At our May Professional Development Day, we dedicated time to sit in teams and looked back at all of the data that emerged from our scans and teaching over the course of the school year. We used the framework of Now, Not Yet, and Next to guide our discussions. We could see by being intentional and taking the time to teach, practice and learn how to make genuine connections made a difference in our students' sense of belonging to their school community and place. When we are Caring for Ourselves our needs are being met and we are more likely self-regulated and ready to learn.  We are able then able to Care for Others in our school community and Care for this Place we call Quilchena.

Our hunch was correct that our students were needing to feel connected to their peers and staff, which allowed them to notice, name and understand how to better manage their feelings and emotions. We could see that our students were telling us that the majority were happy at school when they had meaningful connections with their peers and school community and were still learning how to navigate when experiencing big feelings. Upon our return in September, our focus will continue to gather and bring our community together, with both our returning students and our new ones. This will also be an excellent opportunity to see if any shifts or adjustments need to be made in regards to our school focus for the new school year.

Key Points that emerged when looking back at the year:

Staff Noticed that our students:

• Enjoyed working in groups and collaborating with one another
• Felt safe at school and could seek help from an adult if needed
• Felt they were improving in solving problems by communicating their thoughts in a calm manner 
• Enjoyed the morning walk and connecting activities which allowed them to meet more people
• Liked learning the names of students who were not in their class or their age group
• Enjoyed activities that promoted community (family teams, buddies, Friday Friends)
• Enjoyed participating in school clubs and teams (sports teams, green team, sewing club, games club)
• Liked participating in leadership activities (morning announcements, lunch monitors, assembly crew)
• Felt happy when they had strong friendships they had developed over the year
• Were better able to reflect and know what they needed to do to feel more successful at school

Staff Wonders:

• How to support our students to arrive to school on time and feeling ready to learn
• How to support advocating for self and needs (with learning and socially) – noticing growth but continuing to need support
• How to support students not only with how to communicate but when to communicate, especially when feeling big emotions
• How to continue to use our core competencies as our stepping stone to help students become more self-aware
• How do we focus more on finding happiness in ourselves and in our learning

Early ideas for Next Steps:

• Provide more opportunity for students to connect and continue to have leadership opportunities (family teams, lunch monitors, assembly MC's & set up crew, clubs)
• Continuing to plan activities that promote health and wellness (monthly runs, biking to school, morning circle)
• Continue to develop intergenerational relationships within the school population to connect our school community
• Making the connection between our core competencies and big ideas explicit when teaching
• Activities and school-wide anchor texts that support diversity and inclusion