You Can't Read a Book and Run From a Lion at the Same Time

Presenters

Tara Brown Ms., Learner's Edge ConsultingFollow

Location

Maverick

Focused Area

Improving School Climate for Youth-At-Risk

Relevance to Focused Area

This proposal addresses the neuro-science regarding learning, fear, stress and the power of the school climate to insure emotional safety. Just as it is true that 'You can't read a book and run from a lion at the same time,' it is just as impossible to take in or retrieve information when the brain feels stressed and unsafe. You cannot get to Bloom's Taxonomy without going through Maslow's Hierarchy and that includes Tier 3 and 4 which directly addresses a child's sense of self and emotional safety.

Primary Strand

Academic Achievement & School Leadership

Relevance to Primary Strand

Neuroscience is clear that 'Humans are feeling beings that think, not thinking beings that feel.' The climate a child steps into every day at school creates the level of emotional safety which is vital to academic achievement. All adults in the building are leaders in some form or fashion and must embrace their role as 'Chief Emotional Officers'. In order to decrease stress and cortisol, both of which inhibit learning, students must feel seen, heard, validated and connected to insure their emotional safety. The information and strategies shared in this proposal are vital for increased engagement, academic achievement and to help students stop running from lions so they can begin learning.

Brief Program Description

Many youth are "running from lions" as they face huge challenges in their lives. This session covers the impact of stress and cortisol as well as the importance of emotional safety/positive connections. Examine how emotions play a huge role in behavior/decisions. Learn proven strategies to insure emotional safety, improve teacher-student relationships, increase motivation, engagement and emotional self-regulation.

Summary

Within the scope of human development, Maslow has clearly defined basic needs humans have in order to become a fully functioning individual. Although there is a huge need for Bloom's Taxonomy in the classroom, Maslow's hierarchy trumps Bloom. When a child feel's safe, loved, seen, heard and validated...Maslow's Tier 3­ & 4...then and only then will higher cognition and a desire for knowledge be present.

Under-resourced youth are faced with a myriad of ‘lions’ in their life that they run from every single day. Until those lions are tamed, and the cortisol levels come down, there will be NO learning. Neuroscience is clear that we are ‘feeling beings that think’ and those feelings of safety, connected and belonging impact thoughts and actions. Search Institute's body of research on climate/culture, indicated that a staggering number of students didn't feel connected to the school. It is through these connections that kids begin to feel emotionally safe, which is a vital part of the educational process. Learning is a risk....period. Intentional actions of administrators, teachers and staff to create a positive, nurturing climate in the school will help students navigate their own emotions as well as meet a human basic need and desire to feel connected to others. The dramatic success at Lincoln High School in Wala Wala WA is a prime example of how changing the approach to better serve students can have a profound impact. The entire staff decided to trust the social, emotional and brain research and began addressing the emotional needs by way of deeper positive connections with every student. Because human’s are hard-wired to connect, it is through the power of connections that schools across the nation serving at-risk youth have been able to drastically increase motivation, engagement and achievement. When a child feels emotionally safe and is given strategies to both recognize and regulate their emotions/lower stress, cognition, attention and focus all increase. This cannot be accomplished until all adults embrace their role in creating a nurturing, loving, safe school climate.

Evidence

This proposal is supported by a huge body of research from both neuroscience and social/emotional fields of research. The session will touch on the impact of stress on the brain, the power of positive relationships, connections between emotional safety and engagement/motivation/achievement, the necessary elements of a safe learning environments, factors that increase a child's willingness to attempt/try.

Some supporting research includes:

“When a continuous stream of negative emotions hijacks our frontal lobes, our brain's architecture changes, leaving us in a heightened stress-response state where fear, anger, anxiety, frustration, and sadness take over our thinking, logical brains.”

"The positive relationships that develop between students and teachers and that, in turn, influence academic performance are key to creating an emotionally safe classroom environment."

“We are feeling beings that think, not thinking beings that feel.”

“We are hard-wired to connect.”

“Thoughts and emotions of teachers and students directly affect the scripts that are

expressed when addressing situations that occur in the classroom.”

“Motivation is influenced by believing that success is attainable for a certain task.”

“Eliminating negative thinking patterns should be a major concern for educators since fear, anger, worry, and rumination are strongly associated with negative emotional responses that cloud judgment, degrade mood, and increase the risk of depression.”

“Amygdala hi-jacking and downshifting”

“Kids won’t learn from people they don’t like.”

“Under-resourced Students feel safe and learn best from those they relate to on a personal level.”

“We are neuro-biologically wired, and to learn anything, our minds must be focused and our emotions need to "feel" in balance.”

Research and resources used include: Dr Judy Willis, The National School Climate Center, Dr John Medina, David Lynch Foundation, Harvard, Search Institute, ASCD, NAESP, Institute of Educational Leadership, Dr Jill Bolte-Taylor, Robert Marzano, Ruby Payne, Dr Linda Darling-Hammond, SAMHSA, Dr Marion Diamond

Format

Individual Presentation

Biographical Sketch

Tara Brown is president of Learner's Edge Consulting and an award-winning educator, author and international speaker. She holds a Masters degree in Administration and Supervision and is a nationally certified Personal Trainer.

Known as ‘The Connection Coach’, Tara’s 30 + year professional journey as a teacher and coach has taken her coast to coast from rural Florida to gang territory in California and to one of the largest high schools in Tennessee with over 40 countries represented. Her international engagements have included Dubai and Beirut working with both teachers and youth.

During the 1990’s, Tara worked with ‘Communities in Schools’, the leading nonprofit dropout prevention organization in the nation and established a successful program at Lindbergh Middle School in Long Beach, Ca. She worked closely with at-risk teens, many who were entrenched in the gang lifestyle, and helped empower them with leadership and life skills and reshape their view of the future.

In 2005, in Nashville Tn., Tara played a key role in piloting a Leadership Development program at Antioch High School targeting non-traditional leaders. Because of the success of this program, it expanded to all high schools in Davidson County and earned Tara the ‘Pioneer Award’ and ‘Teacher of the Year’ award in 2006.

Since leaving the classroom, Tara’s passion and humor continues to drive her work with adults around the globe. Her goal is to motivate, inspire and to better equip adults with the ability to connect and have meaningful relationships with kids of all ages, so their potential can truly be unleashed.

Start Date

10-27-2017 9:45 AM

End Date

10-27-2017 11:00 AM

Recommended Citation

Brown, Tara Ms., "You Can't Read a Book and Run From a Lion at the Same Time" (2017). National Youth-At-Risk Conference, West (2015-2017). 21.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/nyar_vegas/2017/2017/21