Making the Whole Child Real in a 15,000-Student District

So your background is in social emotional learning, and that definitely gives you a unique perspective on MTSS.

How would you define the whole child approach within the MTSS framework? And why do you think that's so critical to student success?

So a whole child approach within the MTSS framework means addressing not just their academic needs, but their behavioral, social, emotional, and their developmental needs.

So having all of these different components and how are they impacting each other.

So you're designing supports based on the understanding about where the students are and what are their needs and how do you help get them to where they need to be.

So we all know students will be most successful when they feel safe and connected.

And when these conditions exist, students can grow academically and emotionally.

It's critical to have a strong foundation and a strong tier one instruction and tier one social emotional learning program to create that positive school climate.

So all of that needs to be in place before we can start identifying and targeting intensive needs and supports.

Well, and it's so true, right? Because if we're not making them feel safe emotionally or physically, right, they can't feel ready.

Their brains aren't primed to learn the academic portion of things.

And so it's so important.

Like those things should not live separately.

Like that all should be working together.

And, you know, often I think you walk into any classroom, like I think about you walk into an elementary school classroom and most elementary school teachers are already, they're attuned to the emotional needs of those students.

That's so much of what they do.

That's so much of who they are as teachers, right? I think about those longtime kindergarten teachers and so much of the work that they do is meeting some of that emotional needs of students to get them ready to learn.

And it just goes hand in hand.

I just don't think that you can separate that for many of the teachers.

Exactly.

Like you're teaching them like relationship skills and how to work with others when they're doing their small group work, how to collaborate.

Those are all life skills.

So you can't have like small group work going on and having students work together if they don't have those skills.

So we got to teach those basic skills alongside the academics.

Yeah.

So your background is in social emotional learning, and that definitely gives you a unique perspective on MTSS.

How would you define the whole child approach within the MTSS framework? And why do you think that's so critical to student success?

So a whole child approach within the MTSS framework means addressing not just their academic needs, but their behavioral, social, emotional, and their developmental needs.

So having all of these different components and how are they impacting each other.

So you're designing supports based on the understanding about where the students are and what are their needs and how do you help get them to where they need to be.

So we all know students will be most successful when they feel safe and connected.

And when these conditions exist, students can grow academically and emotionally.

It's critical to have a strong foundation and a strong tier one instruction and tier one social emotional learning program to create that positive school climate.

So all of that needs to be in place before we can start identifying and targeting intensive needs and supports.

Well, and it's so true, right? Because if we're not making them feel safe emotionally or physically, right, they can't feel ready.

Their brains aren't primed to learn the academic portion of things.

And so it's so important.

Like those things should not live separately.

Like that all should be working together.

And, you know, often I think you walk into any classroom, like I think about you walk into an elementary school classroom and most elementary school teachers are already, they're attuned to the emotional needs of those students.

That's so much of what they do.

That's so much of who they are as teachers, right? I think about those longtime kindergarten teachers and so much of the work that they do is meeting some of that emotional needs of students to get them ready to learn.

And it just goes hand in hand.

I just don't think that you can separate that for many of the teachers.

Exactly.

Like you're teaching them like relationship skills and how to work with others when they're doing their small group work, how to collaborate.

Those are all life skills.

So you can't have like small group work going on and having students work together if they don't have those skills.

So we got to teach those basic skills alongside the academics.

Yeah.