, and her consistent commitment to supporting the growth of the whole child.
Please contact Sarah or me for more information about our positive behavior approaches. I wish all of you a wonderful Spring!
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