Some things we do to help inclusion in our school are:

Motivational Plan

Some things we do to establish inclusion in our school are:

We teach people with all types of barriers including addiction, mental health, poverty, learning disabilities, age, and ESL, to name a few.

Most of our learners have fallen through the cracks; they have little self-confidence and have trust issues. They have built up walls and we need to break down these walls and build up their self-worth and self-confidence before they can begin to learn. There are many ways I use to achieve this; first I bring them in and show them with actions and words that they can achieve anything if they put their mind to it that we are there and will support them in any way we can. We have breakfast together every day to achieve a family feel to build up their comfort zone so learning can happen with positive group support.

Other things we do are:

• Establish “ground rules”. Make sure that all students know what is expected of them while participating in the program. Make it clear that respecting all others means; culture, religious beliefs, gender identity, learning disabilities, addiction and mental health issues or any other barriers.
• Encourage students to share their stories with the class. Who they are, where they come from, how they like to be addressed, etc.
• Have an open door policy so that students know they can come to me and share in private.
• Provide student counselling services.
• Never make assumptions or generalizations about student’s ethnicity, gender identity or learning disability. No two persons from any one particular group are bound to be alike.
• Provide soft skills training that includes sensitivity training, conflict resolution, communications skills and anger management.
• Learning styles differ to that end I make my lessons and curriculum as flexible as possible.
• Be proactive when trying to connect with individual students by asking if there is anything they need to make things more comfortable for them.

Some things we do to develop positive attitudes are:

• Use a strength based approach in teaching. Take a student’s strong points and work from there. You will find that their weaknesses tend to improve.
• Use lots of positive reinforcement. When they do well, praise them and when they struggle remind them of their previous triumphs. Make them feel valued.
• Be a good example by always maintaining a positive attitude myself.
• Teach students good self-care. Help them to develop a good mind, body, spirit routine.
• Help senior students to mentor junior students and talk about how it feels good to help others.
• Instil a sense of personal responsibility and accountability in all students. Hold myself and the students to practice and maintain high standards so that they feel a sense of achievement and satisfaction when they complete a task.
• Help students to set realistic goals and achieve them.

Some things we do to enhance meaning for our students are:

• Help students relate a personal experience to what they are learning. For example; get them to imagine who the people in the kitchen are when they go to eat in a restaurant. Do those people practice proper Food Safe procedures? Always imagine that you are preparing everything to your own standards if you were the customer.
• Give students assignments that stimulate their curiosity.
• Allow students from other cultures to prepare a meal from their home country.
• Give students more than one option for assignments so they have the opportunity to choose something that appeals to them personally.
• Give praise for things like punctuality and attendance.

Some things we do to engender competence in our students are:

• Always make the students feel valued. For example; “The client will be very impressed with the canapés you made for their catering order”. This allows the student to realize that their assignment is part of a bigger picture.
• Help students to self-reflect on their finished product. Explain to them the knowledge they required to complete the task.
• Help students to understand how the skills they are learning can be applicable to real life situations. For example; being a good team player is a sought after quality in any employee no matter what the job is.
• Give lots of feedback. Let the students know how they are progressing even if they feel they are not.
• Build upon the students learning experience and the learners lived experience.