Cool Schools
The new Cool Schools Peer mediators have been busy all term helping the students during playtime to resolve conflicts. It has been pleasing to see the Year 6 students looking after the youngest children in school and showing great patience and empathy as they try to help them come up with ideas to solve a problem.
We are set now for our Peer School Mediation Training meetings on Wednesday mornings at 8:00 am. Well done all those mediators who are there on time and show their commitment by attending regularly. Please could you encourage the other mediators to come, as it is an important time to gather information, support any difficulties, revise the roster and continue to train students in the specail skills needed for mediation.
Our last few meetings gave the students the opportunity to consider boundaries, confidentiality and active listening. At the end of the last session the mediators reflected on what being a mediator has done for them. It was very rewarding to hear such comments as: " being a mediator has made me much more patient with my brother and has stopped us fighting as much", "being a mediator has helped me sort out my problems with my Mum by talking about it", "being a mediator has made me more confident" and "being a mediator has made me more mature". Well done those guys!
Look out for the mediators in action in the accompanying photographs.
NEW FOR NEXT TERM
Next half term the mediators will be involved in organising and monitoring playground games and activities. This is to encourage positive play and to support those students who need a quieter and more directed playtime.
We are also planning a Friendship Bus stop where children who are lonely or have lost a friend can sit until someone helps or finds them.
I am sure you will agree that the DBIS is continuing to be a COOL SCHOOL.
What's going on in Cool Schools?
Conflict is part of our daily lives. Without it, life would be less stimulating and challenging but it can feel difficult and upsetting sometimes. How, therefore, do we learn from situations of conflict? Changing them from experiences we would rather avoid or ignore, into experiences that help us grow and learn.
At DBIS we would like to help our students to handle conflict and use it as an opportunity for self growth. We hope to change their attitude towards conflict and teach them to negotiate a win/win solution.
Young people can learn skills to solve their own problems if given the training, trust and opportunity to do so therefore, at DBIS we have begun to implement the "Cool Schools Peer Mediation" program. The program has a range of different techniques for handling conflict creatively, which are already being introduced into our classrooms.
A useful site for you and your family to look at that outlines the Cool Schools and Peer Mediation programme is noted below:
www.peace.net.nz (look in here for the link to the Cool Schools webpage)
Cool Schools skills training (pdf 120KB)
