On Tuesday July 16th, the Kennedy Middle School staff returned with a special training through the Flippen Group, Capturing Kid's Hearts. Flip Flippen, founder of Capturing Kid's Hearts, says, "If you have a child's heart, you have their mind." This two-day immersive experience trained staff members on relationship building techniques including the need for all stakeholders within the classroom to agree on a common set of behavioral expectation in the form of a social contract. The premise behind this is if children know they are cared for, are affirmed on a regular basis, and have relationships with other children and adults within the classroom, the likelihood of their success exponentially increases.
Kennedy Middle staff will implement components of the training throughout the school year including the use of a social contract, hand signals taught to help with classroom management, greeting students with a positive interaction at the door at the beginning of class, and the implementation of "Good Things" which will help students in learning about each other. The school will also continue their Eagle Shout Out Program which has been in existence for the past 6 years. Eagle Shout Outs allow staff and students to send affirming notes to each other throughout the year. It's always a pleasure to be acknowledged for a job well done, or it's nice just to get an encouraging note from a colleague or fellow students.
Capturing Kid's Hearts will definitely leave its mark on the culture of Kennedy!