Some high school Welding, Construction Trades, and Teacher Ed students are using skills they learned in the classroom to make it easier for younger kids to make friends at school.
On this episode of the Supercast, we take you to Monte Vista Elementary School where there was a big surprise unveiled during a schoolwide assembly. The big surprise was a “Buddy Bench,” made entirely by high schoolers who want to help their younger counterparts combat loneliness and bullying behavior at school.
Audio Transcription
Addison Olsen:
A buddy bench is something that people can use when they're feeling lonely. They can go sit there, and it lets other people know that they need a friend.
Blair Jensen:
They gave me the idea of involving other teachers. They said, "Get your construction trades doing concrete." And as soon as they said that, you know, light bulb clicked, a teacher ed, I’ve got, you know, aspiring teachers that will crush the assembly much better than me and my students.
Anthony Godfrey:
Hello and welcome to the Supercast. I'm your host, Superintendent Anthony Godfrey. Some high school welding, construction trades, and teacher education students are using skills they learned in the classroom to make it easier for younger students to make friends at school.
On this episode of the Supercast, we take you to Monte Vista Elementary School, where there was a big surprise unveiled during a school-wide assembly. The big surprise was a “Buddy Bench,” made entirely by high schoolers who want to help their younger counterparts combat loneliness and bullying behavior at school.
[Music]We're talking now with three of the students who were involved in making this project happen. Please introduce yourself, tell us your home school, and then the program that you're a part of.
Ruby Sullivan:
I'm Ruby Sullivan. I'm from Riverton High School, and I'm in the teacher education program.
Austin Edwards:
I'm Austin Edwards. I'm from Kings Peak, and I'm in the construction management.
Mason Goates:
My name is Mason Goates. I'm from Bingham High School, and I'm at the welding program.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell us about the buddy bench project for those who don't know what it is. I think you're visiting about a dozen schools in the way that you did Monte Vista today. So tell everyone about it.
Ruby Sullivan:
Yeah, so it's an interdisciplinary project between the construction management, teacher education, and welding programs at JATC South. And basically, we're just trying to decrease bullying and loneliness in elementary schools by installing buddy benches, free of charge to the school. So it gives children an opportunity to meet and make new friends, and it gives us an opportunity to practice the skills that we're learning in high school.
Anthony Godfrey:
Now, some of the skills that you're learning as a student in the teacher preparation program that's to command a group of students. And you did so beautifully today. You did a great job.
Ruby Sullivan:
Thank you.
Anthony Godfrey:
It would be intimidating for many adults to be in front of 600 elementary students and try to keep them on task. How does that feel, and how did you do it so well today?
Ruby Sullivan:
Well, thank you so much. Honestly, it's such an enjoyable experience. I love working with children. I love working with students. And it was a great opportunity to practice my behavior management skills on a larger scale. So it was amazing to really be able to implement the tactics that I've learned about in my classes and practicums, and to be able to see them work at such magnitude.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, when you stood up in front of them, there was no sense that, "Well, I wonder if this will work." You knew it was going to work. You knew what your message was, and it was awesome. Now, the sound we hear in the background is the buddy bench being installed. This isn't just being set down on the concrete. You guys are installing the bench. Tell us about that process.
Austin Edwards:
So what we do is we first put the bench on there, make sure it's centered, and then we take a hammer drill, and what we do is we use it to drill the holes. Then we've got special anchors that we put a silicone layer in the hole, and then we hammer it down. Then we put just a little bit more silicone around. Then we put the bench on top. Then we take a washer and a nut, and we anchor it down to the concrete.
Anthony Godfrey:
Tell us about the construction of the buddy bench.
Mason Goates:
The construction... it was a lot, I'll be honest. Welding had to do a lot of the project. We've been working on this project for almost half a school year, actually. We got the prototype metal in, and we actually had a lot of difficulties in trying to figure out how to assemble the buddy bench, especially with the seat slats, because we just struggled to figure out how to bend them at the right angle to make it comfortable to sit on. We built the entire layout of the buddy bench from scratch. We built everything on this project from scratch. The only thing that was used from somebody else is the design on the back, and we just took inspiration from it. So we actually had to plan everything out and try to execute it to the best of our abilities, basically. So it was a little bit of a struggle, but we were able to make 12 benches after planning everything out, and our advanced class started working on it all.
