R E - E S TA B L I S H I N G S PA C E F O R

C O N V E R S AT I O N + C O M M O N A L I T Y + C O M M U N I T Y

EDUCATION TRACK

There was a time when people gathered on the front porch to swap stories, share a laugh, and enjoy each other’s company. Sadly, many of us have replaced our front porch discussions with weak substitutes, such as the Internet and entertainment, busyness and isolation.

But deep down, we all still long for the front porch—a place where we can share life. We need a gathering place to reconnect to those around us and act as a front porch in this increasingly isolated culture.

This is why we started the Front Porch Initiative—to move our relationships forward by looking back at how community has always been built— sharing life and sharing stories.

CONNECTIONAFTER CRISIS

DISCONNECTED BY DIGITAL CONNECTION

40%Decline in empathy among college students 3

“Texting offers just the right amount of access, just the right amount of control. She is a modern Goldilocks: for her, texting puts people not too close, not too far, but at just the right distance. The world is now full of modern Goldilockses, people who take comfort in being in touch with a lot of people whom they also keep at bay.” 3

SHERRY TURKLEProfessor of the Social Studies of

Science and Technology, MIT

8- to 10-year-olds use media5

Watch more at FrontPorchInitiative.com/TED

The average number of texts per day by 12 to 17-year-olds 4

167TEXTSPER DAY

6 HOURSPER DAY

We live in an increasingly connected world. And while there are many benefits (convenience, ease, efficiency) to technology, research suggests that those benefits do come at a cost. We have never been so connected—yet, our face-to-face conversations have never been so lacking. “Our social and emotional intelligence actually suffer if we aren’t engaging in those face-to-face meaningful conversations” says Dan Siegel, M.D., a Psychiatry Professor from UCLA School of Medicine.1 The relational and psychological effects on our kids are considerable:

Children are becoming more self-centered: Self-centeredness has increased by 30% among college students in the past 30 years.2

Children care less about others: Empathy (the ability to understand and share the feelings of another) has decreased by 40% in the past 30 years.3

Professor Jean Twinge from San Diego State University elaborates: “Somebody high in self-esteem values individual achievement, but they also value their relationships and caring for others.” She continues, “Narcissists are missing that piece about valuing, caring and their relationships, so they tend to lack empathy, they have poor relationship skills.” 2

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The weight of a crisis or enhanced digital world, certainly makes things more complex—but the way forward is to commit ourselves to habits that value students and adults as people with real needs and unique stories. By working to meet these needs and working to make schools and communities more people-centered, we help transform potential experiences of isolation and disconnection into incredible examples of supportive community where people can ask questions, take risks, and discover themselves. Understanding that no teacher or student is the same will help us to humanize the school experience and bring deeper meaning for teachers, students, and faculty.

MAKING DEEPER CONNECTIONS WITHALL PEOPLE

40%-60%By high school, as many as 40 to 60 percent of all students—urban, suburban, and rural—are chronically disengaged from school 7

Empathy builds positive classroom culture. Students learn to understand each other, which helps them to build friendships based on positive relationships of trust.

Empathy strengthens community. Relationships deepen between classmates that may be coming from different cultures and different socioeconomic backgrounds.

Empathy prepares your students to be leaders in their community.Students must be able to empathize with those whom they lead in order to make them feel valued. 6

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A PATH TO MORE MEANINGFUL RELATIONSHIPS

While there is no quick fix to connecting with others, there are some scientifically-proven principles that can help us engage in a deeper way. The Front Porch Initiative provides an intentional space for:

SELF-REFLECTIONSelf-reflection involves examining one’s own thoughts, feelings, and emotions in order to gain insight. The brain is wired for this concept. When we teach a child, we empower that student with the resources that directly affect his or her ability to pay attention, engage, and create learning experiences. School culture is simply about relationships, and the brain is a relational organ designed to survive, think, and feel. If we give students more time to reflect on their own challenges, successes, and failures, they will be more likely to be connected to those around them which in turn leads to a greater likelihood of success both socially and academically.

STORYTELLING + LISTENINGDid you know that when you tell a story and you take your listeners through the details of each scene, you actually transfer experiences directly to someone else’s brain? Breakthrough work by neuroscientist Uri Hasson, of Princeton University, has proven just that.8 He and his team have found ways to measure multiple brains connecting through conversation. In simple terms, what’s really happening is called empathy—they can feel what you feel. Effective storytelling and communicating synchronizes the brain activity within a group of people. As the storyteller relates desires through a story, those desires are adopted by the whole audience. When the story includes troubles, the listeners sit on the edge of their seats in anticipation, and when those desires are fulfilled in the story, everyone smiles and laughs together. This is called Neural Coupling: where the frontal cortex of our brains synchronize. As long as you have the attention of your audience, they are in your mind. When you hear a good story, you develop empathy with the teller because your mind experiences those same events for yourself.

“When you have self-reflection and you have relationships that are caring and connecting, you actually stimulate growth of the integrative fibers in the brain.” 1

DAN SIEGEL, M.D.Professor of Pediatric Psychiatry,

UCLA School of Medicine

Watch more at FrontPorchInitiative.com/TED

WHEN A STORY IS TOLD,OUR BRAINS SYNCHRONIZE8

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WHAT DOES THEFRONT PORCH INITIATIVE LOOK LIKE?

