School Environment
School environments can be understood as the continued interactions between aspects of physical design, infrastructure and natural surroundings and the norms, values, histories and relationships of the individuals and groups who live, learn and work in these settings.
🌀 Characteristics and Sample Goals
Safety
Each member of the school feels - and are - safe & supported through from physical, social, and emotional harm.
Ensure strategies are in place to address, reduce, and prevent violence (e.g., racial, physical, emotional, sexual and gender-based violence), verbal abuse, harassment, bullying, cyberbullying and/or discrimination.
Bias evaluations on materials are being implemented on classroom materials.
Create a clear UDL Implementation Plan with the objective of developing UDL capacity and the UDL mindset.
All members of the school community (e.g., school staff and administrators, students, and families) share a collective understanding of school expectations and work together to ensure the safety of students.
School expectations are established, clearly communicated, and consistently and equitably enforced.
All areas of the school and school property are visible and frequented by school staff to minimize the potential for students to be a target of violence or bullying.
Students are supported and have access to a selection of mechanisms through which to report instances where they and/or their peers feel unsafe or unfairly treated.
Digital citizenship principles are applied to technology to ensure appropriate, safe and respectful use.
Accessibility tools for learning are available for most students and staff.
Welcoming Spaces
The school has practices to be comfortable, welcoming and student friendly.
There is an adult that each student trusts and can confide in that is available every day at the school.
Students, families, and staff feel a sense of peer acceptance, group membership and demonstrate/report positive peer relationships.
Effective measures are taken to enhance sensory accessibility within the school (e.g., temperature, lighting, air quality, acoustical design, comfortable seating, etc.). Schools and classrooms are designed in a way that is aesthetically pleasing – incorporating art, color, and nature.
Formal and informal spaces are made available throughout the school’s indoor and outdoor environments for engagement of students and school staff.
Ensure effective and efficient access to information for all users across websites, social media and communication documents delivered to partners.
Google classroom (or other accessible content management system) is available to enhance access to accessible class materials, organization and distribution of course content, work completion interface and document submission.
School Health Experience
The school environment facilitates healthy living i.e. related to substances, physical activity, food, relationships.
There are varied opportunities for students to support and encourage each other and work together to achieve a common purpose.
Comfortable spaces exist for informal social connection on all levels (students with peers, staff with their peers, and students and staff).
Schools are free from unhealthy and hypersexualized marketing and/or sponsorship (e.g., no visible promotion of unhealthy food, tobacco, alcohol, vaping, cannabis, etc.).
🌀 Practices
Implement the Elements of Progressive Discipline
Foundational practices to enhance consistency and predictability in school behaviour expectations. Ensuring they are established, clearly communicated, and consistently and equitably enforced through a trauma informed lens.
Implement Trauma-Informed Elements
A trauma-informed lens interprets student behaviour through the lens of the brain/nervous system.
It takes into consideration a student's human and physical environment when interpreting and responding to behaviour.
One aspect of this approach is facilitating the use of specific tools and strategies to support regulation (calming) of the nervous system.
Note: More trauma-informed elements to be added.
Brainstem-Soothers.pdfCreate safe and engaging learning environments P-6
Re-envision our learning environments with ideas from NS DEECD
Learning Environments P-6.pdfCreate Sensory Friendly Classrooms
Access recommendations from the Occupational Therapist to create an environment that is sensory friendly for students.
Click image to the right to access resources
O.T. Recommendations
Ensure Every Child is Known
A strategy put in place by many schools, to ensure that every child in a school has a meaningful connection with a supportive adult.
As a team, all staff go through the rosters with coloured markers and make check marks under columns labelled “Name/Face,” “Something Personal,” “Personal/Family Story,” and “Academic Standing,” to note whether they know the student just by name or something more—their grades, their family’s story, their hobbies.
Share results of the Student Success Survey with Students
Students may be able to provide further insight into areas for improvement.
Students are able to provide further insight into areas for improvement.
Convene groups of students for conversations, or meet with existing groups or clubs.
Consider using a “Notice and Wonder” approach.
Why do they think students might feel that way? Why might they feel that way? What could be done collectively to make things better for everyone?
Key points to consider:
Meeting with groups of students:
cohorts as outlined in Student Success Survey, while being conscious to not put any marginalized folks in any harm or danger.
Youth led advisory committee can offer strong and true perspectives
Give students choices of interacting with data:
Confidentiality communicated.
An opportunity to communicate feedback.
An anonymous way of providing feedback.
Engage students’ perspectives and input into classroom community responsibilities.
Reference: MTSS Behaviour Framework
Educators can co-create community responsibilities with students by drawing on the 4 Rs.
