Creating Tribes in Middle School Forming a sense of fun, friendship, and community. Presenters Amy Riga and Linda Lucas Western Placer Unified School District

What Should You Know About Working with Middle School Students They are curious Are able to think creatively Prefer being active over passive learning experiences Relate to real life problems or situations Enjoy analyzing data Are egocentric Are experiencing many physical changes Some are ready to assume leadership roles Crave positive attention from adults

What is Tribes? Early 70’s: Concerns regarding student motivation to learn, test scores, behavior problems, and teachers leaving the teaching profession. Pilot program began involving 26 elementary school teachers. Small learning groups, in which they referred to as “tribes”.

The Tribes Mission “To assure the healthy development of every child in the school community so that each has the knowledge, skills, and resiliency to be successful in our rapidly changing world”

How does it work? The tribes process develops a positive environment that promotes human growth and learning. How? By learning to build a community through three stages of group development using agreements.

Tribes Learning Community

Community Agreements Learning how to build community through three stages of group development by using four agreements among students and adults. AGREEMENTS: Attentive Listening Appreciation/no put-downs The right to pass Mutual respect

Inclusion 1.Each person must be able to introduce themselves, not just by stating a name, by offering something about themselves. 2.Each person must express their hopes/expectations for what will happen during their time together. 3.Each person needs to be acknowledged by the group as having been heard, appreciated, and welcomed.

Influence (to feel valued by the group) Facilitator leads groups to: 1.Express diverse attitudes, opinions, positions, and personal feeling 2.Put forth ideas without others passing judgment and help people respect individual differences 3.Use participatory methods of decision making so all group members feel they are influential and of value to the group 4.Help members share leadership

Community Community requires: 1.Dedication to resolving rather than avoiding uncomfortable problems 2.Learning and practicing collaboration skills 3.Agreements about how we will treat each other 4.Time to reflect on how well we are doing

Practical Application Linda’s Middle School Program

Activity 1 Forming Tribes

Activity 2 Declaring your Tribe

Reflection Question What are things to consider when doing this activity with middle school students?

Activity 3 People Hunt

Reflection Question How do you think this activity would benefit your program?

Question and Answer Session