It has been a great winter for our Educators in Residence, and seemed to fly by! Here are some of the highlights of the last 10 weeks:
While each day at Loranger has brought something new and exciting to the table, my highlight from this winter has been the increasing interest in our work throughout the district. I primarily work with the 5th and 6th grade, but this winter, faculty members from the high school and elementary school have noticed the impact the TLS curriculum has on students. I will be returning over the course of this spring to work with 9th grade students to develop their communication skills and success in team building challenges, which is a new challenge for the OOB EIR. This overwhelming support from the community has been invigorating and I can’t wait to see how it develops in future winters. The EIR position in Old Orchard Beach has the potential to grow in ways I never could have imagined my first winter. –Sam M., Loranger
One of my highlights from this EIR season is finally having the entire guidance class fully engaged, laughing and having fun with an activity that Chris and I ran! These guidance classes did not start out this way at all! At first we had a difficult time gaining trust and engagement. Slowly but surely our TLS curriculum started to appeal to both 6th and 7th grade guidance classes. So much so, that they started coming and eating their lunch with us in our office and wanting to hangout and listen to music. I believe this is important because a lot of these students need a positive role model to look up to that is not necessarily the age of a veteran teacher but not as young as a college student. Chris and I hadn’t heard one these students speak the entire EIR season until one day in our office when she told us to put on one of her favorite songs! We couldn’t believe it! This is what EIR is all about, not making a difference to every single student but making a huge difference for a few! –Neil, Searsport
As our second winter of EIR wraps up, we’ve had a little time to reflect on the past 10 weeks. Neil and I watched a lot of development happen in the 6th and 7th grade guidance classes and got to follow up with the 8th grade students multiple times in their advisory blocks. The moments that I appreciated the most however were the interactions we had with students outside of the classroom. Whether it was having students bring their lunch to our office space and just chat and hang out, or a quick conversation in passing in the hall, we continued to develop positive relationships with the students as well as provide a support system. I can’t mention enough how much I admire the resiliency of the students. How they continue to persevere after all the things that have been dropped on them is an example we could all learn from. –Chris, Searsport
Year 4 was another amazing winter at Memorial Middle School for me. The community that I have been able to become a part of and grow with down here is incredible. This winter was full of highlights, from field trips to the Telling Room where I was able to help ELL students write and publish stories that they have written about where they are from, to helping with a chili cook-off to raise money for the outdoor club, and everything in between. Every day at Memorial provides me with an opportunity to grow both personally and professionally. –Will, Memorial
Being a part of the King community for four winters has been one of the most rewarding experiences in my time working for KW. An overall highlight from this opportunity for me has been to watch students simultaneously fail and succeed and learn and grow. Through teaching TLS activities in the classroom, belaying in the gym, and coaching the track team, I have been able to build strong relationships with students and teachers alike. I have been able to work with every student at King, some for their entire middle school careers. –Sam C., King
One of the high points of my EIR was working with the half of the 7th grade to wrap up Kieve in a really unique way. I was able to play a giant board game in the auditorium (called The Game) to highlight how they can continue to work as a team, how to communicate effectively, how to display good sportsmanship, and remembering the lessons that The Leadership School taught them. The teachers of Wood Hill were there to help me out and it was incredible to see the students having fun with the teachers and learning in a setting separate from the classroom. –Kelci, Wood Hill
Joining the South Bristol School community this winter was an awesome experience. I loved being able to work with every kindergarten to 7th grader every day I was there, and was able to get to know students better than I could have in a traditional TLS program. One of my highlights was the second week where everyone did the ‘Community Map’ project. It was great to see them working together, and I loved how excited they were to tell me about their community! –Katrina, South Bristol
