School Environment

• In what ways is the school environment physically safe for all students and staff?  In what ways is it not?
• Which spaces of the school are physically safe and accessible for all students?  Which areas are not? 
• In what ways does the school prevent harassment, bullying and violence?
• What policies and procedures are in place to assess, monitor and intervene when there are threats to the school?
• What procedures are in place to support students who demonstrate risk and reintegrate them into the school community? 

• Staff are aware of differences in physical safety needs for different bodies and identities.
• Staff believe it is the staff and school's responsibility to keep students safe.
• Staff believe that all students deserve to be safe from bullying and harassment.

• A team of individuals meets regularly to discuss and review ongoing safety challenges.
• Staff know the necessary action to take when there is a threat to the school. 
• School staff are trained to respond appropriately to threats of violence. 
• Appropriate school staff are trained in crisis response and follow-up. 
• Staff are trained to effectively intervene when they witness bullying and harassment.
• School or district leadership regularly walks the building to look for accessibility challenges and environmental hazards.

• Colorado Bullying Prevention and Education Best Practices and Model Policy (CDE)
• Colorado Office of School Safety
• Colorado School Safety Resource Center
  • Comprehensive School Safety Planning: Suggested Elements for Districts and Schools
  • Essentials of School Threat Assessment: Preventing Targeted School Violence
  • Positive School Climate: Bullying and Harassment Prevention and Education
• Colorado Attorney General's Office
  • Safe 2 Tell
  • Colorado School Safety Guide (2019) [PDF]
  • School Safety - A Legal Manual
• Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CU Boulder)
• Safe and Resilient Schools: Threat Assessment (CU Boulder)

• Do all students and staff feel safe being themselves when they come to school?  Do they have to pretend to be someone else while participating in the school community?
• Who can find themselves represented and affirmed in the school community, through curriculum, staff, materials, rituals, etc.?
• How do staff create space and listen to the experiences and perspectives of all individuals?
• In what ways does the school prevent harassment, bullying, and violence?
• How often and in what ways do staff intervene when they hear or see individuals engaging in harmful behaviors (e.g., bullying, microaggressions, exclusion)?

• Staff believe that all students, staff, and families deserve to feel safe.
• Staff believe that the various unique identities that exist within a school strengthen the school community.
• Staff understand that people with different social locations or identities have different experiences.
• Staff understand that students may experience harm as a result of racism, sexism, homophobia, and other forms of oppression and discrimination. 

• Staff utilize inclusive language by choosing appropriately specific terms and showing respect by calling people what they call themselves 
• Staff affirm the uniqueness and humanity of every single person they interact with, and students are encouraged to do the same for their peers. 
• Staff intervene when they hear or see individuals engaging in behaviors (saying or doing something, subtle or egregious) that harm others.
• Staff model acceptance, curiosity, and value about all kinds of different people.
• Staff ensure that all students see their unique identities represented throughout the school (i.e., in the curriculum, on building walls and displays, and among the make-up of the staff, etc.).  
• Staff model appropriate repair behavior - apologize, change, move on, and don't do it again.

A Classroom Where Everyone Feels Welcome (Edutopia)

• How does the school environment communicate to all that they are respected, valued and a part of the school community?  How does it not?  Who is excluded?  
• How does the environment communicate to every student, staff member, and family that they belong?
• How does the climate and culture of the school promote the prevention of harm through self-awareness and self-reflection?
• In what ways are all staff trained and able to repair harm (or potential harm) when they make mistakes? 

• Staff believe that the school and classroom are enriched by the diverse experiences of each individual.
• Staff believe that belonging and community are essential for learning.
• Staff believe that it is their job to create a nurturing community within their school or classroom.
• Staff understand that belonging drives resilience.

• Staff are responsive to students with different types of needs (developmental, learning, cultural, etc.) so that they are supported and valued.
• Students are recognized, appreciated, and noticed throughout the day.
• The school environment shows a variety of people so that everyone can see themselves represented.
• Different kinds of students and accomplishments are celebrated throughout the school (e.g., athletes, musicians, artists, leaders, good friends, people with disabilities, people of color).
• Staff are able to create resilient communities - that repair flex and change over time.

