At the classroom level, teachers, students, and families work together to build a positive learning community so that students experience success and feel a sense of belonging and agency. Staff develop routines and use practices at the classroom level to keep students in class and learning.
- Co-create classroom agreements.
PBIS.org shares a brief which explains the rationale and process for developing classroom expectations. One critical step teachers can take in this process is to develop agreements with students and families. This supports staff using language and behavioral examples that reflect the unique and shared experiences and values of students. This process can create a greater sense of belonging and safety for students within the learning environment. Page 5 in this brief also displays a sample classroom matrix which includes a routine related to specific social emotional skills.
- Build routines that foster community and reinforce attendance.
Casel.org shares 3 Signature Practices that intentionally and explicitly help build a habit of practices through which students and adults enhance their social emotional skills. The Playbook outlines 3 practices that can be used in the learning environment: Inclusive Openers, Engaging Strategies and Optimistic Closures.
Establishing classroom routines that emphasize attendance and notice absences can be a crucial support within the classroom. The following Attendance Works resource shares several strategies that build attendance into existing routines and provide daily recognition and support to those who do and those who do not show up. Establish classroom routines that emphasize attendance and notice absences | Attendance Works
- Nurture a sense of belonging.
Educators know that attendance is impacted by the extent to which students feel welcomed, comfortable, and part of the school family. One action Michael Dunlea, a second grade teacher, takes is to make sure that each of his students feels seen and chosen. Several times a year, he asks his students to anonymously write down the names of three students whom they want to sit with or work with—ranked in order of preference. He reviews the results to see who is being selected and who is not. With that information, he seeks out students who aren’t chosen and creates opportunities for them to build relationships with their peers. For example, he may call on one of them and say, “Choose anyone you want to walk this to the office,” to help improve their social equity in the eyes of their peers. Other times, he will assign these students specific partners who will help them by modeling prosocial behaviors. Read more here about additional strategies you can take to foster a sense of belonging in the classroom: Every Student Matters: Cultivating Belonging in the Classroom
- Identify and acknowledge strengths.
We know that when we are able to focus on students’ strengths, they are empowered to tell more hopeful stories about themselves. Students are much more likely to see the intrinsic benefits in building new habits when we practice asset framing and focus on the strengths they already possess (Pandolpho and Cubano, 2023). In the case of a student who is chronically absent, staff might assume that this student and their family do not value education, however, if staff practice asset framing, they could instead attempt to learn what hopes and aspirations the student and family may possess, and use that information to collaborate to develop a plan that addresses the problem of chronic absence. Read more about the practice of asset framing in the following article: Reframing the Stories We Tell About Students
- Embrace errors as learning opportunities for all.
Another practice that can increase engagement and foster a culture of risk taking is “My favorite mistake”. This is a practice that involves the teacher regularly reviewing and publicly celebrating a mistake (or mistakes) from tests or assessments that are “favorites” because they reveal something about students’ development or thought processes. It could also be a “favorite mistake” because it is a common mistake that students can correct and learn from. During class, when teachers celebrate mistakes as opportunities to learn (rather than things to be avoided), students will take more risks in the classroom. In some classes that have made “favorite mistakes” a regular practice, students begin to compete and get excited about being featured in “favorite mistakes” because the teacher has made mistake-making fun and rewarding. In these classrooms, making mistakes is welcomed and students’ sense of belonging is nurtured rather than undermined. How to Help Students Feel a Sense of Belonging | Greater Good
Reference
Pandolpho, B. and Cubano, K. (2023). Choose Your Own Master Class: Urgent Ideas to Invigorate Your Professional Learning. Solution Tree.
