Imagine your class coming into a brand new school day. The last few days have gone well in your classroom. Students are engaged, following expectations, and asking questions. This includes the student who may present the most unexpected behaviors at times. However, today is different. That student enters the classroom with a scowl on their face and high voice volume. They are vocal about their distaste for school and “hate” everything about it and everyone that is there. How do you respond?
What about the student who is always on top of their learning, completes their assigned jobs with little redirection and is overall, always “happy”. Today during Math (their favorite subject), they shut down (head down, tears, refusal to move forward). How do you respond?
Students display a wide range of behaviors throughout the course of any given day. Some of these displays are positive, while others are not. It can be exhausting to navigate the ups and downs on a normal day, let alone when we have kids who struggle with feeling a sense of safety and/or adequacy; and struggle with functioning in adult managed spaces. Enter Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI).
LSCI is one significant piece to the puzzle when it comes to finding perspective and understanding in the behavior displays that we see. LSCI teaches the differences in psychological thinking between adults and children. It provides supportive ways to assist students in navigating big emotions and challenges with the ability to self-regulate. LSCI provides insight into why we see self-destructive displays and teaches us ways to gain understanding into the students’ perception of events. It provides effective ways to dig in deeper using the conflict cycle and strengthens the relationship we have with the child. LSCI provides you with the tools that you need to analyze and reflect on student behavior and find a sense of understanding into the ‘why’ behind the display.
As we transition to having access to the Behavior Interventionist role, LSCI and the Teach to Heal paradigm are critical in understanding the purpose of the role, as well as the work that the BI is doing with the student. This also includes the PTS skills that we have started introducing. These skills include: Self Regulation, Accepts Directions, Interactions, Tone/Volume, Physical Boundaries, Area of Designation, and Participation. When all of these pieces come together, the true magic happens! There can be effective, solution-based teaming around the student and their needs. It also ensures that our roles of support are defined and that a consistent environment (space, expectations, roles) are in place for all students.
The impact of the LSCI training goes well beyond ourselves and individual students in our classrooms. Every student in our room benefits and grows from this brain based, student first approach to regulating behaviors and growing understanding of emotions. It gives students an opportunity to practice self regulation on a daily basis and develop the skills needed to self-regulate successfully on their own. Students learn and see that adult-managed spaces are safe and an okay place to be.
Through the Lens of our Staff:
“There is a great quote by L.R. Knost that says, “When little people are overwhelmed by big emotions, it’s our job to share our calm, not join their chaos.” This has always stuck with me, but as many of you know when something unexpected happens in our classrooms, it is quotes like these that are a lot easier said than done. The LSCI training was pivotal in making these words more than just that, it helped put them into action. One of the biggest takeaways from this training was support in creating a mindset that helps better understand why unexpected displays may be happening in my classroom. It gave me the tools and the language to help share my calm during moments of dysregulation rather than join in the chaos. Utilizing self time and directed time helped so my part in managing behaviors in the classroom was not as reactive and it also gave me a moment to press pause and keep my own emotions in check. It took a lot of practice (and I still am!) to feel comfortable with the process and language around LSCI, but in the end it was all without a doubt worth it.” ~Chelsea Van Roekel
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“Completing the foundations training in the Life Space Crisis Intervention (LSCI) impacted my role as an educator by having a deeper understanding of how a child's brain functions during a crisis. During the training, I was grounded in the fact that a crisis can be different and reactions can differ from child to child, based on previous life experience. Our role as an educator leading a classroom is to be the manager of the space. As manager's of a space, we enter a student's life space. We are called to ensure they are safe, ensure they know they are safe, and meet them where they are at to meet student needs.” ~Van Gallatin
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“I have been a para for 16 years. Last summer I was given the opportunity to take the LSCI course. It was the best decision of my career. The knowledge and understanding it has given me surpasses any other training I have done. The course is very interactive and keeps you engaged. It also allows everyone to speak freely and ask any and all questions. The presenter is very knowledgeable and has many ideas and skills to pass along. I took everything I learned and have used it almost everyday at school.
The student I work with can have behavioral issues. Last year we dealt with outbursts such as swearing, name calling, throwing things and clearing rooms. I didn't know how to handle some of these things when they happened. I’d get overwhelmed and think it was something I did. The student would end up so out of control at times they would go home. BUT, after taking the LSCI course, this year is completely different. I understand how to help them and what they need. I know to approach differently and to validate how they feel. I follow the steps that were taught in LSCI. The student’s behavior this year is amazing!
Of course we have seen a couple outbursts but approaching them with the things I learned through LSCI, they don’t turn into what we saw last year. This training has made my relationship with this student very different from last year. It is so much stronger. I understand them more and they trust me. They come to me and tell me how they are feeling before their feelings get too big and things happen. I feel they are comfortable to open up and express things that they wouldn’t have before. We are able to talk through and process our choices. I find myself much more calm and not overwhelmed. I am not so stressed when things feel like they are or may get out of hand. I can laugh and have fun with this student which is something I couldn’t do last year. His attitude and behavior towards me is great and I owe it to my LSCI training.” ~ Kara Peters
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“I did attend last summer and I'm thinking of doing the refresher as well. The one thing that I do now that I didn't before is keep the focus on the student and their experiences. When another student comes in saying "Jill got in trouble for ...". I simply say that whatever happened is over and being taken care of, in that location and has nothing to do with what we're doing now. When they persist in trying to tell me what happened, I tell them that it has nothing to do with what we're doing here and I move on. I treat Jill as I would on any other day (if not even a little more welcoming) to convey that when they come in, it's a fresh start.”
~ Gia Davison
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With all of the hard work we have done around self-regulation and working to meet the needs of all students, no matter what, we are excited to see where our journey continues to take us. Please consider attending one of the LSCI trainings offered this summer. It is well worth the time and effort and the impact will be greater than we can imagine!
