Celebrating Success at the End of the School Year

It is the end of the school year and we have endured 10 months of scrambling, phone calls, meetings, working late, paperwork, crisis intervention, classes, stress, and meetings. We are exhausted and at times frustrated that we never accomplish exactly what we set out to accomplish. This feeling can be overwhelming and demoralizing if we do not take the time to reflect on the true successes we achieve each year. Here are 3 simple steps to help us realize the difference we make in the lives of our students and colleagues each day. They help me and I hope they help you as well.

   

“It is a huge accomplishment to learn the personalities, behaviors, strengths, weaknesses, and needs of an entire class.”

Reflect on New Relationships

1. Reflect on New Relationships

Let’s look at the new relationships you have made over the past school year. Undoubtedly you have met and worked with new staff members, students, and parents. It is a huge accomplishment to learn the personalities, behaviors, strengths, weaknesses, and needs of an entire class. You spent 10 months communicating and working with family members to help these students succeed…. This is no easy task! Working with new staff members has required you to learn about these people and how they work. In order to create a functional relationship with your new or challenging coworkers, you need to enlist your teamwork skills and communication skills. Some work relationships are more difficult than others, but for the good of the students you made them work. None of this is easy, but you do it on a daily basis and probably never think about it.

"Most students’ think of their classroom as a safe haven, and that is because of you."

Look Back at the Big Picture

2. Step Back and Look at the Big Picture

Now let’s take a step back and look at the big picture. When working closely with kids on a daily basis it is easy to over look the small changes and victories that are a result of your hard work. Take time to reflect on the behaviors and academic levels of your students in the beginning of the year and now. Surely there has been improvement, and in a lot of situations a vast improvement. Look at the relationships with parents and how they have grown over the year. Creating an environment that is welcoming to students and parents is critical to a quality education and is easily over looked. Most students’ think of their classroom as a safe haven, and that is because of you. Think small! You make a difference every day, but we don’t always take the time to reflect on how the little victories we have each day contribute to the big picture. 

“Part of what makes us successful educators is that we look to past experiences to help guide future instruction.”

3. Take an Introspective Look at Professional Growth

Think about how have you grown professionally over the past 12 months? School years are long and at times stressful. You succeeded in conquering the difficult times and finding ways to navigate through them. How did you do this? Take time to recognize the skills you utilized and how they can be applied to future situations. Learning what works and what does not is a huge part of being a successful educator. You got to this point in the year for a reason…. What helped you get there??

In closing, take time to smile and relax…. You made it through another year, more experienced and better prepared to tackle the next school year. Not everyone has what it takes to be a teacher. Not everybody has the patience and desire to do what we do. Successes do not always jump out at us; we need to know where to look. In a world that more and more focuses on the negative aspects of education, we do make a difference each day.

Don’t dwell on the negative! Part of what makes us successful educators is that we look to past experiences to help guide future instruction. By looking at shortcomings as learning experiences, we can improve ourselves professionally and have an even greater impact on our students. The fact that you are self-reflective is proof of your dedication to becoming the best educator you can be. It is not easy to look at yourself and say I can do better. Congratulations to you and here is too another successful year.

Here's To Another Successful School Year

 

Photo Credits: http://photopin.com/

What To Do If Your Student Threatens Self-harm?

Each day, we encounter many students each with vastly differing needs. What needs are most serious? How do we prioritize them? I've noticed on the news recently that some student cries for help are overlooked or missed. The result of missing the early warning signs and not having a plan to address self-injury can be catastrophic. 

Cutting is a common form of self-injury

Self-Injury: A Definition 

"When an individual inflicts harm to his or her body purposefully, for reasons not recognized or sanctioned socially and without the obvious intent of committing suicide." - Janis Whitlock, PhD, MPH 

Does your school have a plan for responding when a student self-injures or threatens self-harm? 

• What happens when a student makes self-injury threats?
• Which staff members are involved?
• What is school/district policy? (i.e. does student need to be psychologically evaluated before they return)
• Do you have treatment or provider services you can refer them to?
• What is the follow-up when the student returns back to school?
• Who contacts parents?

I asked myself, "what do we do to prevent, address and act on self-injury in the school." Currently, we have a weekly meeting that deals with crisis issues at our school. We assembled a crisis team that consists of the principal, assistant principal, school counselors, attendance teachers, parent coordinator, and the school dean. In the event a student threatens self-harm, each member of our team is notified immediately and we take the following steps to ensure the student is safe:

1. The student is removed from their class and EMS is contacted. (Address medical needs)
2. The student is taken by EMS for an evaluation and the parent is notified. (Assess suicide risk & contact the caregiver) 
3. Depending on the circumstances of the case, ACS may be called to intervene. (If necessary, contact child protective services)
4. The student is referred to mental health services in the community  (Refer and/or coordinate care) 
5. The students is not allowed to return to school without documentation from a doctor or licensed professional, and their is plan established with the counselors to work with the students once they return. 
6. Establish a communication plan with the parent to ensure the student is receiving the support they need outside of school.


Helpful Links

Self-injury Protocol Resource from Educators and Self Injury

It's also great to have a list of community resources that you can refer and coordinate care for your students. If your school doesn't have one and in the New York City area, www.jbfcs.org has community mental health clinics located throughout the city. If you are in NY, the NYS Office of Mental Health has a directory Find a provider in NYS for your student.