Connection Before Content: Maslow Before Bloom Part 1 Highlights from An Interview with Wendy M. Turner M.Ed.
As far as champions go in education, our Episode 2 guest, Wendy M. Turner, M.Ed., is leading the pack in the area of SEL, otherwise known as social emotional learning. She often expresses her passion for the 3 R’s to reconnect, recover and reimagine on her website, on Twitter, and in an August NEAToday.org article. In this blog post, this elementary educator and 2017 Delaware Teacher of the Year:
unpacks the powerful impact of social emotional learning
provides us with some real-time tips for the 2020-21 school year
During her interview on our Coaching You Through All Things Education podcast, Wendy unpacked that a student’s need for social emotional learning, is heightened by our
dismantled model of face to face interactions between student to student, student to teacher, teacher to teacher, and teacher to Admin, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Wendy shares that we adults should focus on connections for our students and for our families. She specifically outlines that the connections and reconnections should be authentic and without academic demands looming over them.
Brene Brown writes:
I define connection as the energy that exists between people when they feel seen, heard, and valued; when they can give and receive without judgment and when they derive sustenance and strength from the relationship.
Keywords: feeling seen, heard, and valued
Before we can deliver the content before the learning can begin, and before academic demands can be outlined, genuine, meaningful relationships must be developed and much be intentional. Wendy Turner goes on the add that we should be listening to the stories of our students and our colleagues. The keyword is listening ~ with our ears and with our hearts.
More nuggets from Wendy:
adults need support in our learning spaces to connect within the matrix of connections
we can measure the emotional health of students and adults through a differentiated check-in system and follow through when someone doesn’t check-in
we must foster circles for community building
the Rose 🌹 & Thorn activity reveals our human side
At the end of our time together, Wendy shares her billboard legacy message:
Tune into Wendy’s full episode below: