Learning Social Skills Virtually


Book Description

Digital workshops and meetings have established a firm foothold in our everyday lives and will continue to be part of the new professional normal, whether we like it or not. This book demonstrates how workshops and meetings held online can be made just as interactive, varied and enjoyable as face-to-face events. The methods from improvisational theatre are surprisingly well suited for online use and bring the liveliness, playful levity and co-creativity that are often lacking in digital lessons and meetings. Applied improvisation is an experience-oriented method that is suitable for developing all soft skills – online and offline. Alongside brief introductions to the most relevant themes, the book contains numerous practical exercises in the areas of teamwork, co-creativity, storytelling, status and appearance, with examples of how to implement them online. This book, written in the climate of the COVID-19 pandemic, is important reading for everyone – coaches, professionals and executives – looking for new impulses for their digital workshops and meetings, and who would like to expand the variety of their online methods. It offers new perspectives on many soft skills topics and supports interactive, engaging, lively and profitable online learning.




Handbook of Research on Developing a Post-Pandemic Paradigm for Virtual Technologies in Higher Education


Book Description

The COVID-19 pandemic has forced companies, institutions, citizens, and students to rapidly change their behaviors and use virtual technologies to perform their usual working tasks. Though virtual technologies for learning were already present in most universities, the pandemic has forced virtual technologies to lead the way in order to continue teaching and learning for students and faculty around the world. Universities and teachers had to quickly adjust everything from their curriculum to their teaching styles in order to adapt to an online learning environment. Online learning is a complex issue and one that comes with both challenges and opportunities; there is plenty of room for growth, and further study is required to better understand how to improve online education. The Handbook of Research on Developing a Post-Pandemic Paradigm for Virtual Technologies in Higher Education is a comprehensive reference book that presents the testimonials of teachers and students with various degrees of experience with distance learning and their utilization of current virtual tools and applications for learning, as well as the impact of these technologies and their potential future use. With topics ranging from designing an online learning course to discussing group work in an online environment, this book is ideal for teachers, educational software developers, IT consultants, instructional designers, administrators, professors, researchers, lecturers, students, and all those who are interested in learning more about distance learning and all the positive and negative aspects that accompany it.




Guided Inquiry


Book Description

This dynamic approach to an exciting form of teaching and learning will inspire students to gain insights and complex thinking skills from the school library, their community, and the wider world. Guided inquiry is a way of thinking, learning, and teaching that changes the culture of a school into a collaborative inquiry community. Global interconnectedness calls for new skills, new knowledge, and new ways of learning to prepare students with the abilities and competencies they need to meet the challenges of a changing world. The challenge for the information-age school is to educate students for living and working in this information-rich technological environment. At the core of being educated today is knowing how to learn and innovate from a variety of sources. Through guided inquiry, students see school learning and real life meshed in meaningful ways. They develop higher order thinking and strategies for seeking meaning, creating, and innovating. Today's schools are challenged to develop student talent, coupling the rich resources of the school library with those of the community and wider world. How well are you preparing your students to draw on the knowledge and wisdom of the past while using today's technology to advance new discoveries in the future? This book is the introduction to guided inquiry. It is the place to begin to consider and plan how to develop an inquiry learning program for your students.




PEERS® for Young Adults


Book Description

Session 1. Trading information and starting conversations -- session 2. Trading information and maintaining conversations -- session 3. Finding a source of friends -- session 4. Electronic communication -- session 5. Appropriate use of humor -- session 6. Entering group conversations -- session 7. Exiting conversations -- session 8. Get-togethers -- session 9. Dating etiquette : letting someone know you like them -- session 10. Dating etiquette : asking someone on a date -- session 11. Dating etiquette : going on dates -- session 12. Dating etiquette : dating do's and don'ts -- session 13. Handling disagreements -- session 14. Handling direct bullying -- session 15. Handling indirect bullying -- session 16. Moving forward and graduation.




The Zones of Regulation


Book Description

"... a curriculum geared toward helping students gain skills in consciously regulating their actions, which in turn leads to increased control and problem solving abilities. Using a cognitive behavior approach, the curriculum's learning activities are designed to help students recognize when they are in different states called "zones," with each of four zones represented by a different color. In the activities, students also learn how to use strategies or tools to stay in a zone or move from one to another. Students explore calming techniques, cognitive strategies, and sensory supports so they will have a toolbox of methods to use to move between zones. To deepen students' understanding of how to self-regulate, the lessons set out to teach students these skills: how to read others' facial expressions and recognize a broader range of emotions, perspective about how others see and react to their behavior, insight into events that trigger their less regulated states, and when and how to use tools and problem solving skills. The curriculum's learning activities are presented in 18 lessons. To reinforce the concepts being taught, each lesson includes probing questions to discuss and instructions for one or more learning activities. Many lessons offer extension activities and ways to adapt the activity for individual student needs. The curriculum also includes worksheets, other handouts, and visuals to display and share. These can be photocopied from this book or printed from the accompanying CD."--Publisher's website.




