Professional Development
Changing
the culture of a classroom and school takes time, patience, sustained effort,
and support. We are working with Educators for Social Responsibility and other
educational organizations, including colleges of education, to provide exceptional
professional development opportunities.
Our goal is to equip teachers, school counselors, principals, and other educators
who wish to implement Don't Laugh at Me (DLAM) with the necessary skills and
confidence to launch the program successfully. Workshops are designed to offer
participants: background on the innovative approach of the DLAM program; a detailed
examination of program components and related teaching resources; hands-on experiences
with multiple strategies for implementation and classroom infusion of DLAM; methods
for the utilization of DLAM as a gateway program to comprehensive year-round
social and emotional learning; and, assistance in developing school action plans
for incorporating DLAM into existing efforts that meet the specific needs of
individual schools.
DLAM is designed to help teachers and students create a respectful, compassionate
and ridicule-free environment that nurture both the emotional/social and academic
growth of students. The program integrates powerful video images and music with
highly regarded conflict resolution curricula that help sensitize students to
the painful effects of bullying, ridicule and other forms of disrespect - behaviors
that frequently lie at the root of emotional and physical injury that children
inflict upon one another. The programs are designed to inspire children to help
take responsibility for making their class a "Ridicule Free Zone," and
to give them the tools and techniques for preserving it.
