How to Develop a Welcoming Culture | Edutopia

How to Develop a Welcoming Culture | Edutopia:

Dr. Richard Curwin is the director of the Master's program in Behavior Disorder at David Yellin College in Jerusalem. The issues explored in today's post are explored in-depth in his book Recovering Hope: Our Greatest Teaching Strategy. Visit his website, Teacher Learning Center to learn about this, and his many other books related to motivation and behavior.

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Have you ever noticed that the worst behaving children are never absent? I was tempted many times, when teaching seventh grade, to breath on certain students when I was sick. I wondered if the reason that these students never missed school was because their parents didn't want them at home. Of course, it was never that simple. Some parents worked and had no one to watch their children. Other students lived in dangerous home environments, and school was safer than staying home. Regardless of the reason, I wonder how many children feel unwanted wherever they are; home, school, the corner store, with their peers or on the streets.