WINGS Gives Kids Missing Life Skills
Life Skills Curriculum Develops Capabilities Gradually and Consistently
Want to know what’s it like to attend WINGS and experience our life skills curriculum? Here’s a glimpse through the eyes of one of our students named Robert. Each week we focus on one or two of the 30 learning objectives that make up our life skills curriculum. For this example, it’s the objective for kids to learn how to focus their attention inward to limit distractions.
Community Unity
The opening of the WINGS program - known as Community Unity - consists of four parts:
- The Welcome, when WINGSLeaders greet incoming students;
- Eat and Meet, providing nutritious snacks with group interaction;
- Circle Time, when leaders connect with brief activities; and
- Good News and Announcements, for sharing student information with everyone.
During Community Unity, the first 30 minutes of Wings life skills curriculum each day, the kids gather in the cafeteria. This is the time they all recite Our Creed. The Nests of 10-12 kids sit in circles playing a game. The object is for all the kids to try to make each other smile, without smiling themselves. The kids have fun. Then their WingsLeader, a college student, teaches them a trick – how to focus inward. They’re told: Close your eyes and imagine you can see your heart beating. Open your eyes and still try to see it beating. The life skills curriculum of lessons and games continue.
Then the Program Director gets on the microphone and talks about why it’s important to be able to focus attention inward to limit distractions. She tells the kids about the time when she was in a play and forgot her lines because she was looking out into the audience. She asks for other staff members and kids to come up and give examples of when they got distracted and it ended badly.
Choice Time
After Community Unity, Robert goes to his kickball Choice Time for 40 minutes.
A regular part of our life skills curriculum, our kids have two Choice Times a week – a Monday/Wednesday Choice Time and one on Tuesday/Thursday. Choice Time offers a group of electives divided into appropriate developmental levels. Once kids make their choices, they pursue their electives for nine weeks. Many will be suggested by the students, which increases their involvement.
To build decision-making skills and encourage affinities, students will discuss what interests them and build on their strengths or explore their curiosities, as well as how to think through choice selection. Four days a week, the children participate in activities like dance, exercise and nutrition; history; music, computer capabilities; reading and writing; science, chess or visual and verbal puzzle-solving; art, sports, photography.
During the nine-week life skills curriculum, each above elective is offered. These activities build skill levels gradually, stimulate critical/higher order thinking, and integrate SEL objectives so students acquire and practice their capabilities.
There’s a fast paced game of kickball going on during Robert’s Choice Time activity. The coach, one of our WingsLeaders, brings the team into a huddle. The coach talks about how to focus inward by telling the kids to concentrate on their breathing when they kick the ball and ignore the shouts from the sidelines – they’ll have a much better chance of getting a good kick.
On Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, there are more Community Unity games, more announcements, more lessons woven into Choice Times and Academic Time.
Academic Time
Then Robert goes to Academic Time at the end of the day. All students spend 40 minutes in quiet Academic Centers where staff and volunteers provide assistance and encouragement in a productive atmosphere, and the adult-student ratio is 1 to 12. On this day, Robert’s WingsLeader talks to the kids about how to position their bodies, where to focus their eyes, so that distractions don’t prevent them from getting homework done.
WingsWorks
On Mondays and Wednesdays, the life skills curriculum includes WingsWorks - community service around the school. Research demonstrates that when students contribute through activities that serve others, it iimproves attachment to school and increases their own pride and self-confidence.
For WingsWorks, Robert’s Nest rakes leaves on the playground. The WingsLeader demonstrates the difference between limiting distractions (getting all the leaves in one pass) or letting distraction in (having to go back over the same ground twice). He tells the boys that if they get done quickly, they can spend time playing on the playground after the job is done. He notices that the kids are focusing inward and limiting distractions. He rewards them with play time.
WildWINGS
On Fridays we have WildWINGS, 90 minutes of games, discussions and role-playing that help students comprehend the relationship between thoughts, emotions and actions. It’s always something new – WildWINGS is a fun and crazy way to end our weekly life skills curriculum.
The WildWINGS for this particular day is called “Are You Balanced???” Games are set up all over the school – there is a low bar balance beam – there’s a series of buckets to stand on – there’s a relay race carrying raw eggs on a spoon – yes, they love to drop them! There’s a point system and when the results are added up, the winners are celebrated. Throughout the afternoon, lesson after lesson offers strategies and practice in managing distractions. At the end of the day, giant bouncy balls are raffled off.
So there were numerous life skills lessons – both formal and informal – that help teach kids like Robert how to focus their attention inward to limit distractions.
If you are interested in learning more, please read about out Hot Wings or download our free social & emotional development activities, lessons, and plans to help model, shape and reinforce social skills.
