{"id":4238,"date":"2020-10-12T15:59:58","date_gmt":"2020-10-12T15:59:58","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/?p=4238"},"modified":"2023-03-27T15:53:12","modified_gmt":"2023-03-27T15:53:12","slug":"with-wellness-wednesdays-durham-schools-tune-into-student-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/9thstreetjournal.org\/2020\/10\/12\/with-wellness-wednesdays-durham-schools-tune-into-student-health\/","title":{"rendered":"With Wellness Wednesdays, Durham schools tune into student health"},"content":{"rendered":"
Days of monotony inside, constant Zoom links and screens, all the while worrying about your and your family\u2019s health. This is the reality of this school year \u2013 one unfathomably different than any other.<\/span><\/p>\n For faculty at Burton Magnet Elementary School, bolstering the mental health of their students has always been a priority. Since returning to online classes almost two months ago, they\u2019ve had to innovate new ways to get that done.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cSeeing teachers on Canvas or on Zoom is not the same as somebody touching your shoulder and saying you can do it, telling you that you did a good job,\u201d Principal Kimberly Ferrell said. \u201cWe can\u2019t provide the same support we could when face to face.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Anticipating this struggle districtwide, Durham Public Schools developed new tools to promote social and emotional learning and mental health. Wellness Wednesdays is one initiative: one day of the week when students and staff are urged to focus on holistic wellness.<\/span> Wellness Wednesdays look different depending on a student\u2019s grade and school, but DPS and each school provide activities focused on personal growth. <\/span> For October, many schools scheduled anti-bullying programming in tandem with <\/span>Bullying Prevention Month<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n Emotional learning has been a part of priority four of DPS\u2019s five-year strategic plan, focusing on \u201cstrengthening school, family, and community engagement,\u201d said Laverne Mattocks-Perry, DPS\u2019s senior executive director of student support services.<\/span><\/p>\n The transition to virtual learning this fall presented an opportunity, Mattocks-Perry said, to focus more intentionally on social emotional learning and holistic wellness of students.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEverything that we’ve been reading from practitioners tells us that all of the things going on \u2013 the economic factors related to COVID-19, civil unrest, abrupt adaptations in how we operate daily as a school \u2013 that has been classified as a traumatic childhood experience,\u201d said Mattocks-Perry.<\/span><\/p>\n Matthew Hickson, director of online learning, and others reached out to local mental health agencies and conntected with community groups around Durham to work up programming.<\/span><\/p>\n On Wednesdays, the district uploads a new document for students, teachers, and parents to look at on the district\u2019s new social and emotional learning hub: <\/span>EMBRACE.<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n For example, DPS partnered with <\/span>Growga<\/span><\/a> to hold weekly yoga classes for students, accessible on the EMBRACE website. They partnered with Triangle United Soccer for a weekly soccer lesson and with other organizations for outdoors activities and cooking tips.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWe really want Wednesdays to be a time for our students to really take a step back. You know, they\u2019re in this intense environment, and so we want all of them to take these days and use them as a time to reflect,\u201d Hickson said.<\/span><\/p>\n Elementary schools often have much more structured Wednesdays to ensure heightened support, Hickson said. Burton Magnet Elementary School, located in East Durham off South Alston Avenue is an example.<\/span><\/p>\n
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\n<\/span>There are both live Zoom sessions to learn about aspects of social emotional learning, as well as documents stuffed with ideas offline, independent activities that students and families can tackle for their mental and physical health.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n