“The project allowed me to understand my students better and in doing so, I was able to change the activities we did to help the students cope and grow…I realized through this project how important it is for students to enjoy school in order for them to make it to graduation.”
-Liliana Tang
For many students, the journey after the Eaton Fire has been filled with stress and uncertainty. But through the commitment of teachers like Blair High School’s Liliana Tang, students are finding their voice, their confidence, and their resilience. With simple yet powerful tools, Liliana is helping students see that healing and growth are possible—even in difficult times. Now months after the fire, many students have a hard time opening up about the traumas they experienced both during and after the fire. They are also feeling incredibly stressed Many students are also feeling incredibly stressed and uncertain about the current political situation of the United States. These kids are feeling anxious and isolated, as many of them are unsure of how to cope with these new, overwhelming emotions.
Liliana Tang, a science teacher at Blair High School, saw this isolation and knew something had to be done. Liliana shifted her academic plans after the Eaton Fire. Using the money awarded from a PEF teacher grant, Liliana purchased planners and journals for her 40 middle school students. From there, she and her students meditated on their feelings daily and kept diaries for themselves. Stickers, writings, and drawings were some of the ways that students filled their journals.
“The students were able to improve their organizational skills with the planners and were able to remember their assignments better. The journals were a great success with the middle schoolers because they were able to use them to express themselves. Many of the students were affected by the fires as well as the ICE raids in the community. A few of the students were feeling scared and anxious because of what was happening and the journals allowed them to express those feelings.”
Through the act of journaling and group discussion, Liliana has focused on introducing Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) into her curriculum. SEL is the process by which people develop the emotional and self-identity-related skills needed to make responsible and caring decisions. For example, by writing down their thoughts and feelings in an organized manner, students have a chance to practice reflecting deeply on the things that make them upset. The skill of being able to reflect on and define their feelings also helps students be empathetic with their classmates as they realize that others are experiencing similar emotions.
Liliana believes that SEL and these journals will be important for her students as the new school year progresses. Students will need the skills to move through coping with the immediate crises, like the Eaton Fire, and focus more on their long-term emotional well-being. These Blair middle schoolers will use skills such as self-awareness and social awareness to facilitate open communication between themselves about these stressful topics.
As part of this ongoing project, Liliana has been discussing with her coworkers how to incorporate SEL into more classrooms on campus.