• Suicide Prevention Policy and Implementation Guide (CDE-Project AWARE)
• The Importance of Student Sense of Belonging (Institute of Education Sciences)
• School Climate Influences Feelings of Safety and Connection for Students, Staff and Families (RMC Health Partners)
• Every Student Matters: Cultivating Belonging in the Classroom (Edutopia)
• Building a Belonging Classroom (Edutopia)

• How does the school environment create predictability and consistency throughout the day?   
• How do physical spaces promote predictability and consistency?
• How do policies and procedures promote predictability and consistency?
• How are routines developed and taught to students to create belonging, predictability, and consistency?

• Staff understand that consistency and predictability help everyone feel safe.
• Staff understand that when students know what expected of them they are more able to be successful.
• Staff understand that consistency and predictability help promote independence and self-efficacy.

• Staff explicitly teach expectations and expected behaviors.
• Staff explicitly reinforce expectations.
• Staff use consistent language.
• Staff react with consistency to student behavior.
• Staff consistently use school/classroom routines.
• Staff scaffold daily routines to create more independence and self-efficacy.

• Colorado's Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (CDE)
• Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports
  • Habits of Effective Classroom Practice (Center on PBIS)
• Consistent Routines (Whole Child Model)

• Do students, staff, and families have agency over their bodies, experiences, and choices?   
• When and to what extent are students, family, and staff meaningfully involved in decision-making processes that affect the school, the community, or their learning?
• How does the environment build and maintain trust?  How does the environment foster opportunities for autonomy? 
• In what ways does the climate and culture of the school create opportunities for scaffolded risk-taking? How are community members permitted to make mistakes in a safe way?

• Staff believe that students can make meaningful choices about their own education, given appropriate scaffolding and support.
• Staff understand that opportunities for choice can increase student engagement and motivation.
• Staff understand the importance of respecting student bodily autonomy, including private property. 
• Staff believe that families should have a voice and decision-making power at the school.
• School leaders believe that staff should have a voice and decision-making power at the school.

• Staff offer developmentally appropriate choice points.
• Staff ask permission and offer choices before touching students and their belongings.  
• Staff scaffold and support students in making decisions about their education.
• Staff model effective decision-making (metacognition).
• Staff support students in individualized and communal goal setting, tracking progress, and reflection on progress. 
• Students, staff, and families are involved in the co-creation, maintenance, and implementation of norms, expectations, routines, and rituals. 
• Staff create opportunities to hear the voices of families and engage them in decision-making processes at school.
• School leaders create opportunities to hear the voices of staff and engage them in decision-making processes at school.

• Family, School, and Community Partnerships (CDE)
• Five Ways to Give Your Students More Voice and Choice (Edutopia)
• Voice and Choice: It's More Than Just "What" (Edutopia)
• Podcast: Encouraging Voice and Choice in the Classroom (Teaching with Class)

• How does the school space support all forms of health? 
• Are there opportunities for movement, play, nutritious food, and time outside?
• What services are available within the school for physical and mental health (school health services)?  
• How is the space (whole school, classroom) structured to promote interpersonal connection for all? How is it not?
• Are spaces and places accessible, representative, and welcoming? 
• Are bathrooms accessible?

• Staff believe that it is the school's responsibility to promote health for youth and adults.
• Staff believe that students learn better if health is prioritized. 
• Staff believe that mental health is a component of health.

• Staff model appropriate self-care and emotional regulation.
• Staff integrate opportunities for socialization throughout the day.
• Staff integrate opportunities for physical movement throughout the day.
• Staff integrate opportunities for developmentally appropriate play throughout the day.
• Schools create time in the schedule for play, socialization, physical movement and connection.
• Schools create inviting, safe spaces for students and staff during down-time (lunchroom, library, lounge, hangout spaces, etc.). 
• Schools provide access to physical and mental health services within the school building and during the school day.

• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
  • Interactive Virtual Healthy Schools Tool
  • Helping School Leaders Create a Healthy and Supportive School Environment
  • School Health Guidelines to Promote Physical Activity and Healthy Eating
  • Tips for Teachers to Create Healthier Classrooms
• Activating the Brain with Movement Breaks (Edutopia)