As Bais Chaya Mushka and Bais Rebbe prepare to welcome back their students, BCM held an all-staff in-service day to get everyone back into the spirit of learning and growth for the new school year. In this same spirit, teachers and staff from Cheder Menachem and other local schools were invited to attend as well.
Renowned educational expert and child psychologist, Dr. Reggie Melrose led the session on encouraging students to self-regulate in the classroom as a way to improve their experience in school and increase academic retention.
The session was very valuable to all who attended, and really shed some light on how to best reach each unique child in a larger classroom setting, especially in moments of chaos or difficulty.
Morah Mushky Yiftach, one of BCM’s third grade teachers described the biggest takeway: “Dr. Melrose gave us all a gift to help with the management of our classrooms. It doesn’t require any outside tools or fancy equipment to implement.
“A great way to assist struggling or anxious students is to help them focus on taking deep, calming breaths, relax their tensed posture, and imagine some idyllic scenery in their mind. After doing these things, she has seen teachers go on to maintain the focus of an entire class for more than an hour on a single lesson or activity. I look forward to trying it out myself this year.” Morah Mushky went on to describe the speaker as, “dynamic, and really held the attention of everyone in the room.”
Bais Chaya Mushka’s teachers and administration would like to thank Dr. Melrose and all of the educators who attended this vital and informative professional development seminar. We hope that what you heard here will help to build your skills and enhance your lessons in the coming year.
From parent surveys, to PD, to hiring dedicated and trained teachers, I am proud to be a parent of children in the school.
Keep up the amazing work you teachers, principals, administrative staff, and board members are doing on a daily basis.
We appreciate your work.