Pre-teach the 4 Rs (Respect, Responsibility, Relationship, Reciprocity). Encourage students to consider examples from their own experience.
Engage students in small groups. Ask the students to identify any community responsibilities, important to them and what they need to cooperate with these responsibilities. Also, inquire what their expectations are of school staff.
To ensure authentic feedback, meet student needs for communication (i.e. some students may feel safer responding individually or in smaller groups with an LST, SSW, CYCP, T.A., etc.)
Encourage each group to share back the responsibilities they brainstormed. After each group shares, pull out themes to create the classroom community responsibilities.
Using the community responsibilities, engage the groups to determine what the expectations will “look like” in their classroom. Consider and validate diverse expressions and values, across cultures.
Choose & Implement Components of UDL/MTSS of Tier 1 Instruction
Practices to enhance the instructional and relational spaces in your school.
SSRCE Components of Strong Universal Design of Tier 1 Instruction (Revised June, 2023)Go on walkabouts around the school with small groups of students
Ask students to point out possible ways to make specific areas of the school (inside and out) more comfortable, welcoming and student friendly.
Is more and varied seating needed?
Is there room on the walls for representative murals and/or inspirational quotes, artwork, etc.?
In the high school, are there spaces for students on free periods to go?
Do students in the margin see themselves represented in leadership positions (both student and staff leadership positions?)
Include welcoming digital spaces
Ask yourself:
Are our school websites designed with inclusion in mind?
Are our websites useful to our community, and easily accessible?
Do our social media accounts and newsletters highlight the diversity in our school?
Use of inclusive User Experience (UX) design. Potentially learning from Gathering Residents to Improve Technology (GRIT) https://codefor.ca/blog/grit-toronto-putting-the-us-in-usability-testing
Beautify your school
Invest in your physical spaces. Lighting, plants, murals, and artwork can have a significant impact on the way a space feels to be in.
Ask students for support - What would they like to see in their spaces? What would make the school feel more safe or more comfortable?
Support a Leadership Team at Your School
Engage a representative group of students through leadership opportunities in the school community.
By establishing a leadership team, students can be prepared and supported to offer guidance and advice when decisions arise.
Consider cohorts, as outlined in Student Success Survey (while being conscious to not put any marginalized folks in any harm or danger) and/or a Youth led advisory committee
Help translate the data with students, so it is the most easily understood.
Consider giving students choices of interacting with data:
Ensure confidentiality
Provide an opportunity to communicate feedback in an anonymous way
Build Partnerships
Connect with local organizations to develop opportunities for collaboration and support community development in schools.
Connections with recreation centres, municipal staff, local legions, public health staff, trail associations, sports teams, businesses, restaurants, farms, and more have allowed schools to access new funds, resources, and engage new people in their school community.
Connect with funders to support school community initiatives (insert the list of funders we use) or strengthen existing programs, services, and projects.
Work for a Cause
As a school, choose a “helping” opportunity that interests its students and staff - such as collecting supplies for disaster victims, raising money for a cause, or working together on a community service project.
By together deciding how they would like to help with a cause, students are likely to develop an internal commitment to reaching their goal and in the end see that they really can make a difference in the lives of others, their community, and the world when working together
Reference: Caring School Community: School Wide Community-building Activities: Working for a Cause (page 37-39)
Work with the Well-being team to facilitate an environmental assessment of your school
The well-being team is currently developing a process that will help you to understand how students feel and learn in the school environment.
Work alongside our staff and partners to identify the strengths of and opportunities to improve your physical environment to improve well-being and learning in your school.
🌀 Programs + Frameworks
Work through the MTSS Behaviour Framework
A framework to enhance consistency and predictability in school behaviour expectations. Ensuring they are established, clearly communicated, and consistently and equitably enforced through a trauma informed lens.
Learn more about Sexual Violence: A Nova Scotia Resource
A set of free online modules which address topics including: sexual assault disclosure, supporting youth and children and consent.
This training is designed to help you learn more about sexual violence and how to support someone who has survived it.
It is for service providers, friends, family members, neighbours, teachers, first responders, counselors, and anyone who is acting as a support person, or is concerned about sexual violence.
Increase confidence and in delivering Comprehensive Sexuality Education
In today’s changing world, growing up isn’t always easy. Imagine being without accurate information and reliable skills as you navigate the journey to adulthood. Do myths end up masquerading as reality? Do peers, television, and the internet stand in for reliable resources and information? Fortunately, Comprehensive Sexuality Education or CSE, can make this journey easier, more certain and healthier for young people around the world.
