NORDIC OPPORTUNITY REDEFINING EDUCATION FOR THE...

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NORDIC OPPORTUNITY

REDEFINING EDUCATION FOR THE NEXT GENERATION



“We help people get healthy, happy, gritty and fit

They become resilient in the process in their everyday lives”

Joe De Sena, Founder and CEO of Spartan



Today’s Student Challenges

• Many stuck in “Survival Mode”

• High expectations driving depression and anxiety

• “Super parenting” limiting natural resiliency development

• Pervasive technology rewarding lack of focus



Are Your Students In Survival Mode?

Copyright 2013

Dr. Angela Smith



“The best way we can help our children welcome

challenges is to encourage them to work just outside their

comfort zone, stand by to lend a hand when needed, and

model enthusiasm for challenging tasks.”― Madeline Levine, Teach Your Children Well

“The best moments usually occur when a person’s body or

mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to

accomplish something difficult and worthwhile” ― Tal Ben-Shahar

Leading researchers on Challenge



Youth Are Struggling with Expectations

According to Dr. Slavin of SLU Medical School, the high expectations put on

today’s children are causing them to suffer from anxiety, depression, and

maladaptive perfectionism”

79.5% of 2100 Students have moderate to severe anxiety

54.5% have moderate to severe depression

As evidenced by a survey Dr. Slavin conducted at Irvington High School

40.2% have very low resilience scores

27.6% have clinical levels of maladaptive perfectionism



Super Parenting Trap

• Not allowed to fail and recover

• Given little freedom in choosing activities

• Not allowed unscheduled “play” time

• Kids are not being held responsible for their

decisions, choices and behaviors

Today’s Children Are:



Obsession With Technology Is Inhibiting Growth

….What does all this mean for raising your

children? The bottom line is that too much

screen time and not enough other activities,

such as reading, playing games and good

old unstructured and imaginative play will

result in your children having their brains

wired in ways that may make them less, not

more, prepared to thrive in this crazy new

world of technology.

“Their brains are rewarded not for staying

on task but for jumping to the next thing,”

said Michael Rich, an associate professor

at Harvard Medical School and executive

director of the Center on Media and Child

Health in Boston. And the effects could

linger…”

Growing Up Digital,

Wired for DistractionMatt Richtel Published: November

21, 2010

How Technology is

Changing the Way

Children Think and

Focus. Dr Jim Taylor, University

of San Franciso, Feb 2 2013



“a set of abilities or strengths that are very much changeable –

entirely malleable, in fact. They are skills you can learn; they

are skills you can practice; and they are skills you can teach.”

-defined by Martin Seligman and Christopher Peterson

Reference: Paul Tough: How Children Succeed, p.59

Character Strengths



Grit and Resiliency

• Give students the tools to adapt, recover and grow

• Provide a firm foundation to manage high expectations

and perform accordingly

• Open a path to independence and resourcefulness

through dialog and critical thinking

• Bring focus and determination to today’s chaotic

technology backdrop



Spartan Edge for Schools

• Be intentional about integrating grit and

resiliency systemically into your mainline

academic curriculum

• Integrate grit and resiliency with functional

movement into your PE and health and

wellness curriculum

• Train your educators

• Outside of school enrichment program

• Community build with a Spartan Day



FIND YOUR TRUE

NORTHMAKE A COMMITMENT

FUEL YOUR

ENTHUSIASM

DELAY GRATIFICATION

MAXIMIZE YOUR TIMEGET GRITTY

ATTACK ADVERSITY ADJUST FRAME OF

REFERENCE

BE HONORABLE

I AM SPARTAN

Built on the Ten Principles of the Spartan Ethos

Spartan Edge was guided by referencing the work and research

of some of the world’s foremost grit and resiliency leaders.



In The Classroom

• Provide the tools for implementation

• Proven in class exercises

• Sample lesson plans

• Implementation webinars

• Collaborating with other educators

• Train the educators

• 10 module online learning course

• Instructor-led webinars after each

module

• Provide language, discussion points and

opportunities to build community and

student relationships



Schools Experiencing Spartan Edge Positivity

Irvington High School

Irvington, CA



Positivity is Transformative

Positive people are able to

maintain a broader

perspective and see the big

picture which helps them

identify solutions where as

negative people maintain a

narrower perspective and

tend to focus on problems.

- Barbara Fredrickson



CONFIDENTIAL

Thank You

Give Your Students the

For more information contact Diane Stokes at

[email protected]

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