Anthony Godfrey:
It's pretty exciting that you're going to be able to walk by this or drive by and say, "Look at that bench.” There's something permanent about what you guys are doing here, and it's really exciting. The buddy bench concept, talk to people about how it's intended to be used, and how that's going to combat loneliness here at the school.
Ruby Sullivan:
The buddy bench mostly just provides a place for students to meet. It can be kind of awkward to go up and introduce yourself to someone, and so the buddy bench is just there to facilitate that kind of interaction. It's for students; if multiple students don't have friends or their friends aren't there today, they can go sit on the bench, and that just provides a perfect introduction for them to be able to talk to one another and have a conversation. Or then if students see somebody who's sitting alone on the bench, they feel like they can go speak to them. They feel motivated to go get to know that student, and that can be really helpful.
Anthony Godfrey:
So when you sit on the buddy bench, what you're saying is, "I could use a buddy, I need a friend."
Ruby Sullivan:
Yeah, exactly.
Anthony Godfrey:
Now, you were masterful, you and the other students, at modeling how this is supposed to work. And it was obvious that you studied how to be a great teacher because you gradually built, from showing an example to having everyone involved. Talk everyone through that process because I was very impressed, not only, like I said, at the way that you kept the attention of 600 elementary students at the end of the day, in May, no less, but how you showed them how to use the bench in a way that I really think will make sure it has a lasting impact.
Ruby Sullivan:
We really try to implement the scaffolding technique so that we can show students how to use it and then have them practice using it in a controlled setting before allowing them to just do it on their own. And this helps them to cement that knowledge more firmly, so that they can actually use it in the future and be prepared to teach others how to use it in the future.
Anthony Godfrey:
I like how you use construction terms, too. Scaffolding, cement, you know, you're really tying everything together. Well done, well done. The volunteers, when you asked for kids to volunteer, you guys saw almost every hand shot up. It was pretty incredible. How has it felt as you've gone school to school to be a part of this project?
Mason Goates:
I mean, it actually feels really good. I love helping kids feel included into the school. I'm actually a very big advocate for making sure that kids feel safe in a school environment, and making sure that they know that they are cared about by teachers, other students, by just district officials, by anybody. I enjoyed interacting with the kids. I enjoyed seeing their faces light up with joy when they see the bench or when they are jumping up and down to be volunteers.
Anthony Godfrey:
I saw you had to have kids, “Sit down, sit down.”
Mason Goates:
Yeah, “Quiet, quiet.” Sometimes I have to remind them to get excited. I've really enjoyed being able to help the kids get out there and realize that they can be a buddy for other students and for each other.
Ruby Sullivan:
And Mason's from welding program, but we're trying really hard to convince him to become a teacher because he's so good with the kids.
Anthony Godfrey:
He was very natural up there. It was really good. How does it feel for you to be involved in this?
Austin Edwards:
It feels good. It feels like something I can look back and know that a lot of kids are going to have buddies, and they won't get bullied anymore, hopefully.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah, I think that's absolutely going to be the outcome of this project. How about you? Did it cement, as you said, your desire to be a teacher?
Ruby Sullivan:
Absolutely. It's so fulfilling to be able to see the students so engaged and so motivated to help one another. It really just brings a level of joy that can't be described.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, be sure you apply in Jordan and nowhere else, okay? You guys are all fantastic. Thank you for making such an impact. How many schools do you have left to visit now?
Mason Goates:
Oh, we have like four, I think.
Austin Edwards:
Four more schools.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, most of the way through, but plenty left to do. It's a busy end of the year for all three of you.
Students:
Oh, yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
Thank you so much.
Mason Goates:
You're welcome.
Ruby Sullivan:
Thank you.
Mason Goates:
Thank you so much.
Anthony Godfrey:
Stay with us. When we come back, we hear from the teachers involved in the Buddy Bench Project.
