This post was written by Jessica Skinner, School Counselor at Lake Carolina Elementary School in Blythewood, South Carolina
Building a caring learning community goes beyond the four walls of a classroom. At Lake Carolina Elementary, the faculty and staff have been deliberate in their approach to developing a caring community since the school opened in 2002. We have worked to foster authentic relationships among students, faculty, families, and other members of our surrounding neighborhoods. We acknowledge that each of these stakeholders is an essential part.
As a team of educators, we realize that in order to build a strong school community, it is imperative to invest in each other as colleagues. Teachers participate in professional workshops and outside-of-school activities to cultivate genuine relationships with each other and develop the faculty into a cohesive team. What we learn as professionals is then transferred into individual classroom communities by incorporating strategies such as daily morning meetings and end of day closure gatherings that give students the opportunity to connect with one another. Continue reading
