 What can we as adults do to enable children to feel a sense of belonging in their school or other Education or with other children environment That's the topic for today's podcast. So let's dive straight in Belonging matters feeling like part of the team like we're wanted like we're needed like we're respected is a really Crucial element of our day-to-day well-being. It's something that we seek we align ourselves with others We want to connect we want to feel a part of something and It's hard for some of us and for some of our kids They may not feel that sense of belonging for all sorts of different reasons there might be Communication barriers there might be special needs it might be that they're new and that transition is proving tricky there's all sorts of reasons why a child might not yet feel like I'm part of this and Today we're gonna look at a few ideas for kind of helping with that Simple simple stuff you'll have loads of your own you can add to so jump on the socials and let us know about your ideas too But let's have a look. So the first thing is in order to enable that sense of belonging This idea of kids like me. This is an idea that I return to really often But essentially when a child walks into your setting and they look around them They need to see Kids who think and act and look like them in your resources and your displays now On a really basic level that is about representing Ethnicity and ability and disability and things like that So, you know your deaf kid needs to see that are the deaf kids exist in the world that they're part of something bigger Other children like them do all sorts of things too Your children from ethnic minorities need to know that well, I might feel like a minority here But yes, I'm represented on the walls in the displays in the resources and so on and so forth and I think we've gotten pretty good about trying to do that, although It's hard. You can't always find the resources that you need to make this happen But be mindful of it. Maybe be creating your own with your actual children But the other thing I think we need to think about here is the sort of breadth of interest and passions skills and capabilities of the children and young people that we are working with and caring for because What we also want to present here in the kids like me is this diversity of Them as people so the child who spends all their time reading about sharks Wants to know that that's that's valid that's accepted that here They belong if they have those kind of hobbies and that this isn't just a place where we only celebrate academic endeavor Or we only celebrate sporting endeavor, but we celebrate all the different things We need the child who finds it harder to succeed well academically to see their work They're really hard one Efforts on the wall Alongside those perfect exemplars of work which are always there and always beautiful and should of course be celebrated too But every child at every stage every age with all the different skills all the different interests Just want to look around and go. Yeah Here I'm wanted I belong I'm part of this it makes sense for me to be here It's kind of a lofty aim and We can only know what our kids are like by kind of getting to know them and what makes them tick and that's a part of this process too But that's another podcast But basically the the key thing here is if you've got a child who's kind of on the periphery And you don't really feel like they belong just put yourself in their shoes for a moment Walk in to your school your setting and look around you and just think Do I in the shoes of this child feel like I belong? Can I see myself reflected in the resources in the displays in the ethos in the things that are celebrated here? And if not, why not? Secondly really simple one is our visible kind of uniform type signs badges badges and lanyards are our friends here kids Love a badge. They love a lanyard. Actually, they love a uniform quite often They might not like the school uniform but take a look at them outside of school and we often notice they've got their home uniform on kids choose to Show that they're part of something by dressing like their friends by using similar bags wearing similar clothes You know, this is something that we do We are alike. We show that visibly a Really really simple way to do that within school within your setting is with badges and lanyards and kids Absolutely do love them and it always makes me smile when you keep seeking walking around with like 20 different badges like pinned to their lapel Absolutely fantastic. This can be a really quick way of showing belonging to a group or a club Have a little bit of a think about what you want to represent with your lanyards and your badges and which groups Could should be able to have them It's not an expensive thing to do and can be really really game-changing for kids to feel. Yeah, I'm part of this one of my daughters recently Got the opportunity to go and do the Diana award bullying ambassador program which for her as an autistic kid who had not been really able to engage with much extracurricularly for the school because of challenges this was a really big deal and She was one of a few kids from her school who was selected to go and do this and She was really proud and on this day with many other children but from all different schools one of the things she was given was a bit a badge a pin for her for her blazer and She wore it with such pride Because this made her part of something and within her school She was one of I think 12 and they all had these pins and this identified them and in a place where she didn't