Reaching out to our families, especially those from marginalized communities, in thoughtful and meaningful ways will help build and rebuild bridges and support student success. Downloading and conducting this Family-School Relationship Survey from Panorama Education is a great way to provide schools with a clear picture of family attitudes about several key topics.
8 Ways to Encourage Family Engagement in Secondary Schools
Read 8 Ways to Encourage Family Engagement in Secondary Schools from Edutopia for practical approaches to ongoing family engagement.
How Transparency Can Transform School Culture
Simple steps like sharing notes from district meetings, school board presentations and trainings are ways to be transparent within a school community. Establishing a voice on social media to celebrate successes, seek input and share struggles will also aid in your efforts while modeling this method of transparency for staff. For insights and inspiration, read this article from …
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Stories from the Field: Cultivating relationships through administrator actions
Download Cultivating Relationships Through Administrator Actions from Transforming Education for tips, strategies and practical advice from the field. Educational leaders can set the tone for supportive, collegial relationships in a variety of ways including: Being present during the school day; engaging with staff and students. Modeling respectful, engaging interactions with teachers and staff. Seeking teacher input …
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4 Ways to Build Effective PLCs
Creating Professional Learning Communities as part of your Professional Development Plan offers an excellent way to build and improve relationships between teachers while deepening their knowledge and expanding their skill sets. Read this article from LaRena Heath for four concrete suggestions to help educators get the most out of professional learning communities.
Maintaining Professional Relationships with Colleagues Resource Bundle
Maintaining Professional Relationships with Colleagues from Sanford Inspire. It provides concrete actions to take to maintain professional relationships with colleagues in a school setting. The article also shares four guiding principles for maintaining positive relationships. Operate with an assets-based perspective. Engage in reflexivity. Build rapport. Maintain professional boundaries.
Video: Teaching Staff Weekly Circles
Watch this five-minute Weekly Circles video to help you create an effective Community Circles practice for your teaching staff.
Mindful Schools: Healing Circles for Teachers as a Restorative Self-Care Practice
While rooted in restorative practice for students, utilizing Community Circles with staff is a powerful tool for not only building relationships and working through issues, but for promoting self-care and staff wellness. For great insights into the benefits of using Healing Circles with staff, read and share this post from Mindful Schools.
Peace Learning Center: Introduction to Restorative Practices
Download Introduction to Restorative Practices from Peace Learning Center for additional insights into the benefits of circles and the need for Principal and administration vision, staff buy in and professional development to support the effort.
Video: Weekly Circles, Building Community to Foster Academic Achievement
Implement a Weekly Circles model to build and strengthen relationships between students. Watch this 5-minute Weekly Circles video from Edutopia to help you create an effective practice for your school(s).