Olympia Della Flora: Creative ways to get kids to thrive in school
أوليمبيا ديللا فلورا: طرق مبتكرة تمكن الأطفال من الازدهار في المدرسة
Olympia Della Flora wants schools to think differently about educating students -- by helping them manage their emotions. Full bio
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in Columbus, Ohio.
there was a student named D.
he was six years old:
كان عمره ست سنوات
the entire room.
the entire school into lockdown mode
بأكملها في وضع الإغلاق
في بعض الأحيان.
I was the principal at this school.
learned with my staff
been trained for.
my principal prep coursework?
التدريبية لإعداد نظار المدارس
with a kid like D?
from impeding the learning
that we thought we knew,
ما ظننا أننا نعرفه،
was to kick him out,
كان هو طرده من المدرسة،
are struggling with their education.
يعانون في تعليمهم
with a fail-safe solution,
to not only survive in school
لكي ليصمدوا في المدرسة
how to read and write
and manage their own emotions.
مع مشاعرهم والتحكم فيها
we were able to move our school
in the state of Ohio,
في مدينة أوهايو
in just a matter of a few years.
on the emotional well-being of their kids.
على السلامة الانفعالية لأطفالهم.
full of 30 students
inside of his head.
can make huge differences,
or grand strategic plans,
استراتيجية كبرى.
of thinking about what you have
للتفكير في ما الذي تملكه
look outside the box for answers,
عن الإجابات خارج الصندوق،
enough time, money and effort
inside the box.
داخل الصندوق.
can happen fast.
to figure out how he had become so angry.
أصبح شديد الغضب.
his father had left the home
in order to support the family,
الإنفاق على الأسرة،
for D to connect with --
of his younger brother
that D was six years old?
كان عمره ست سنوات؟
for having some trouble
بعض الصعوبات
to help him with these big emotions
في هذه الانفعالات الكبيرة
of reading and math.
للقراءة والحساب.
where he was struggling the most.
المعوق الأكبر
can be a tough transition time
مرحلة إنتقالية قاسية
a less structured home environment
we created a calming area for him
منطقة هادئة له
and soft cushions and books,
ومخدات لينة وكتب،
to this place in the morning,
في الصباح،
back into the school environment
إلى بيئة المدرسة
that helped him calm down.
younger students,
الطلاب الأصغر،
the kindergarten classroom
how to write their letters.
successful with a few of them
kindergarten students down,
رياض الأطفال
of peers on behavior was far greater
على السلوك كان أكبر بكثير
would actually laugh with kids,
مع الطلبة بالفعل،
or singing a song from the radio station,
أغنية من المحطة الإذاعية،
with him in his world.
في عالمه الخاص.
to lay on this kind of special treatment
على هذا النوع من المعاملة
the tools and tactics that worked for D,
والطرق التي التي نجحت مع (د)،
and use them with other students.
مع الطلاب الآخرين.
student behavior
during the lesson plan
their feelings
coping strategies for dealing with them,
وصحية للتعامل معها،
throughout the day,
physical activities.
with sitting for long periods of time,
في الجلوس لفترات طويلة
underneath their desks.
to stay in the classroom,
على البقاء في الفصل
a whole lot of extra money.
من التكاليف الإضافية
about what we had.
مختلفة حيال ما نملك
has an instructional supply line.
لديها خط إمداد تعليمي.
of a school a more calming color,
بألوان أكثر هدوءا
in the academic tools --
في الوسائل الأكاديمية،
seriously, too.
على محمل الجد.
of our kids seriously
على محمل الجد
in our reading and math scores,
القراءة والحساب
of expected growth
with our same demographic.
التي لها نفس ديموغرافيتنا.
to help our kids manage their emotions
على إدارة انفعالاتهم
might be facing at home,
يواجهونها في المنزل
or funded to address it directly.
لمعالجتها بطريقة مباشرة.
to local groups,
with the Ohio State University
and school social work.
والخدمة الاجتماعية المدرسية.
with our teachers
to the latest college-level thinking,
الجامعي الحديث
got real-world, life experiences
من أرض الواقع
Nationwide Children's Hospital
(Nationwide Children's Hospital)
a health clinic within our school,
بداخل المدرسة
resources for our students.
وسلامتهم النفسية.
during the school day.
was not in D or in the kids at all.
أو في الأطفال على الإطلاق.
academic instruction,
the scope of the job.
of our kids seriously,
بصورة جدية،
that took that leap with me.
بهذه المبادرة معي.
professional development plan,
of different childhood experiences
some of our students' experiences,
the behaviors that we were seeing.
السلوكيات التي كنا نراها.
barriers to learning,
في وجه التعلم،
to practice with lesson plans,
مع مخططات الدروس،
with a single focus,
these movement breaks,
and dance for two minutes straight,
وأن يرقصوا لمدة دقيقتين كاملتين،
helps the learner retain new information.
على الاحتفاظ بالمعلومات الجديدة.
provides a perfect short dance party.
"Cha-Cha Slide" تمثل حفلة رقص قصيرة مثالية
"What happened to you?"
instead of "Get out."
"أنت مطرود."
made huge differences,
in our academic scores.
في درجاتنا الأكاديمية.
got to fourth grade,
(د) إلى الصف الرابع
with other students.
continue to improve,
يستمر في التحسن
not only for children
education program
in traditional high school setting.
في نظام التعليم الثانوي التقليدي
some of their histories.
detention system
of them exhibit the same behaviors
لديه نفس السلوكيات
healthy coping strategies early on
التعامل الصحية مبكرا
in a regular high school?
في التعليم الثانوي التقليدي؟
I believe that it would've helped.
ذلك قد كان ليساعد.
the social and emotional development
الاجتماعي والانفعالي
and say what we need to do for our kids.
نحتاج فعله من أجل أطفالنا
and write, and they graduate
ويكتبون، وتخرجوا
how to manage emotions,
for us to invest in our kids.
that can or cannot pass a test.
أو لا تنجح في اختبار
ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Olympia Della Flora - EducatorOlympia Della Flora wants schools to think differently about educating students -- by helping them manage their emotions.
Why you should listen
Olympia Della Flora wants to seek solutions versus focusing on problems. This is why she became a principal at one of the lowest performing schools in Ohio. She believes that it takes a village to improve schools and has found ways to engage multiple stakeholders in this work including students, staff, parents and community members. Through focusing on this philosophy, Della Flora was able to successfully lead efforts to move her elementary school in Ohio out of failing status with the state. She attributes this success to collaborating with community partners and providing ongoing professional development for staff around social and emotional learning supports for students. She believes that schools should seek ways to address and support the whole child when it comes to learning, addressing not only academics but also social and emotional outcomes. She's now expanding this work through supervising and supporting principals in Connecticut, where she serves as the Associate Superintendent for School Development for Stamford Public Schools.
Olympia Della Flora | Speaker | TED.com