Читать книгу Social-Emotional Learning and the Brain - Marilee Sprenger B. - Страница 30

It was Teddy Roosevelt who said, "Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care." Letting students know that you truly do care about them is often easier with younger kids than with preteens and teenagers. Students need to know we care, and here are five ways, according to Fisher and Frey (2019), to show we are invested in relationships with them:

 Providing structure: Rules should be fair and apply to all; having consistent expectations for every student is key.

 Offering choice: Students, particularly teens, seek autonomy, and when possible, they need to be involved in decisions that are going to affect them personally.

 Showing interest: Discovering information about their lives, asking questions about their music, and attending their athletic events (or at least knowing the scores) are ways to demonstrate your interest.

 Being optimistic: Express to students through speech and actions that you believe in their ability to succeed.

 Acknowledging their feelings: Show emotional support and help them process their feelings.

Keeping these things in mind, let's consider middle to high school students. Their schedules don't allow for a lot of one-on-one time. In addition, teachers who have five or six different classes each day have less time to build relationships. Nevertheless, making the effort to do so is well worth it.