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Community Corner

Lessons At Mystic Middle School Extend Beyond The Classroom

Students At Mystic Middle School Learn Lessons In Consideration, Respect And Honesty.

“Behavior is the hardest thing to change,” says Stafford Thomas, Principal of .

Thomas and his team have taken a proactive approach to improving the climate at school and promoting school-based energy. And with efforts for improvement in place change is happening and students are learning to be more considerate of others.

“We needed to have a clear and consistent message of what good character traits are,” Thomas said.

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Since September those traits are being enforced in a school wide effort to improve behavior. Last year there were 50 suspensions but so far this year, only 16. Suspensions might involve language, repeated activities, or poor behavior on the bus. The goal was to reduce suspensions by 40 percent because, said Thomas, upon close examination he felt many of those were easily preventable. As well as a reduction in suspensions the number of referrals and detentions are down, “way down,” he said. But what has gone up are the number of bystanders that participate and help,” instead of doing nothing, said Thomas.

This all started when he noticed missing etiquette, maybe a 5th  grader bumping into someone in the hallway and not saying “excuse me.”  This preempted the idea that modeling may be beneficial. Instead of strategizing after the fact, a school wide approach is in place. Students are responsible for reporting behaviors. 

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“Teachers are invested because this is what they see and want to improve,” he said.

The school’s 444 students are divided into six teams that include students from all grades. Every Monday during academy a different topic is discussed and guest speakers are invited. Some of those topics include body image, Internet safety and bullying.

Fifth grade teachers Noreen Selinger and Heidi McGowan and their students have also played a part by performing a musical called Character Matters for incoming students. It encourages newcomers to think about their actions and how they affect others.

“Students learn how kindness, caring, listening, being honest and taking responsibility are important in middle school life,” McGowan said.

The hope is to ease the transition from elementary school in a memorable way by performing songs with themes that can be reinforced throughout the school year.

According to Thomas this effort has created cohesion throughout the school and opportunities for faculty to discuss issues as they arise.

The overall theme for the year is Respect. Each trimester tackles a different goal such as responsibility to self, others and the community. Students have worked closely with Avalon, M.A.S.H and LEARN in a program called Paying It Forward. The lesson is that by giving back they are learning to become valuable community members.

Inclusion/acceptance and standing up for what is right is part of the 2nd trimester goal of citizenship. Instrumental in those efforts have been Guidance Councilor Nora Selinger who along with Dean of Students Greg Keith has focused lessons about the detriments of being a bystander instead standing up for what is right, “being a responsible citizen and coming forth when something isn’t right,” Selinger said. “Citizenship is important and safety is priority number one, if the students trust us they can feel safe coming to school,” she said. Social Worker Donna Staples and School Psychologist Cate Dowling are also part of the team. It has been a very positive experience overall, and results have been excellent so far this year.

“We created it and we have enough personnel to implement it, scheduling is key,” Thomas said.

Thomas said they will tweak the program as necessary and address issues as they encounter them. 

It’s a different world now with Facebook and cyber bullying and it is very difficult to keep track, especially if the behavior is not happening during school hours. But while school is in session “everyone knows what’s expected, it is beneficial for everyone,” he said.

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