Dear Brown MS Community,
First, I would like to extend a huge thank you to our 6th grade teachers and all the parents who helped to organize and make dishes for our Asian food festival yesterday! Each year during our geography unit on Asia, our 6th graders experience a taste of Asia. It is such a popular event for our students and is possible because of the hard work of teachers and parents to share this experience. Pictures are below!
Also, yesterday all students participated in anti-bullying lessons with their advisories during an extended advisory block. Social relationships are integral to the middle school experience, and they can be confusing and difficult to navigate at times. Empathy is such an important topic for middle schoolers. It needs to be taught both at school and at home and is one of the 5 key competencies in the NPS Portrait of a Learner.
For the 6th grade lesson in advisory, students compared conflict and bullying. They learned that bullying is generally repeated, unwanted behavior intended to harm or humiliate. They also discussed that with bullying there is generally a power imbalance. 6th grade advisorieslooked together at scenarios and shared their perspectives for each about when something is bullying vs. conflict. Finally, they discussed what to do (Name it, Claim it, Stop it) when they witness bullying.
Our 7th and 8th grade advisories viewed a video, Are You Okay? and discussed the negative impact on the individuals being bullied. They also discussed the unfortunate belief that telling an adult is viewed as “snitching”. This issue comes up frequently for adolescents. It is a difficult one to overcome, and we are working to build empathy in our students so that they understand their responsibility to the greater community when they see harm being done to others. I encourage you to talk to your children about their experiences at school (or online if they have access). Being safe and kind in our community means stepping up, even when it is hard.
For parents, finding space for conversations about empathy can be challenging since middle school is a time when your children naturally seek independence or don’t share as much about what is going on. Part of the key to unlocking conversation is to have the right questions and the right timing. I highly recommend family dinners as a place to start these conversations. When my kids were young we actually had a question jar at dinner which helped because it felt more random and less like an inquisition. Another good place to talk is in the car. Sometimes the lack of direct eye contact allows adolescents to open up more (and they are a captive audience). If you are looking for a good way to begin a conversation around empathy with your children, here are some questions that you may want to ask.
  • When was a recent time you noticed someone feeling left out or upset? What made you notice, and what did you do (or want to do)?
  • Can you think of a moment when someone showed empathy toward you? How did it change the way you felt or acted afterward?
  • What do you think makes it hard to show empathy sometimes, even when we know it’s the right thing to do?
  • If your school could do one thing to help students be more empathetic toward each other, what would you suggest and why?
Whether these questions help to elicit a strong conversation or not, keep on trying! You never know when you might hit the perfect moment to provide a listening ear for your child.
Enjoy the weekend,
Kim Lysaght