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About The Siuslaw news. (Florence, Lane County, Or.) 1960-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 2018)
SIUSLAW NEWS | SATURDAY, DECEMBER 1, 2018 | 11A ROOTS from page 1A “The job of 90by30 is to select preventative strategies,” she said. Ideally, “If communities have certain preventative programs available to people in the com- munity, then those supports will reduce child abuse and neglect.” The organization has imple- mented other projects this year, such as the Welcome Baby Box program; however, “We don’t have anything for the younger children,” Mann-Heintz lament- ed. “So that’s the focus of this, to start instilling the understand- ing of emotions — being able to label emotions, being able to identify emotions by what peo- ple’s body gestures and facial features are, and translating how they feel to you.” Mapleton School District, as well, falls within 90by30’s West Lane district and began its own sessions in October with a first- and second-grade class combi- nation. Another visit will take place later this month. How the roots are planted The Roots of Empathy pro- gram is a nine-month curricu- lum with a total of 27 classroom visits, nine of which are infant visits. Instructors also visit the class the weeks before and after each session with the infant. In the week preceding the visit from the family, instructors drop by the classroom to introduce what the theme of the sessions will be that month and discuss what developments the chil- dren expect to see in the baby. Instructors visit again a week after the baby’s visit to discuss the experience with students and work on art and writing projects concerning the themes of the month. While these pre- and post- visits are an important part of the students’ learning process, the highlight of each month is undoubtedly the infant’s visit. “Attendance is almost always 100 percent,” said Costa. As a session begins, instruc- tor Mann-Heintz and parents Brittany and Jonathan Hor- nung stand with their baby, Wilson, at the front of a horse- shoe-shaped crowd of students. A large green blanket is laid in the middle, which is reserved for the family or students who have permission to come for- ward. The children begin sing- ing their welcome song, “Hello, Baby Wilson,” and Jonathan carries the baby around the semi-circle so each child can make eye contact. After completing a round, the song stops and Mann- Heintz leads her student in a short breathing exercise to calm the group and prepare for the session. Everyone sits down and students are encouraged to en- gage with questions and obser- vations about the infant’s emo- tional and physical state. “Has he been sleeping a lot?” Let me Showcase your property. New Listing Richard Beaudro Principal Broker 541 991-6677 2235 23rd St – Great center of town location at Summerset Estates. Stylish, well maintained, 3 bdrm, 2 bath with low maintenance landscap- ing and RV parking area. $310,000. #2899- 18102765 1749 Highway 101 • 541-997-1200 PHOTOS BY DAMIEN SHERWOOD/SIUSLAW NEWS The Hornung family helps show students how Wilson is growing and developing, which in turn helps students learn to relate to his needs and emotions. Mapleton Elementary School has another Roots of Empathy family. asked one girl. “Does he sometimes get wor- ried?” asked a boy. Questions continue about Wilson’s height, weight, teeth and other development topics. Then the baby is placed on the green blanket and students watch him interact with a toy. This is the first time the class has seen Wilson so adept at grasping objects, a sign his mo- tor skills are improving. This month’s family visit theme is emotions, so Mann- Heintz asks, “When you learn new things, how do you feel?” Many children exclaim at once, “Happy!” Wilson’s father takes the toy away and the class watches Wil- son’s brief, longing gaze as the toy disappears. The class then discusses how one can show that they want something. Mann-Heintz uses the oppor- tunity to ask the children what to do if they detect someone in need. “If your friend feels sad, what could you do to make them feel better?” “You could ask them to play with you,” replies one girl after a moment’s thought. Wilson’s mother begins rock- ing him in her arms. “You can also make someone feel better when you hug them,” says Mann-Heintz. “If you have a feeling, it’s good to share that with someone.” Throughout the 30-minute session, Wilson demonstrates how much he’s developed from the previous visit, much to the delight of the children. When he turns over, grasps an object or vocalizes, the class claps and cheers each accomplishment. New skills are noted and inquis- itive students are answered with- out judgement. Finally, when it’s time to go, Wilson’s mother carries him around to each student as the children sing their good-bye song and touch his dangling feet. Facts and feelings Screening Presented by: The Siuslaw News While the sessions them- selves are undeniably brim- ming with positive experiences, the question of whether there are tangible, real-world results from these lessons has import- ant bearing on the legitimacy of the program. “I think the