• Developmental Classroom Guidance Curriculum

    Guidance Curriculum used in each grade level:

    Kindergarten - Second Step

    1st grade - Second Step & Talking About Touching

    2nd grade - Second Step & Talking About Touching

    3rd grade - Steps to Respect & "Different & the Same"

    4th grade - Steps to Respect & Dependable Strengths

    5th grade - Steps to Respect & Why Try?

    Description of each Curriculum

    Second Step is a prevention program that teaches critical social and emotional skills to all children and reduces aggressive and disruptive behaviors. It creates a general culture for skill building that fosters cognitive growth in addition to social and emotional development. Children gain language and communication skills while learning to identify feelings, solve problems, and get along with others.

    Steps to Respect is a bullying prevention program shown to decrease bullying and to establish a safe, caring, and respectful school climate. Students learn and practice friendship making skills, how to recognize bullying, bullying-refusal skills, how to reach out to someone being bullied, and how to report bullying.

    Talking About Touching is a personal safety curriculum that teaches children basic skills to keep them safe from dangerous situations.

    Different & the Same is designed to help staff and students talk about, understand, and prevent prejudice. It is based on four principles of fairness, awareness, inclusion, and respect.

    Dependable Strengths is designed to help students in recognizing, appreciating, and utilizing their strengths. This builds their self-esteem, supports creating new positive experiences, and introduces students to building blocks for possible future careers.

    Why Try? teaches social, emotional, and leadership principles and resiliency.

  •  Teaching Guidance curriculum is an integral component to my work as  a Garfield  school social worker. Teaching social skills and strategies at an early age  is an effective way to  prevent social problems later on.  My MSW intern and I teach district approved classes at every grade level.  These programs are designed to support and expand the teaching of parents and teachers. Classes are developmentally appropriate  in topic and delivery.  By teaching in every class I get to know all of Garfield's student body.  I welcome your input and questions regarding these lessons.  Our curriculum is always available for you to review and ponder.  In addition, I  have supplemental information for parents and students listed on my website under parent resources and also in my office. Below  you will find a list of our current curriculum:

          Kindergarten: Kelso's Choices - a green froggy friend teaches us 9 effective strategies to solve problems safely and respectfully.  Our class puppet is engaging, silly and kids learn to practice alternative ways to solve problems  though stories , role plays, songs and DVDs. Click here for Kelso's website:  http://kelsoschoice.com/    In addition, we learn about friendship and personal safety. We use a  great safety curriculum by our local research and development company, Committee for Children.  For more information about these lessons, click on this link and then click on Talk about Touching and click on Pre/K.
     
         First grade:  First graders  have a review of conflict resolution with their pal, Kelso, but  then focus  on  the Committee for Children (Committee for Children) Personal Safety curriculum.  Here we learn about  fire, stranger, phone and other kinds of  safety including personal touching. Children learn about refusal skills, being assertive, and reporting unsafe touching .
     
         Second grade: In second grade we role play and review  conflict resolution skills with Kelso, but move quickly on to a curriculum designed to teach empathy, problem solving and  emotion management skills. Click on  this link Committee for Children and then click on Second Step for more information re: these lessons. We conclude with lessons on Social Thinking. In this interactive  curriculum we learn to discover and improve our abilities to learn what others think and feel. We also learn about the effect our behavior has on others. Together this understanding for self and others helps us get along in work groups and make and keep friendships.
     
         Third grade:  Third graders are introduced to one of our more difficult topics: what to do about bullying. Committee for Children, Steps to Respect is a dynamic, playful approach to teaching how to recognize, refuse and report bullying. Here is the link to their website:  http://www.cfchildren.org/steps-to-respect.aspx . Conflict management and personal safety skill building is reviewed as well.
     
          Fourth Grade: As the child grows so does the complexity of social skills required of that child to navigate socially with success.  Topics in fourth grade classes begin to combine the foundational skills taught previously. We learn about more complicated bullying issues and responses with Steps to Respect part 2 . http://www.cfchildren.org/steps-to-respect.aspx. In addition in these classes we discuss body bullying or sexual harassment issues as they relate to personal safety with  school age children. The key messages  are simple and easy to remember: Recognize the bullying, Refuse the bullying and Report the bullying. We continue to develop our conflict resolution and "social thinking skills" with supplemental lessons aimed at developing our sensitivities to others and ourselves.
     
          Fifth grade:  Fifth graders expand their knowledge about recognizing and responding to  bullying and handling personal conflict. Personal  development and hygiene are taught with parent permission. These gender only classes are designed to teach that human growth is a natural process and  we focus on taking care of our bodies to feel our best as our bodies begin to change.  Fifth graders also spend time exploring their academic and personal strengths and interests in a pre-career exploration program called : Dependable Strengths. Finally, we end the year getting ready for the transition to middle school. Classes review a  district booklet, share questions with Middle school guests, tour North MS, register for classes and practice opening locks. It's a busy year in fifth grade!!