Open Circle has developed COVID-19 Resources to help our schools and districts support the children and families in their communities.
The Open Circle Team stands in solidarity with all people who are working for social justice and equity. To see what we are doing to contribute to this cause, please review our Open Circle News links below.
Welcome
Open Circle provides a unique, evidence-based social and emotional learning program for grades K-5. Working with administrators, educators, counselors, and staff from across the school, Open Circle aims to:
- Proactively develop children’s skills for recognizing and managing emotions, empathy, positive relationships and problem solving
- Help schools develop a community where students feel safe, cared for and engaged in learning.
Open Circle News
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Finding Fuel: A Workshop for Educators
Join Open Circle Trainer Betsy Nordell, Ed.D., for this upcoming webinar hosted by the Wellesley Centers for Women! Register to attend This webinar's focus is educator wellbeing. Now more than ever, we need to honor the complexity of educational work and share ideas for self-renewal. Since there is...
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THE74: An Educator’s View
"The Empathy & Compassion Biden Talks About Are SEL Skills Every Child Should Have. How Teachers Can Help Students Learn Them" Teachers should take Biden’s speech about "compassion, empathy and concern” as a call to action, to implement in our classrooms the values he’s talking about on the...
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EDSURGE: The Pandemic Has Revealed...
What Really Matters in Education (Spoiler: It’s Not Tests). Kamilah Drummond-Forrester, Director of Open Circle writes, "The interconnectedness of schools and families has been laid bare this past year, and we now understand how significant that partnership is." Read the...
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Focusing on student's feeling
HECHINGER REPORT: Teachers will need to focus more on how students are feeling in these tough times Confronting emotions around Covid-19 and systemic racism matters more than ever. In this opinion piece published in the Hechinger Report, Open Circle's Director, Kamilah Drummond-Forrester discusses how...
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How to Talk to Kids About Coronavirus
March 6, 2020By Kamilah Drummond-Forrester, Director of Open Circle As the mother of four children ranging in age from 5 to 17, I think I’ve heard it all when it comes to the coronavirus COVID-19 every rumor and misunderstanding that gets shared at school and on social media about where it came...
How We Help Schools & Communities
Open Circle’s whole-school approach:
- Unites schools with common vocabulary
- Improves school climate
- Increases students’ use of prosocial and critical thinking skills
- Reduces negative behaviors such as peer exclusion, bullying and fighting
- Strengthens educators' facilitation and SEL (social emotional learning) skills
- Frees up time for academics through proactive behavior management