piece that was missing in the past when they were presenting to past super- intendents was the appearance that it was kind of like a cute- sy, feel-good thing,” Siuslaw School District Superintendent Andy Grzeskowiak said. However, added Siuslaw El- ementary Principal Mike Har- klerode, “All of the current re- search about social/emotional learning is proving again just how critical an element that is for us to be teaching this.” Among studies of the cogni- tive development in children, it’s widely accepted that fruitful social engagement in large part depends on the development of a child’s theory of mind. Theory of mind refers to knowledge or awareness of men- tal states in oneself and others, such as perceptions, emotions and thoughts. While much of the field’s re- search is focused on the pre- school period, studies strongly suggest that theory of mind de- velopment continues into mid- dle childhood and early adoles- cence. Moreover, much of the research evinces a heavy asso- ciation with positive outcomes such as social skills and better academic performance. In a preliminary study pub- lished by the International Jour- nal of Population Data Science in Manitoba, Canada, research- ers found that students who completed the Roots of Empathy program had lower rates of teen pregnancy, lower rates of grade repetition and higher rates of high school graduation. The study concluded that, “These findings provide in- triguing evidence suggesting beneficial impacts in several longer-term health and social outcomes that could feasibly be related to participation in the Roots of Empathy program.” The Canadian Education Association makes the case, through its own research anal- ysis, that “fostering students’ social emotional skills not only helps them to develop the skills necessary for success in schools, such skills assist them to become more caring, responsible and concerned citizens.” The Roots of Empathy orga- nization itself lists increases in prosocial behavior, increases in social/emotional understand- ing and decreases in aggres- sion among the benefits in evi- dence-based evaluations of their methods. For Grzeskowiak, instituting the program seemed an obvious choice when he had a chance to look at the research. “We broke it down, looked at the data and, in every area that they ran it, when you looked at the discipline, the behavioral data and the testing data, there TRIPLE P Tuesday, December 11, 2018 Two Showings @ City Lights Cinema 12:30pm • 6:30pm Tickets are FREE* Admission tickets are required and available starting November 17th at: • City Lights Cinema 1920 Highway 101 Sponsored by: CEN T (54 R 1 5 L SA PO 4 M RV IL E SE IC E W I TH A *Only 230 tickets available, fi rst come, fi rst served, Limit 2 per person. 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That was the selling point for me.” While many of the immediate benefits of the program make it attractive for any school, the ripple effects of teaching em- pathic and social competence at an early age has profound im- plications for tight-knit com- munities as well as for 90by30’s charge to stem child abuse. “If you’re teaching these kids these skills now, as they become adults and they have families of their own, some of the be- haviors that adults do or do not have that lead to child abuse get stopped at the gate,” said Grz- eskowiak. “They do not start.” In the program’s Planning for Baby session, for instance, the theme of infant responsibility is instilled in students. “The parent brings the diaper bag and shows the kids all the things you have to take when you’re going to take the baby somewhere and how you have to plan to have all that,” said Mann-Heintz. Exposure to such concepts and skills early on can give chil- dren a head start on the tests life will invariably throw at them. Organizations like 90by30 and programs like Roots for Empa- thy address this by providing the tools to promote cohesive social structure in a region with a particularly high rate of fam- ily discord. “Unfortunately, our coun- ty is a bit of an anomaly,” said Grzeskowiak. “Our DHS (De- partment of Human Services) referral rates, our DHS rates for children being placed in foster care is higher than normal.” Indeed, the Lane County rate of children in foster care was almost double the statewide average in 2017, according to Department of Human Services data. “So, there’s a need here. And this is one of the things that we can do within the school,” Grzeskowiak said. “It has a community benefit and it also has a direct school benefit.” For parents participating in the program, too, the experi- ence has been overwhelming- ly positive. “So far everybody’s lov- ing it,” said Mann-Heintz. “They’re very pleased with being able to do it. You know, any parent wants lots of peo- ple to love their baby.” Brittany Hornung reflected on her experience with the program so far. “The Roots of Empathy program has been such a pos- itive experience for all of us, and we are so excited to be a part of the pioneering efforts here in our community,” she said. “It has been really amaz- ing to see the transition Wil- son has had with the kids. … I can't wait to see what happens next!”
