Supporting Student Wellbeing

Their approach includes responsive support when a student or group of students are facing a challenge, as well as extension opportunities that help students build on their strengths, practice new skills, and deepen their connections with others. By attending to students’ varied needs and capacities, the deans help create conditions for each learner to participate, grow, and thrive. Much of this work happens directly in the classroom. The deans push into classrooms to support students in the setting where learning and relationships unfold. Working alongside teachers, they help reinforce shared skills and approaches, and they can offer students support while remaining connected to the classroom community. Their presence also helps strengthen the connection between individual student needs and the everyday cadence of school–maintaining student schedule, connection to classmates and teachers, and the routine that grounds students in how they engage throughout the day. This collaborative work is one part of a broader effort to make social-emotional learning and relationship-building a part of all touchpoints that students have throughout the day.

The deans create spaces for students to connect in smaller groups and one-on-one. Social groups provide opportunities to practice lagging interpersonal skills, enhance strong ones, build relationships, work through social challenges, and learn alongside peers. These social groups are a key part of how we are able to build upon specific areas of skill development that we identify as needed across groups, classrooms, or grade levels. Individual check-ins give students time to share how things are going, reflect on challenges, respond to changes, and identify next steps with a trusted adult.

The deans lead community meetings and community circles that help students develop shared language, deepen listening skills, and positively contribute to our caring community. These varied approaches allow students to engage with social-emotional skills in ways that best fit their developmental stage and context of their individual needs. This responsive approach is enabled by our skills assessments and collaborative problem solving processes. Assessments help the team better understand where our students’ individual and collective skills development is and identify areas where additional support or extension may be helpful. The information helps inform and guide thoughtful planning with all of the adults supporting our students. We are able to be intentional about how we are weaving social-emotional learning into the natural cadence of the school day. Together, these perspectives help the team respond with greater intention to students’ strengths and areas of growth.

Across classroom visits, social groups, individual check-ins, community meetings, community circles, and assessment-informed planning, the deans’ work has been deeply woven into the life of Live Oak. Their goal is not a one-size-fits-all approach, but a connected network of support and opportunities that helps students feel known, build skills, and take on meaningful challenges. 

With gratitude, 

Tanya Susoev