The Whole (Tool)kit and Caboodle! | By: Committee for Children By Juliet Kandel We have great news for principals of Second Step schools! The Second Step Principal Toolkit is available to help you kick off the 2015–16 school year! At the start of the school year, we’re all eager to set the stage for an authentically safe and supportive learning environment. Principals, assistant principals, and other school leaders scramble to come up with student assemblies, staff activities, and messages to help build a positive school climate. This year, we’ve done the work for you! The Second Step Principal Toolkit is loaded with ready-to-use leadership tools—such as morning announcements, staff orientation meetings, student assembly scripts, family communications, and staff activities—all aligned with the Second Step K–5 program. What’s more, the Principal Toolkit Program Activation Key will give you access to additional online materials at SecondStep.org. Monthly Schoolwide Tools The toolkit is organized in monthly sections. To start the year, set all staff up for success using the two short, fully scripted staff orientation meetings, a sort of Second Step 101 for adults. When all adults in the building know the Calming-Down Steps and Problem-Solving Skills, reinforcement and practice can happen at all points in a student’s day. Weekly morning announcements and a kick-off assembly will announce to students and staff that school climate and Second Step skills are schoolwide priorities. As teachers and students move through Second Step units in the classroom, corresponding simple, scripted staff meeting activities keep the skills top-of-mind for all adults throughout the school. Weekly announcements and monthly student assemblies create seamless messages for students, encouraging positive behavior with consistent, common language. Talk-It-Over Tool Along with the tools you’ll use to teach skills schoolwide to adults and students, the Second Step Principal Toolkit also includes a practical stand-up discussion guide for talking with students who are referred to the office for extra guidance. Using the principles of restorative practices and the core skills and language from the Second Step program, the Talk-It-Over Tool provides you with simple language and steps to coach a student through skills for learning (listening, focusing), empathy and perspective taking, calming down, and problem solving. Success in the Classroom and Beyond With your leadership and the Principal Toolkit, you'll unify your students and staff around a schoolwide emphasis on Second Step skills and concepts. In the classroom, Second Step lessons provide students with a common set of skills and language that help them meet behavioral expectations at school. The Principal Toolkit empowers you to leverage those skills, building a safe and supportive learning environment for everyone. This all-new resource provides easy, everyday ways to strengthen the Second Step program’s visibility and impact. Learn more about how it can be used to create a culture of caring, learning, and achievement today!