Living Virtually


Book Description

Virtual worlds are most often three dimensional locales, where people create virtual personae (called avatars) who come to play, socialize, and work. This edited collection of groundbreaking research on virtual worlds offers a wide-ranging look at the sociology, politics, and communication practices in virtual worlds from a group of scholars in the United States and abroad.




The Knowledge Gap


Book Description

The untold story of the root cause of America's education crisis--and the seemingly endless cycle of multigenerational poverty. It was only after years within the education reform movement that Natalie Wexler stumbled across a hidden explanation for our country's frustrating lack of progress when it comes to providing every child with a quality education. The problem wasn't one of the usual scapegoats: lazy teachers, shoddy facilities, lack of accountability. It was something no one was talking about: the elementary school curriculum's intense focus on decontextualized reading comprehension "skills" at the expense of actual knowledge. In the tradition of Dale Russakoff's The Prize and Dana Goldstein's The Teacher Wars, Wexler brings together history, research, and compelling characters to pull back the curtain on this fundamental flaw in our education system--one that fellow reformers, journalists, and policymakers have long overlooked, and of which the general public, including many parents, remains unaware. But The Knowledge Gap isn't just a story of what schools have gotten so wrong--it also follows innovative educators who are in the process of shedding their deeply ingrained habits, and describes the rewards that have come along: students who are not only excited to learn but are also acquiring the knowledge and vocabulary that will enable them to succeed. If we truly want to fix our education system and unlock the potential of our neediest children, we have no choice but to pay attention.




Social Skills Activities for Kids


Book Description

Learn Everyday Social Skills and Have Fun, Too! What are the Dos and Don'ts for making and keeping friends? How can you decode body language clues? What's the best way to keep a conversation going? Just like learning multiplication tables, social skills don't come naturally--every child has to learn them. Luckily, this book makes mastering social skills super fun with 50 awesome activities. Social Skills Activities for Kids gives children the confidence to successfully navigate social situations at home, school, and the world in between. From keeping the conversation ball moving to learning to compromise to practicing good table manners, these engaging activities help kids develop and use their social skills super powers. Inside Social Skills Activities for Kids, you'll find: Life Lessons--Kids learn how to handle everyday social situations like communicating with peers and adults, using and interpreting body language, reading social cues, and more. 50 Interactive Activities--Games, fill-in-the-blank exercises, and reflective entries keep kids learning and engaged. Real Scenarios--Includes up-to-date topics like bullying and using social media. Get the courage to be your very best self with Social Skills Activities for Kids.




Number Talks


Book Description

"A multimedia professional learning resource"--Cover.




Make Social and Emotional Learning Stick!


Book Description

The Mom's Choice Award winner, Make Social and Emotional Learning Stick! Practical activities to help your child manage their emotions, navigate social situations and decrease anxiety (2nd edition) has helped thousands of families manage their child's emotions, increase positive behavior and social skills, reduce anxiety, and so much more! Does your child struggle to fit in, make friends, have social confidence and navigate social situations? Does your child experience high levels of anxiety or BIG emotions with meltdowns that happen in the blink of an eye? Are you looking for the energy and patience to help your child develop these skills, but too busy managing the meltdowns, self-regulation issues, and behaviors that come from sensitivities, anxiety, ADHD, or autism? This book offers practical ideas in a user-friendly structure with simple and fun activities that help parents do just that. Learn how to help your child understand social rules, build emotional intelligence, become more mindful and develop better coping skills. Because your child learns the most from YOU! Children need ongoing exposure for greater awareness and understanding of themselves and the complex world in which they live-as well as explanations and practice throughout the day-to manage their emotions, navigate social situations, and reduce anxiety. Over 200 updated simple and easy-to-understand activities show you the teachable moments to use throughout your daily routines with your child. Getting ready for the day, preparing and eating meals together, reading time, going to the doctor, celebrating holidays, and partnering with your child's school become opportunities for discovery and practice of expected social behavior. These social and emotional skills activities, including new mindfulness practices and a new section on bridging home and school, are invaluable for busy or overwhelmed parents. When you have the tools you need to help your child, you can both become more calm, confident, and connected. Read Make Social and Emotional Learning Stick! and help your child: Build conversation skills for better relationships Navigate transitions and boundaries, and try new things Focus on schoolwork instead of resisting or complaining Gain listening and mindfulness skills to build better friendships Identify hidden social rules that make social situations easier Learn empathy and how to see others' perspectives instead of just their own Develop tools to build resilience and emotional regulation, decrease anxiety, and much more! Help your child thrive socially and emotionally-without either of you getting frustrated or overwhelmed!