Never miss an episode of The Supercast by liking and subscribing on your favorite podcasting platform. Find transcripts for this episode and others at supercast.jordandistrict.org.
Break:
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Ruby Sullivan:
Hi, everyone. How are you guys doing today?
Students:
Good.
Ruby Sullivan:
That's so good. That's so good. I'm glad to hear you. So, who here knows what bullying is?
Anthony Godfrey:
We're going to talk now with the three teachers who are involved in this project. It was so fun to see this today. Just introduce yourself and tell us a little bit about your involvement and how this got going.
Ryan Clayton:
Yeah. My name is Ryan Clayton. I'm the Construction Management and Trades teacher at JATC. My students... Well, Blair's got plenty to say, but he's the arbiter of all of this and got the ball going and involved me and Brenda in the process. And we were super excited to get on board. So our class, my class, the construction class, decided to help out by doing the concrete pads for them. And so we started talking in class. I took my class out for two months straight. We were... Instead of going to the shop in the classroom, we went out to elementary schools during class time and worked at all the different elementary schools, putting them in.
Anthony Godfrey:
Yeah. Well, that concrete work gets harder and harder. No, I'm just kidding.
Ryan Clayton:
No, it gets easier.
Anthony Godfrey:
It is pretty exciting for the kids to see something permanent, a permanent result of the work they've done.
Ryan Clayton:
Yes.
Anthony Godfrey:
I answer a lot of emails, but I don't get anything permanent out of it. So it's pretty fun for them to see the fruits of their labor. Tell me about the teacher education program.
Brenda Straley:
Yeah. My name is Brenda Straley, and I do the teacher education program at JATC. Blair invited us to be a part of it as well. So we actually created the content, designed the assemblies, and did a lot of research on buddy benches and loneliness. And decided, you know, what was needed, what it was going to look like, and then just facilitated the process of skits. A perfect project-based learning experience, in that it was a culmination of everything that they've learned over the years. So, taking what they've learned and then realizing, like, in an assembly, they need proximity control, and they need, you know, let's experiment this way with this assembly, and let's see how quickly we can get this one to go up and down. So it was really a cool experiment of, like, their teaching. The culmination of everything they've done. And that relevance was really important. It's just been fantastic to see how it's increased the confidence of all of the students involved, you know, teacher education, welding, and construction.
Anthony Godfrey:
I was so impressed with the way that, the presence that students had in front of 600 elementary kids. There are plenty of adults who would be terrified of trying to keep things moving forward with kids aged 5 to 11 in May.
Blair Jensen:
That's me.
Anthony Godfrey:
Right. Blair being one of them. But it was very intentional. It was clear there was a lot of preparation. It was also clear they really understood how to really make the most of an event in front of students. They did a great job.
Brenda Straley:
They really supported each other in the process, too. And it was all them. They did an excellent job.
Anthony Godfrey:
It was great work. Talk about the bench's Blair and the welding program's involvement.
Blair Jensen:
Yeah. I'm Blair Jensen. I'm the welding instructor at Jordan Academy for Technology and Careers. The Buddy Bench has been something that's kind of ruminated in the back of my mind for a while. I've always been passionate about what their meaning is. And I knew that some of our schools didn't have them, but just trying to figure out how I could incorporate it into my program. When I won the Harbor Freight Tools for Schools Prize for Teaching Excellence, part of winning that prize is they send me to a conference every summer with all of their prize winners. So I get to go and mingle with the best around the nation, the best instructors around the nation. They have a Community Impact Grant, which is what funded the majority of this project. So every summer, as part of our conference, the people who had won the grant the previous year showcase their projects. They do a review and say, "This is what I did with my grant. This is how successful it was." And then after they present, we have roundtables and discuss. And I brought up to the welding instructors and a few others, "I'd like to do these Buddy Benches, but I'm struggling with an idea of how to make it a little more impactful." They gave me an idea of involving other teachers. They said, "Get your construction trades doing concrete." And as soon as they said that, light bulb clicked of, "Yeah, construction trades, teacher ed. I have got aspiring teachers that will crush the assembly much better than me and my students."
