Applying the Science of Gratitude in Education


Over the past decade, science has shown that the practice of gratitude can be transformational for students and the adults who work with them. For example, feeling grateful not only contributes to teens' emotional well-being, but also motivates them to help others and use their strengths to contribute to society. Researchers have also found that gratitude lessens teachers' burnout and increases their well-being. 

In this day-long workshop, gratitude experts and practitioners will offer science-based, practical strategies and exercises for fostering gratitude in schools. K-12 teachers and school staff can use these strategies to foster students' and their own emotional well-being and cultivate a sense of belonging in schools and classrooms.

Featured speakers include social-emotional learning expert Linda Lantieri, gratitude expert Giacomo Bono, and panelists representing the Center for Courage and Renewal, Commitee for Children, Open Circle and the Center for Healthy Minds.

Participants will also receive access to free gratitude curriculum developed by our speakers. We will also provide lunch and refreshments at break times.

We regret that we are unable to offer continuing education credits or clock hours for this workshop. 

  • 8:30 - 9:00am

    Registration

  • 9:00 - 9:15am

    Welcome

  • 9:15 - 10:00am

    Keynote Speaker: Giacomo Bono

  • 10:00 - 10:45am

    Keynote Speaker: Linda Lantieri

  • 10:45 - 11:00am

    BREAK

  • 11:00 - 11:45am

    Panel: Gratitude and Staff Development

  • 11:45am - 12:30pm

    Panel: Gratitude Practices for Students

  • 12:30 - 1:30pm

    LUNCH

  • 1:30 - 2:45pm

    Breakout Sessions:
    Elementary Breakout Group (Linda Lantieri)
    Middle/High School Breakout Group (Giacomo Bono)

  • 2:45 - 3:00pm

    BREAK

  • 3:00-3:30pm

    Closing: What comes next?

  • Linda Lantieri, MA has been in the field in education for over 45 years in a variety of capacities: classroom teacher, assistant principal, director of a middle school in East Harlem, and faculty member at Hunter College in New York City. She is a Fulbright Scholar and internationally known speaker in the areas of Social and Emotional Learning and Mindfulness in Education.

    Linda is one of the co-founders and presently a Senior Program Advisor for the Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL). She is also an Adjunct Assistant Professor in the Psychology Department of Columbia University, Teachers College teaching in a special Master’s Degree Program through the Spirituality Mind Body Institute. For the last 15 years she served as the Founding Director of The Inner Resilience Program whose mission is to cultivate the inner lives of students, teachers and schools by integrating social and emotional learning with contemplative practice.

    Linda is the author of numerous articles and book chapters and co-author of Waging Peace in Our Schools (Beacon Press, 1996) editor of Schools with Spirit: Nurturing the Inner Lives of Children and Teachers (Beacon Press, 2001), and author of Building Emotional Intelligence: Practices to Cultivate Inner Resilience in Children (Sounds True, 2008, 2014).

     

  • Giacomo Bono, Ph.D., is an assistant professor at California State University, Dominguez Hills, who studies positive youth development with an emphasis on prosocial behavior and relationships. His is the co-author, with Jeffrey Froh, of Making Grateful Kids: The Science of Building Character.

Participants will:
• Learn about the science of gratitude and the three key principles educational professionals can use to promote gratitude in their classrooms and schools.
• Understand and experience the ways that practitioners are applying the science of gratitude in a variety of educational contexts (e.g., staff development activities, K-12 classroom practices, lessons, and units).