always Feel like she belonged with this little group She did belong and with that bigger group on that day she did belong and that was really important So, you know, just just have a think maybe you've got some little clubs Maybe you've got a Lego club and maybe you could think about having a badge for those kids to show that they're part of this Just that sense of us how we create that sense of us. It doesn't have to always be complicated On a slightly wider note, your lanyards can also help with that sense of belonging By thinking about things like many of you do this already things like your rainbow lanyards or the different colors that show inclusivity of things like neurodiversity or gender and sexuality And so on just having these lanyards and having the adults around us say, yeah We care we're accepting where allies were part of this you belong here can be a really powerful message and remembering also That not every child that needs to hear this message Will have outwardly shared their need to hear that message and they're belonging to those different groups of which they're part So, yeah badges lanyards visible signs uniforms absolutely Love it. This is one of the reasons why we go and join new teams one of the first things we do is start creating Stash we want to show we're part of this. We love it Number three is about inviting outsiders in so this is just noticing are there Any kids who are kind of hanging around on the edges there just on the periphery Looking in because some kids aren't looking in some kids aren't actually interested there They're alone, but they're not lonely But the ones who are alone and lonely will often be like on the edge is kind of watching Waiting hoping our job then is to really warmly bring them into the fall to invite them in To help them to feel part of something to explain the rules of the game and the social etiquette in this situation and what's Expected and how it all works and bringing them up to speed but above all Warmly meeting greeting sharing our space with them and saying hey hey You're not an outsider. You're one of us come join us. We would love love To have you here and that warmth is so important here so invite outsiders in Next one I return to all the time. I'm afraid because love it Rituals and in jokes. I love a good routine a good ritual a good in joke These are the things that just as part of our day today Make us feel comfortable. They make us feel safe They make us feel like part of something because when we do things in the same way with the same people In the same places each day each week each month It's comfortable. It's safe and it's us This is what we do and it creates from individuals that feeling of us So rituals in jokes routines absolutely brilliant The one thing we've got to make sure of though if we're going to do this particularly with in jokes And I love a good in joke something we can laugh about together that just we understand But make sure we're not creating outsiders Everyone who we want as part of us needs to be in on the joke But yeah routines rituals and in jokes just love them have a think about In your regular day where you can have some of these things that Just feel part of us and how we do things in our class in our group If you're running a group think about how it begins and how it ends and if there are any regular parts of that group That you can do the same way each time repetition routine ritual it feels great It feels like yes. I'm here. I'm part of this and on a practical note for you as the person leading this Actually, it gives you a little bit of thinking space a little bit time helps with regulation And is one less thing you kind of need to plan because you can do it the same way each time It's good stuff Number five of six is problem solving So when we work together with a group of individuals to solve a problem Then we take a group of individuals and we create a team because when we work together towards a shared goal Whatever that might be suddenly We become one because we're working together. So anything that might encourage us to work together. This can be proper kind of led activity So you might go and do really fun stuff like Building a raft out of barrels and trying to make it float I had great fun doing that pgl with my daughter last summer and that really was team building Even more team building was probably the point at which Mark the dad of another family in our team decided we needed to try and get everyone else in the water And we really went for it But that moment on that holiday was the moment that this little group of families that I was part of and we've been going Round together We became one we became a team how to build this raft how to keep it floating and how to sink everyone else It was really really good fun. And actually laughter is part of that too anywhere where we can inject laughter here laughter only happens when we feel safe And we're feeling connected so Safety plus connection equals laughter is a good thing. So that's also part of our belongings a problem solving and laughter So you can do those kind of yes specific kind of led developed activities But equally just throwing a problem out there Maybe you have a tutor group and somebody's really struggling with Remembering which homeworks to hand in when instead of just giving them your advice If we get their permission to share that idea with the class and say hey, you know How do you guys manage all those different deadlines? How do you work out which work to prioritize and how long to spend on it and Remembering what to hand in when what are different people systems for this and