Conglom

Conglom is an opportunity for students and teachers of each class to come together first thing in the morning to start the day on a positive note. This is a time for learners to share feelings, opinions, and ideas. The teacher and students facilitate the interaction so that each thought is respected and valued. The atmosphere that is created is one of trust and community amongst the group. This creates a safe environment, ultimately leading to student well-being.

Agenda Setting & CTL

Agenda Setting is a powerful routine that uses the pedagogy of co-creation to invite the voice of the child in the design of the day – be it with the learning expectations or with spontaneous moments that might emerge. When the Agenda is made visible and co-created, it builds a sense of ownership and well-being. The process allows for collaboration as the teachers and students plan together and students have a choice and voice in allocating the agendas.

Closing the Loop occurs at the end of a session / day / month / year. There is a sense of accomplishment of all that has been done, and reflection on how and what was learned and now to refine it if needed.

Buddy Interaction

Buddy Interaction is driven by the understanding that learning can take place independent of age and gender, because when you listen carefully you will always learn. A community of sharing, caring and growing is cultivated when all learners feel valued and safe.

Sports Day

Sports days are often about competition and a 'winner takes all' mentality. The fastest, the most skilled athletes take centerstage and others are relegated to mere 'spectators' or 'cheer leaders' at best. The Riverside Sports Day is unique in the design that sees a 'champion' in all children - including skills other than sporting prowess with the same importance. Each squad is made up of myriad talents and skills - design, performances, speech writing, people managers and more. Suddenly a day that is often dreaded by 'non athletes' becomes the most 'looked forward' day for all children.

First Day First Week

Every school year starts with some anxiety and a lot of anticipation - for all stakeholders. To set the tone for the year, it is very important to make visible the values of the school and help all stakeholders feel a sense of alignment and anticipation for the learning journey. The First Day First Week is a process that allows schools to intentionally set the tone by inviting the children into the design of the programme and therefore, have them feel a sense of ownership and empowerment from the very first day!

Persistence

Persistence is a process that the first batch of Riverside started in 2008. It was born of a realisation that adolescents are quick to change their likes and interests and for any change to happen - it will take time. Therefore, the word - Persistence - this process is designed to 'slow down' the need for change and to really spend time in listening, in iteration and in building relationships with the people affected and who are in need. Through this process, the children realise that 'being the change, changes the being'.

Making Teaching Visible

A process where the teacher shares the research and pedagogical rationale behind their practice, so that parents can see and understand the why and therefore the what and how behind the experiences and learning of their children. MTVs result in greater trust being built between parents and teachers. Parents start looking at teachers as well-informed professionals who deserve to be respected.

Board Protocol

The design of the board prompts the teacher to explicitly articulate and make visible how each lesson is designed to catalyse Relevance, Rigor & Relationship.

Our teaching board now acts as our conscience. It anchors not just the lesson plan but also serves as a visual cue that reminds us to intentionally notice the learner. By responding to the various sections on the board, students become active participants in the lesson and not just passive listeners.

Teachers are able to easily save their board work to share their practice with peers as well as the school leaders, thus creating a measure of accountability and credibility.

Congenial Meets

A key determinant of creativity and growth in a school is the relationship shared between the members of the teaching community as well as the support team - for the strength and trust in the team has a direct impact on the decisions made for the children. Research has shown that colleagues who respect and trust each other are more likely to work from a space of ownership and accountability towards their work and this means they are more willing to innovate and create opportunities for their children.

Teacher Driven Observation

The Teacher Driven Observation process is a twist on the regular 'teacher observation' practice that is often conducted in most schools. Here, the onus is on the teacher to invite colleagues to observe his/her practice with the explicit focus on obtaining data on a 'specific' concern that the teacher might want to improve on. This way, there is no judgement - what a teacher receives is 'data' without being flavored with opinion - and this helps the strategies for growth to be more focussed.

Parent Orientation

The Parent Orientation is the first introduction of the values of the school, the members of the community and the shared expectations for all incoming children and parents every year. It is a time where the parents participate in a thoughtful and intentionally designed learning experience which helps them move from any anxiety that they might have to a feeling of anticipation for the years ahead!

Making Learning Visible

The overall goal of Making Learning Visible is to create and sustain powerful cultures of learning in and across classrooms and schools that nurture and make visible individual and group learning.
The multiple ways in which children demonstrate understanding through the Making Learning Visible process which offers all participants - children, parents and teachers an opportunity to build confidence and competencies, alike.

Assessments

Often a child's awareness of self is relegated to a 'grade' or a set of marks - limiting and diminishing a child's identity. In this workshop - participants will learn multiple ways to help value and evaluate the 'plurality' of a child's identity - so that both, the child and the parent are more aware of the myriad facets that make up the full story of a child.

Support Staff Wellbeing

The administration staff and support team are often overlooked when one thinks of the main stakeholders in a school community even though they are the ones who enter first and leave the last on any given day. Therefore, the Support Team Wellbeing process is designed to intentionally timetable for the care and inclusion of the team as a valued member of a school ecosystem.

Month-End Presentation

A culture of congeniality is built when members of a community have warm and social interactions amongst each other. But a culture of collegiality is cultivated when all team members feel safe to share both - their achievements and their 'failures' in a safe and non-judgemental space. The Month End Presentation is a time for the community to gather and celebrate and be inspired by their colleagues as they travel this journey of growth and purpose.

Meeting With Purpose

Team meetings are times for personal and professional growth - and when nourished with meaning and purpose, it offers an opportunity for a team to align and commit to the vision and mission of the school. This workshop will provide simple strategies to leaders and coordinators on how to always start with empathy and relevance to build a culture of shared values and goals.

Humane Framework

This workshop will take participants through our Design Thinking framework - FIDS (Feel, Imagine, Do, Share) to show how we create processes that bring values to life.

The participants will learn to use the framework to
1) build a culture of iteration
2) use co-creation as a tool with all stakeholders (students, parents, staff, and community) The workshop will use case studies from Riverside to highlight the FIDS method.

The workshop will demonstrate, that if you are anchored by strong values built for the learner first, and follow a design thinking framework, you can shape HumanE citizens with an I CAN Mindset, who are rooted in empathy, ethics, excellence, and collaboration.