Anthony Godfrey:
I think it's really exciting, like you mentioned, Brenda, that the students relied on each other, but the three of you brought your students together to show just how their skills can complement each other and literally build the foundation for where the bench is going to be, present it in a way that allows students to make the most of it, and build the bench in the first place, and get things going. So this has been really fun to see. I was quite touched seeing the reenactment. I thought that was really, really well done, really well done. And the way that they built from the skit to show how it's supposed to work, to involve another student, to involve two elementary students, and the volunteer rate was high. 97% of students raising their hand wanting to be up there helping.
Blair Jensen:
We don't get that at the high schools.
Brenda Straley:
In fact, a lot of the assemblies, they didn't bring their hands down. They just kept holding it up.
Anthony Godfrey:
I might get a chance to volunteer for something else. I'm just keeping my hand in the air. I can only imagine this is going to help with recruiting for the projects, too. Remember that Buddy Bench, everybody? You can come be part of a crew that can make those, and do the concrete work, and all of that.
Blair Jensen:
Well, think at least half the principals have asked, "When can we get another one?" So I think I'll probably be applying for the grant next year, and we'll try and do this some more. It's clearly been a great impact for the community. Not just for our students, but for these kids. The principals are loving it, everybody.
Anthony Godfrey:
I loved the idea, but it was very touching, very moving to see it in action, and see your kids in front of the elementary kids. Just really teaching them how to be better friends to each other, and how to connect in a deeper way. There's this concrete, literally, reminder of how they can do that. Thank you so much for all you're doing. This is fantastic.
Brenda Straley:
Thank you.
Blair Jensen:
Thank you.
Students at the assembly:
Student 1: Hi, my name is Hannah. What's your name?
Student 2: Hi, Hannah.
Student 1: What's your favorite movie?
Student 2: My favorite movie is probably Toy Story. What's yours?
Student 1: I like to watch Wish. Do you want to play at recess with me?
Student 2: I would love to, Hannah.
Anthony Godfrey:
I'm talking with two students here at Monte Vista Elementary just after the assembly. Tell me your name, what grade you're in, and what did you think of the assembly?
Ellie:
I'm Ellie. I'm in fifth grade, and I loved the assembly.
Addison Olsen:
I'm Addison Olsen. I'm also in fifth grade, and I think the assembly helped us understand a little more what a buddy bench is.
Anthony Godfrey:
What is a buddy bench? Tell us about that.
Addison Olsen:
A buddy bench is something that people can use when they're feeling lonely, and they can go sit there, and it lets other people know that they need a friend.
Anthony Godfrey:
I think that's a great summary. What did you think about that buddy bench when you saw it, and when you heard what that's all about?
Ellie:
I definitely was surprised, because we do have a few benches on our playgrounds that were supposed to be buddy benches, but no one really used them, and so this is more official of being a buddy bench, and I feel like more people will be looking out for that and seeing if anybody's on it.
Anthony Godfrey:
I like that the student showed an example of how it's supposed to work, and then they had some volunteers come up, and then everyone got to practice out there. What was your practice like? What did you talk about when you practiced with the students sitting by you?
Addison Olsen:
Me and my friend, we were just asking each other things about each other, and some of the things were things we didn’t already know about each other, even though we're really good friends.
Anthony Godfrey:
So even though you're good friends, you learn new things. That's awesome. How about you?
Ellie:
I feel the same, so I was sitting with my friends, and we were just asking each other questions, and I learned new things.
Anthony Godfrey:
So sometimes when you're intentional and you ask questions on purpose, really trying to get to know somebody better, even your good friends might have some things that would surprise you about them.
Addison Olsen:
Yeah, for sure.
Ellie:
Definitely.
Anthony Godfrey:
Well, have a fun summer looking forward to being sixth graders.
Students:
Thank you.
Anthony Godfrey:
Okay, see you girls.
Thanks for joining us on another episode of the Supercast. Remember, education is the most important thing you'll do today. We'll see you out there.
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