what might be better When we then come together and we discuss those things and we share it together again We're problem solving, but it's day to day And that willingness to help each other to be a little bit vulnerable and share the things that we're struggling with and to problem Solve them as a group and share those ideas Again, really kind of team building can work really really well So you don't have to do all the big activities though. I love them It can be simple day to day how to solve this problem. I'm facing right now, please And then finally in terms of creating that feeling of belonging focusing in on similarities So any group of people that we bring together no matter how big no matter how diverse There will be some golden threads running through that group things that bring these people together I mean that they're more alike than they are different and I'm all about Celebrating what makes this unique what makes us different what makes us special that matters But in terms of creating this sense of belonging It's about and in which ways actually are we the same? How are we one? What are the things that bind us? and here Some of the things that can be really helpful to look to can be shared values and this is often a starting point for me So kindness is one that very very often when we bring a group of children together No matter their different experiences of the world no matter how different they look and behave and act Often at the heart of it all of them believe truly deeply in kindness and friendship And being good to one another and if we've all got that in common That's the thing where we can focus in on and that makes us a team with this shared value You can explore together what other shared values you might have what other things that we all have in common What things bring us together? It can be those deep things like your values, but it might be something much simpler We all support the same team We're all proud of the school that we're part of we're all from the same town It can be anything but looking for those similarities in this instance this thing that brings us together Rather than focusing in on the things that divide us where we disagree Or the things that mean we're very different to each other This is one of the reasons why there's really good evidence around how we can reduce Kind of bullying and misunderstanding between different groups When it comes to things like race or indeed when it comes to things like disability just merely through exposure Because the child you'll know this from classes that you've observed the the children who have a Disabled peer in their class for example They don't see that peer as a disabled peer. That's just one of their mates Whether that friend is in a wheelchair or uses hearing aids or is autistic or whatever as these kids get to know each other They don't see any of that stuff anymore. They don't see Color ethnicity religion none of this none of this they just see what they've got in common And what we can do is try to facilitate that look beyond Those differences focus in on what is the same the end of the day We're a group of kids. We can find things in common to laugh about Find things in common to be passionate about Find skills that we can develop together. We're all learners. That's another thing we all have in common So there we go. So our belonging how we can promote this feeling of belonging We're looking for kids like me when a child walks into your school Do they see themselves on the walls and in the ethos around them? Badges lanyards other visible signs that show belonging Number three is to invite your outsiders in looking at those kids standing on the periphery And warmly letting them know. Yeah, you're welcome here and giving them the information and Helping them build the confidence. They need to actually really participate Number four was rituals and in jokes your routines your rituals your in jokes doing things the same way That this group does together Really helps to create that feeling of us and relieves a little bit of pressure from us in our planning as well Number five was about problem solving when we solve a problem together We take a group of individuals and we create an instant team. So that's a really really great strategy And finally looking for similarities and focusing in on what we share What makes us united united what makes us similar to one another rather than focusing on those things Which divide us which we disagree on and which make us feel different to one another I hope there were some ideas in here that you felt you could pick up and run with and I would love to hear your ideas also If you would like to support my work you can do that in loads of different ways The easiest way is to share what i'm doing. So maybe share this podcast or some of my other resources with people within your network Let them know what i'm doing. I love it the more that people use my stuff the happier I am You can also support me if you'd like to financially by Subscribing to my patreon for a pound a month or more if you want to That is a place where people just give me a little bit of support And i'm trying to build that up as much as I can Over probably many years so that could become a main part of my work so that we as a community can dictate Where I focus my time And the other thing you can do to support my work is to invite me to come and speak at your next event Or in your setting either face to face. I go everywhere or virtually I go everywhere there too Have a fantastic week. Let me know your suggestions for future content And be kind to yourselves Until next time over