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The First Six Weeks

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The First Six Weeks of School framework is designed to target these main areas:

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(1) Community building: create a caring and safe environment and place a high priority on relationship building and building your classroom community.

(2) Defined Expectations: define the routines and expectations of the classroom and school.  Teach behavioral expectations regularly providing recognition and reinforcements to build accountability.

(3) Relationships: Beyond classroom community, work to build relationships with individual students.  Become experts about their likes/dislikes, strengths, passions, etc. 

 

 

 

BOLDED items are specific to SOAR (these are expected objectives, but the "how" is up to you)

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*At the end of the first 6 weeks, it is expected that SOAR Y-charts and posters are hung, Passports are completed, classroom expectations are displayed and grade level frameworks have been turned in or shared with Admin.

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***View the '19-'20 school year PBIS goals and objectives week by week HERE!

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Second Week of School (week of 9/9)

 

 

  • Implement the first lesson from the Zones of Regulation book teaching the colors of the zones and their meanings.  This will be the foundation for some Zones skills teaching in the weeks to come. Use THIS framework to help mesh Zones language and learning objectives into your SOAR work in the weeks to come. 

  • Review SOAR matrix

  • Prepare students for SOAR passports next week as you begin to further explore SOAR.

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Third Week of School (week of 9/16)

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 Focus on our first SOAR expectation SAFETY:

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Day 1:

Today your objective is to review the SOAR "Safety" expectations with your class and complete a “Y” chart/s for at least one of the areas noting what each area may look like/sound like/feel like.

 

Day 2:

Today your objective is to present ideas and discussions on Personal Space/body control with your students.  For younger scholars, consider using the book, Personal Space Camp  by Julia Cook to help facilitate your discussion. 

 

Day 3:

Today your objective is to facilitate a discussion and some facts about Bullying and our zero tolerance policy.  You may want to differentiate bullying vs. conflict and the importance of being able to solve conflicts appropriately and respectfully.

 

Day 4:

Today your objective is to touch on Technology/Digital Citizenship and appropriate technology use within the classroom and labs.

 

Day 5: Find a way to celebrate safety in your classroom and community! 

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Click on THIS LINK to find more resources to add SOAR into your week!

 

 

Fourth Week of School (week of 9/23)

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Focus on our second SOAR expectation OWN YOUR ACTIONS:

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Day 1:

Today, start by reviewing the last weeks’ learning of SOAR safety.  Next, present and explain this weeks phrase, “own your actions”.  As role play can be a powerful (and fun!) tool in our box, use some time to have students role play what they think this looks like in various locations throughout the building.

 

Day 2:

Today your objective is to review the SOAR "Own Your Actions" expectations with your class and complete a “Y” chart/s for at least one of the areas noting what each area may look like/sound like/feel like.

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Day 3:

Today your objective is to discuss responsibility at school. Responsibility to complete work, take care of ourselves, to own our mistakes and be a model to those around us.

 

Day 4:

Today your objective is to teach on respect of self and others and how to own actions in friendships and peer to peer relationships.

 

Day 5:

Today your objective is to discuss the expectation of “self-direction”.  It may be useful to use a Y-chart for this particular phrase.

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Click on THIS LINK to find more resources to add SOAR into your week!

 

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Fifth Week of School (week of 9/30)

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 Focus on our third SOAR expectation ACT WITH LEADERSHIP:

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Day 1:

Today your objective is to review last week and review the SOAR "Act with Leadership" expectations with your class and complete a “Y” chart/s for at least one of the areas noting what each area may look like/sound like/feel like.

 

Day 2:

Today your objective is to focus on the word: leadership.   Facilitate a discussion on leadership and what  it means, what attributes are in a leader (good leader vs. bad leader) why positive leadership is important, etc.  What does it looks like in friendships? The classroom? The hallway?

 

Day 3:

Today your objective is to  discuss Manners and acting appropriately and how it correlates to positive leadership.  It may be fun to have a competition in the classroom of the best lunch manners or something of the like.

 

Day 4:

Today your objective is to discuss role models and the importance of both having one/s and being one.  It may be beneficial to do a compare and contrast of positive vs. negative role models.

