Tips for Teachers
SECOND STEP Calendar
Here are some tips to help you get your SECOND STEP program going at the beginning of the school year and sustain it through the end.
Beginning the School Year
Whether you're just beginning or giving your ongoing SECOND STEP implementation its annual jumpstart, principal leadership is the key to schoolwide success. Once you have the principal's support, your next step is to get staff and parent buy-in by:
- Asking the principal to provide visible leadership.
- Linking the skills and concepts taught in the SECOND STEP program to your school's mission statement and overall goals.
- Discussing the ways the SECOND STEP program supports your discipline plan.
- Addressing how the SECOND STEP program plays a role in creating a safe, positive learning environment.
- Connecting teachers' concerns about behavior to the social skills taught in the SECOND STEP program.
- Linking SECOND STEP skills to academic goals.
Next comes training for teachers and any support staff who interact with students. Your best bet for changing school culture is to have all staff use SECOND STEP language, model the skills, and encourage students to use them.
To jumpstart an ongoing implementation, consider a booster training. Convene staff to talk about:
- What's been going well with the program.
- What's been challenging.
- How to expand the program or take it to the next level.
Mid-Year Checkup
Gear up early for an assessment of your SECOND STEP implementation to make the end of the year run smoothly. Check in with teachers now to see how lessons are going so that you can boost implementation if they need it. Here are some tips and tools to make both tasks easier.
Checklists
Start to fill out the Implementation Checklist.
Copy and collate Student Satisfaction Surveys for Grades 3–8. (PDF)
Remind teachers to continue to fill out the Social-Emotional Learning Checklist (PDF) and the Lesson-Completion Record (PDF). Make a plan for collecting these forms at the year's end.
Check in with Teachers
Touch base with teachers via email, during a regular staff meeting, or at a brown-bag lunch. Questions to ask:
- Do you have any SECOND STEP success stories to tell?
- What challenges are you encountering with the lessons?
- Are the letters going home to parents? If not, what can we do to help?
- In what ways are you expanding on SECOND STEP skills outside of the lessons to transfer learning?
- What types of behavior changes are you noticing in the children?
Here are some tried-and-true methods used by schools to boost their program success mid-year:
- Co-teach a lesson with the classroom teacher to model best practices for discussion, problem-solving brainstorms, or role-plays. Principals, counselors, or lead teachers can do the co-teaching or observe a lesson and assist when needed.
- Ask office staff or volunteers to copy take-home letters for teachers and distribute them the week they're due.
- Display SECOND STEP posters in the hallways and lunchroom. Post them on the doors leading to the playground.
- Ask teachers to add a transfer-of-learning activity to a lesson plan each week.
- Have special-subject teachers, like art, music, and PE teachers, incorporate Second Step skills into a lesson plan.
As the school year draws to a close, it's time for your school's SECOND STEP coordinator to do some spring planning. We've outlined two processes below that will help you sustain the program this coming school year.
Assess Your Current Situation
First, assess the current program situation to find out where the strengths and gaps lie. The following tools will help:
- Second Step Lesson Completion Record [Link], which is filled out by lesson presenters.
- SECOND STEP Social-Emotional Learning Checklist [Link], which is filled out by classroom teachers.
- This year's SECOND STEP successes and challenges.
- Ideas for increased administrative support.
- Ideas for improving use of the Second Step program.
Confirm Ongoing Leadership
Second, confirm leadership of the SECOND STEP program. One of the key factors for sustaining the program is ongoing active sponsorship. In effective schoolwide implementations, the principal or counselor usually takes on the role of program sponsor.
In addition, Committee for Children recommends that schools establish a SECOND STEP support team. This team includes the principal, counselor, at least one teacher, and perhaps a parent. The program support team is responsible for keeping the SECOND STEP program going in your school.
Change in Leadership
If you know that your school is going to have a change in sponsorship within your Second Step support team, take action this spring. Schools that keep their support team going strong keep the program going strong too!
When a SECOND STEP support team member leaves the school, there can be a loss of leadership. If the program sponsor leaves the school, it is the support team's responsibility to:
- Conduct booster trainings.
- Conduct staff discussions about the program.
- Address any implementation weaknesses.
- Orient the principal or counselor in his or her role as program sponsor.
Remember, planning this spring will lead to a smoother implementation in the fall.
Peggy Carey, Program Implementation Specialist
Callie Rivas, Program Implementation Specialist
Karen Summers, Implementation Consultant
Committee for Children