Why Students Need Presence & Play Ft. Aija Simmons w/Anita Nowak - Purposeful Empathy
Description
In the final episode of this special series devoted to empathy in education with leaders and fellows of Transformative Educational Leadership (TEL), watch this episode to discover how SEL (social and emotional learning) can transform classrooms into spaces of co-regulation, belonging, and joy—especially for students who need it most.
Aija Simmons, Program Director at 21st Century California School Leadership Academy, shares how raising a neurodivergent child, teaching in inner-city schools, and leading California’s Universal Transitional Kindergarten (TK) Initiative have shaped her understanding of education. She also advocates for play-based learning and joy in the classroom, as well as at home.
00:00 Preview
01:12 Introduction
01:47 About Aija Simmons
03:35 Aija’s backstory
06:39 Aija’s understanding of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
10:15 How teachers can help students navigate their emotions through co-regulation
14:17 Bringing more joy into classrooms—and why that’s important
18:33 Talking about SEL with skeptics
20:35 What folks misunderstand about SEL
24:32 SEL for parents
29:11 What growing up with an incarcerated parent taught Aija?
36:28 The power of play in early childhood education
39:40 Why teachers need to learn more about their students
43:05 The role of empathy in education
45:02 Aija Simmons’s Purposeful Empathy story
CONNECT WITH ANITA
✩ Email purposefulempathy@gmail.com
✩ Website https://www.anitanowak.com
✩ Buy a copy of Purposeful Empathy http://tiny.cc/PurposefulEmpathyCA
✩ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/anitanowak/
✩ Instagram https://tinyurl.com/anitanowakinstagram
✩ Podcast Audio https://tinyurl.com/PurposefulEmpathyPodcast
✩ Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/anitanowak.bsky.social
CONNECT WITH AIJA
✩ LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/aijeron-simmons/
SHOW NOTES
✩ Transformative Educational leadership https://www.teleadership.org/
✩ Artesian Wellness Coaching http://www.artesianwellcoaching.com
✩ Universal Transitional Kindergarten https://www.csba.org/en/GovernanceAndPolicyResources/ResearchAndPolicyBriefs/Universal-Transitional-Kindergarten#gsc.tab=0
Video edited by Green Horizon Studio
United States