 

Day 5:

Today you will focus on the word Upstander (standing up in positive way to support yourself and others) and discuss ways that each scholar can play this role in the school. (inviting others to play, standing up for others, being polite, following rules, etc)

 

 Click on THIS LINK to find more resources to add SOAR into your week!

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Sixth Week of School (week of 10/7)

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 Focus on our fourth SOAR expectation BE RESOURCEFUL:

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Day 1:

Today your objective is to review the SOAR "Resourceful" expectations with your class and complete a “Y” chart/s for at least one of the areas noting what each area may look like/sound like/feel like.

 

Day 2:

Today your objective is to discuss preparedness and utilizing resources at home and at school to improve each scholars’ ability to be prepared.  This will also be a good time to take note of which scholars may need assistance in finding resources outside of school.

 

Day 3:

Today your objective is to help students understand/review locations pertaining to their needs/situation.  A sort of “know where to go” mindset in the classroom, in the building, in case of emergency, etc.

 

Day 4:

Today your objective is to lead a discussion on what it looks like, sounds like and feels like to ask for help.

 

Day 5:

Today your objective is to assist students in learning and practicing how to be a help and resource to others.

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Click on THIS LINK to find more resources to add SOAR into your week!

 

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Seventh Week of School (*These may be taught after SOAR, but would also make sense to include into each week of the SOAR breakdown.  Please choose what works best for your team)

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  • Life and Work Skills​​

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Day 1: Today your objective is to teach the "I can be a problem solver" skill.

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Day 2: Today your objective is to teach the "I can be resourceful" skill.

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Day 3: Today your objective is to teach the "I can be responsible" skill.

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Day 4: Today your objective is to teach the "I can be self directed" skill

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Day 5: Today your objective is to teach the "I can be a skilled communicator" skill.

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Click HERE for Grade K resources on teaching each Life and Work skill.

Click HERE for Grade 1 resources on teaching each Life and Work skill.

Click HERE for Grade 2 resources on teaching each Life and Work skill.

Click HERE for Grade 3 resources on teaching each Life and Work skill.

Click HERE for Grade 4 resources on teaching each Life and Work skill.

Click HERE for Grade 5 resources on teaching each Life and Work skill.​

 

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Below is a teacher checklist to help guide the first six weeks of school in the development of classroom routines, expectations, and community building.  It is intended to provide guidance and reminders to those looking for a framework and aid in consistency in school wide expectations.  

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Consider these things before the school year and during the first week:

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Your Classroom environment:

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  • Create a welcoming classroom physical environment. 

  • Prepare a ‘Take-A-Break’ area with routine established.

  • Establish a part of your room separate from take a break for calming and de-escalation.  

  • Establish buddy room partnership and routine.

  • Create an area in the classroom for ‘Hopes and Dreams’.

  • Post SOAR Posters in and outside of room.

  • Plan classroom routines and rituals. 

  • Create relationship building times in your schedule and seek to get to know each student daily.

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Routines and Expectations:

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  • Attention Getters (i.e. Show Me Five)

  • Call and Responses (i.e. call - “Woodland, Woodland”, response - “Eagles, Eagles”)

  • Community building circles

  • Voice Level Expectations

  • Take-A-Break

  • Use of Passes (i.e. bathroom, Power Study Hall, etc.)

  • Arrival and dismissal routine

  • Locker expectations

  • Transitions

  • Lining up

  • Problem Solving procedures

  • Buddy Room

  • Mini Lesson

  • Independent Work Time

  • Use of Classroom Supplies

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Teach and practice school-wide expectations:

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  • Bus Safety

  • Hallways

  • Bathrooms

  • Cafeteria

  • Office

  • Health Office

  • Media Center

  • Playground

  • Dismissal

  • Eagle Celebrations

  • Computer Labs

  • Digital Citizenship

  • Soar Slips

  • How to make a SOAR Hotline call.

  • Safety Drills (Fire, Tornado, Lock Down)

  • SOAR matrix

  • Teach difference between tattling and reporting.

  • Teach about bullying, bystanders, and how to be an upstander.

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