Planning for Access

Caroline Welch
Teaching for Transformation I: Elementary Content
November 12, 2017
Community Works
- Non-profit counseling program that
has partnered with schools
- Provides students with small group
and one-on-one counseling
- Supports restorative justice rather
than zero tolerance policies (Voices
of Youth in Chicago Education, 2011)
- Positive role models from similar
backgrounds as the demographics
of my students
Habits of Mind
Community Works focuses on the growth of the following Habits of Mind (Costa &
Kallick, 2009)

- Persisting
- Listening with Understanding and Empathy
- Managing Impulsivity

These skills will be reinforced in the classroom through the use of:

- Getting Along Together Conflict Curriculum (2015)

- Giraffe’s Can’t Dance (Andreae & Parker-Rees, 2001)
- My Mouth is a Volcano (Cook & Hartman, 2006)
Connection to Curriculum
- Giraffe’s Can’t Dance (Andreae & Parker-Rees, 2001)

- Supports students growth with Habit of Mind of

persisting
- Teaches a growth mindset

- My Mouth is a Volcano (Cook & Hartman, 2006)

- Supports students growth with managing impulsivity

- Teaches students about controlling impulses

- Both books will have follow up conversations, activities, and

writing prompts

- Community Works counselors are invited to participate

Connection to Curriculum (ct.)
- School uses Getting Along Together
(2015) conflict resolution curriculum
- Aligns with the Habits of Mind that
are supported by Community Works
- Includes a weekly lesson and a
weekly class student counsel
- Consistent use of conflict resolution
language throughout the school
- Teachers, staff, and Community
Works counselors have a shared
language in regards to conflict
resolution
Completed Actions
- Made initial contact with counselors
- Had classroom observation by counselors who will work with my students
- Debriefed with counselors and discussed students who would benefit from the
program
- Contacted parents with information about the program
- Began discussing the Habits of Mind with my students
- Discussed the specific Habits of Mind and skillsets I want my students to focus
on with the counselors
Action Plan
Week of November 13-November 17:

- Remind parents of Parent University program at school

- Reinforce parents going to Parent University with positive incentives for
student
- Make follow-up calls with parents who did not go to the Community Works
table at Parent University
Action Plan (ct.)
Looking forward:

- Discuss with Community Works what additional supports they can give the
students
- Have the counselors observe class
- Involve Community Works counselors within the classroom through a Problem
Based Learning project
- Have an Academic Parent Teacher Teams (APTT) meeting with parents and
Community Works counselors before Winter Break
Discipline Support
- Community Works will support a Restorative Justice approach to discipline
unlike the previously used Zero Tolerance approach
- Community Works counselors can pull students out and give them an
alternative room to calm-down
- Supports students to make the correct choice through using incidents as a
learning opportunity rather than jumping to a negative consequence
- Restorative Justice supports students growth through creating change rather
than punishing (Voices of Youth in Chicago Education, 2011)
Conclusion
Throughout this unit, I have gained a broader understanding of what access means and looks like within a
classroom. This resources in this unit have provided me with new ways to provide access to my students.
My school is extremely short on budget this year and, unfortunately, we cannot provide our students with
field trips. However, this unit provided me with the resource of virtual field trips (Kirchen, 2011). Additionally,
this unit expanded my idea of how to utilize resources. Although I had a clear understanding of how
Community Works supported my students, the resources in this unit expanded my thinking of new ways
they could support my students.

As I move forward throughout the year, I hope to utilize my new understanding of access to provide my
students with every possible opportunity. As my understanding of access has expanded, I hope to expand
my students minds through providing them with the tools to reach their goals.
References
Andreae, G., & Parker-Rees, G. (2001). Giraffes can't dance. New York: Orchard Books.

Community Works. (2016). Community Works: Unconditional Care. Retrieved from http://www.cworksok.com/

Cook, J., & Hartman, C. (2006). My mouth is a volcano! Tennessee: National Center for Youth Issues

Costa A. & Kallick B. (2009). Sustaining a focus on the habits of mind. In Costa & B. Kallick (Eds.), Habits of mind across the curriculum: Practical and
creative strategies for teachers (pp. 213–218). Retrieved from
https://smartjaguar.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/habits-of-mind-across-the-curriculum.pdf.

Jones, N. P. (2005). Big jobs: Planning for competence. Young Children, 60(2), 86–93.Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/files/tyc/file/BigJobs.pdf.

Kirchen, D. J. (2011). Making and taking virtual field trips in pre-K and the primarygrades. Young Children, 66(6), 22–26. Retrieved
fromhttp://www.naeyc.org/tyc/files/tyc/file/V6N2/Kirchen_Virtual_Field_Trips_Online%201111.pdf

Success for All Foundation (2015). Getting Along Together. Retrieved from
http://www.successforall.org/our-approach/targeted-programs/getting-along-together.

Voices of Youth in Chicago Education. (2011). Failed Policies, Broken Futures: The True Cost of Zero Tolerance in Chicago. Retrieved from
https://s3.amazonaws.com/s3.documentcloud.org/documents/2163 18/voyce.pdf