Would you like to know more? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eV92ALv-TGw
Comprehensive Sexuality Education Resources for Educators
Sex? - A Healthy Sexuality Resource (Updated 2021)
The State of Sex Ed in Canada (FR) (report)
Sexual health education YouTubers Laci Green and Dr. Lindsey Doe
Sex? - A Healthy Sexuality Resource (Updated 2021)
UNESCO International Technical Guidance on Sexuality Education
SIECCAN Canadian Guidelines for Sexual Health Education (FR)
SIECCAN Questions and Answers: Sexual Health Education in Schools and Other Settings (FR)
Sex Positive Families. A comprehensive source of sex-positive education resources in various formats. Resources for all ages can be found here
Break The Silence Nova Scotia (Available in FR) Nova Scotia Sexual Violence Prevention Project. Education resources for adults and older youth.
Supporting Survivors of Sexual Violence training module can be found here.Responding to a Sexual Assault Disclosure: Practice Tips for High Schools Created by the Ending Violence Association of BC.
Native Women’s Association of Canada Knowing Your Rights Toolkit: Sexual and Reproductive Health
2022 Pride Guide Youth strategies for tackling gender-based violence in our schools
Introduce Kids in the Know into classrooms
Balancing empowerment and protection & teaching kids the importance of being trustworthy custodians of their friends’ information.
Providing a standard of measure for what constitutes risk and building children’s capacity to cope with a degree of risk.
Encouraging children to disclose unhealthy situations and incidents (e.g. boundary-breaking behaviour, abuse situations) to safe adults
Teaching children privacy values and the need to develop healthy, trusting relationships.
Click here for a link to Kids in the Know curriculums (P-8)
Consider the Downie & Wejack Fund: Legacy Schools
The Legacy Schools program is a free national initiative to engage, empower and connect students and educators to further reconciliation through awareness, education and action (#reconciliACTION).
The Downie & Wenjack Fund will provide educational resources and program development for Legacy Schools to help ensure that the unique interests, rights, and perspectives of Indigenous peoples are recognized and implemented in schools and communities across Canada.
Sign up when you visit the Downie & Wenjack Fund website
Provide training for staff in Stewards of Children (for adults)
Training: Stewards of Children is available in two formats: Facilitator Led and ONLINE.
The content of the programs is identical and both options include three sections including video commentary by adult survivors and experts in the field.
Training takes about 2-3 hours to complete.
In an average classroom of thirty students, approximately six to eight boys or girls could be victims of childhood sexual abuse before their high school graduation. These children often disclose to trusted teachers or other school staff. Stewards of Children is a program that raises awareness of the prevalence and consequences of childhood sexual abuse by educating adults about the steps they can take to prevent, recognize and react responsibly to the reality of childhood sexual abuse.
Childhood sexual abuse has a long term devastating effect on mental and physical health, and significantly increases self-harming behaviours.
Stewards of Children is the only nationally available program scientifically proven to increase knowledge, improve attitudes and change child-protective behaviours.
This program is for any responsible adult who cares about the welfare of children.
Online training (until December 2023): https://www.d2l.org/education/stewards-of-children/online/
Online training (after December 2023): https://www.thenewstewards.org/get-trained
Consider The Third Path
A relationship-based approach to student well-being and achievement
Offer Friends for Life
Friends for Life helps children and teenagers cope with feelings of fear, worry, and depression by building resilience and self-esteem and teaching cognitive and emotional skills in a simple, well-structured format.
Used in schools and clinics throughout the world, FRIENDS is the only childhood anxiety prevention program acknowledged by the World Health Organization for more than a decade of evaluation and practice.
Offered through SchoolsPlus.
Centre Kindness in the Classroom
Spread Kindness in Schools with these Tier 1 CASEL approved curriculums
Pre-K https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/pre-k-lesson-plans
Primary - Grade 8 https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/for-educators
High School https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/high-school-curriculum
Kindness Beyond the Classroom https://www.randomactsofkindness.org/kindergarten-grade-5-lesson-plans#kindness-beyond-the-classroom
Consider training in HEADSTRONG
HEADSTRONG is an evidence-based anti-stigma initiative created by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC). It inspires youth ages 12-18 to Be Brave, Reach Out and Speak Up about mental health.
Now a national initiative, HEADSTRONG teaches students how to reduce stigma and become mental health champions in their schools.
Mental Health First Aid
Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) is the help provided to a person developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis.
Just as physical first aid is administered to an injured person before medical treatment can be obtained, MHFA is given until appropriate treatment is found or until the crisis is resolved.
Contact your School Health Promoter to get in touch with a course facilitator
Do you have a practice, program, or framework you are using successfully at your school to enhance school and learning environment(s)? Or one that you'd like to try?
Please let us know by submitting this Google form!