My highlight was getting to work with 9 incredibly tough boys and getting to build relationships with them for three months. While it was hard to see my impact on them in the moment, I know that my presence as a young man with goals in life was important for them to see. In short, I was simply a role model for these boys and it was a pleasure to be a positive force in their lives. –Eli, Lincoln Academy
The highlight of my EIR experience was the relationships I was able to build with different students. It feels fantastic to walk into a classroom and have students excitedly yell and motion for me to come sit with them. –Drewsie, Medomak
The main highlights of my EIR experience was having the opportunity to go ice skating with the third grade students, bringing the seventh and eighth grade students to Kieve to climb, and really just getting to meet and befriend the students at Nobelboro Central School. From hanging out during lunch and recess and talking to the students, to playing pickleball and gagaball in PE, the Nobelboro Central School students and faculty have made my EIR experience unforgettable. –Nelson, Nobleboro
Working at Bristol Consolidated School has been one of the most meaningful experiences I have had since starting at The Leadership School last fall. While teaching team building and social emotional skills at Kieve is impactful, there is something so empowering to do it at the schools and in the communities that these students are a part of. The opportunity to return to BCS for a second winter has allowed me to forge deeper relationships, provide mentorship and support to struggling students, and work with teachers to find creative ways to teach TLS curriculum in their classrooms even after I returned to Kieve. It was been an unforgettable experience working with this small, special school and one I won’t soon forget. –Kelsey, Bristol
This year at NCS has been incredible. In my second year here I have been able to take on a larger mentorship role with many of our students, providing a positive presence and someone they know cares about them. I have been able to go ice skating with the third graders and bring seventh and eighth grade to Kieve to climb. I have enjoyed every minute with the students and will miss our jokes high fives and special times. –Noah, Nobleboro
I have loved working with the gamut of ages at Whitefield. Immersing myself in a K-8 environment certainly helped me put the middle school experience into perspective and explore how certain childhood experiences manifest. It’s been a whirlwind to dive into the social network of this community and emerge with such a strong connection. I’m sad to depart the students and staff, but grateful to have this opportunity. –Nina, Whitefield
This Winter I was able to work with a group of 8th grade boys, who were struggling academically, behaviorally, and socially. We set goals for personal growth, worked on coping with stress in healthier ways, and tried to attack the negative behaviors at the root by practicing new positive ones. It was wonderful to see the growth of the boys who put the work in over the 10 weeks. I also worked with the 4th grade every day for 30 min sessions. It was so challenging to change the structure of our TLS curriculum to meet this schedule. In the long run it worked so well. It allowed us to isolate the struggles that the students believe they and their classmates have and tackle them one at a time. The 4th grade is still the most challenging class at JVS but the difference from the first week to the last is indescribable. –Brian, Jefferson
I’m so glad I started an after school program for students in grades 4-6. It was a great way to get to know kids in a non-school setting. I loved helping out with outdoor education programs on Tuesday and Thursday mornings designated for grades K-4, and leading yoga classes during the 7th and 8th grade study hall sessions. Bringing the kids to Kieve is always a big hit. It’s great when they say, “You live here?!”! I loved seeing the same kids every day. It’s great to be able to make a long term connection. –Kasie, Great Salt Bay
I started playing foursquare with the 6th grade boys at recess every day. Besides my love for foursquare, I decided to join because these boys are notorious for constantly changing the rules and then arguing about them. One day, I was walking inside afterwards with two of the guys talking about it. One says to me: “Mr. Munger, I think you’re magic.” And I laughed and asked why he thought so. He responds by saying, “Because we didn’t argue at all really and no one stormed off in a fit of rage.” I asked him if he thought there were any other factors in making the game feel different. He pointed out that we only stuck to the basic rules, and said, “I think simpler is better.” I really didn’t do all much during that particular game if I’m being honest. I just nudged them towards remembering to enjoy a simple and great game, without getting caught up in the rules. –Dave, Hope
A few of the highlights from my time at Lincoln Academy are playing life sized Jenga with my First Year Advisories, cooking Japanese dumplings at Teague, and playing soccer at the Pitch with some residential students. –Matt, Lincoln Academy