CONVERSATION

R E - E S TA B L I S H I N G S PA C E F O R

The starting point for any relationship is conversation. Face-to-face engagement and storytelling gives a place to tell and listen to each others’ unique stories.

Connection is found in the things we have in common with others, as well as in understanding and celebrating the things that make us different. When we know others, we have the opportunity to put ourselves in others’ shoes (empathy).

When we’re connected to those around us, it means we’re more willing to take risks and put others first. It also means students are more likely to succeed, both academically and socially.

COMMONALITY COMMUNITY

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Frankly, there isn’t anyone you couldn’t learn to love once you’ve

heard their story.

”

A QUOTE MR. ROGERS CARRIED IN HIS WALLET.

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OURRESOURCES

1. EVERY STORY HAS A BEGINNING

What do your opening pages hold? Where did your story start? What characters played a part in setting the stage for your life?

3. EVERY STORY HAS HOPE

2. EVERY STORY HAS CHALLENGES

4. EVERY STORY HAS A FUTURE

Who or what gives you hope? Where did your story take a turn for the better?

What difficulties have you faced? Were there dark twists and turns in your story?

Where will your story take you in the days ahead?What would you like to see in your last chapter?

Kindergarten to 2nd-grade booklet

3rd- to 6th-grade booklet Lower & Upper High School booklet

Corporate booklet

Check them out atFrontPorchInitiative.com

SHARE YOUR LIFE STORYMy Story booklets provide a guided journey through your stories and the stories of others.

We created the Front Porch Initiative to change and improve the way children, youth, and staff relate to one another. The trend toward disconnection and narcissism can end here. Imagine the next generation embracing their differences and finding commonality and empathy—all through sharing their own life stories.

Our resources are designed to assist children and youth in crafting and sharing their own life stories following four simple chapters in the My Story booklets: Beginnings, Challenges, Hope, and Future. In addition to writing their stories, there is space to paste a photograph or draw a picture for each chapter. By engaging minds cognitively and creatively, the lessons they learn will gain in strength and power.

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David LaFrance

PRINCIPALOakland School

Bloomington, Illinois

Once you know each others’ stories, you can have empathy. FPI has built and

deepened relationships among staff, students, and families. My Story has helped us see that we all

have beginnings, challenges, hope, and a future.

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SCHOOLSTANDARDS

SPEAKING & LISTENING

Each state has guidelines for what every student should know and be able to do in Math, English Language Arts & Literacy, History/Social Studies, and Science from kindergarten through 12th grade. These standards are research and evidence-based and aligned with college and work expectations. The Front Porch Initiative meets many of these requirements specifically:

WRITING LANGUAGE/LITERATURE

RECOGNIZE AND MANAGE EMOTIONS

DEMONSTRATE CARE AND CONCERN FOR OTHERS

ESTABLISH POSITIVE RELATIONSHIPS

MAKE RESPONSIBLE DECISIONS

HANDLE CHALLENGING SITUATIONS CONSTRUCTIVELY

Other social-emotional standards:

PROMOTION OF MENTAL WELLNESS

PREVENTION OF MENTAL HEALTH ISSUES

SCHOOL CONNECTEDNESS

REDUCTION IN STUDENT ABSENTEEISM

IMPROVED ACADEMIC OUTCOMES

SOURCES1. Dan Siegel. TED Talk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LiyaSr5aeho).

2. “Research Says Young People Today Are More Narcissistic Than Ever”(http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/allinthemind/young-people-today-are-more-narcissistic-than-ever/5457236).

3. Sherry Turkle. Reclaiming Conversation and “Stop Googling. Let’s Talk.” (https://www.nytimes.com/2015/09/27/opinion/sunday/stop-googling-lets-talk.html).

4. Pew Research Center, “Teens, Smartphones & Texting” (http://www.pewinternet.org/2012/03/19/teens-smartphones-texting/).

5. “Teens spend a ‘mind-boggling’ 9 hours a day using media, report says” (http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/03/health/teens-tweens-media-screen-use-report/index.html).

6. “Empathy in the Classroom: Why Should I Care?” (https://www.edutopia.org/blog/empathy-classroom-why-should-i-care-lauren-owen).

7. “A Case for School Connectedness” (www.ascd.org/publications/educational-leadership/apr05/vol62/num07/A-Case-for-School-Connectedness.aspx).

8. Hasson, U.; Nir, Y.; Levy, I.; Fuhrmann, G.; Malach, R. (2004) Intersubject synchronization of cortical activity during natural vision. Science 303:1634-1640.

The Front Porch Initiative is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization.

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THE FRONT PORCH APPThis app is a tool for students to use with family and friends and at school. Two app modes, Lower Elementary (K-2nd) and Upper Elementary (3rd-8th), allow you to choose from four categories that will ask questions or ask you to share a story from your beginnings, challenges, hope, or future. It also gives users an opportunity to use the app at home with mom, dad, siblings, grandma, or grandpa.

FrontPorchInitiative.com/app

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Order booklets and training packages to begin building conversation, community, and commonality in your classroom and school. Visit FrontPorchInitiative.comto place your order.

© The Front Porch Initiative. All Rights Reserved.

CONVERSATION

COMMONALITY

COMMUNITY

Join the Front Porch Initiative today.