However, the Building Belonging Project recognises that for many children, school is not a place where they feel as though they belong. It is often not a community that they feel part of. This seems to be a particular challenge when pupils make the transition to middle or secondary school.
Geoffrey Cohen highlights transitions as moments of “belonging uncertainty”, and early adolescence as a particularly vulnerable moment. As he puts it “
Sixth grade – watch out…kids are often thirsty for human connection, even with adults, but ironically they get less of it at that moment.”
There has been real progress in the last decade of the importance of the science of cognition, curriculum and how these two interrelate. Teachers are now much better informed about cognitive load theory, the importance of prior knowledge and how to sequence and structure learning for long term mastery.
But there hasn’t been commensurate understanding or emphasis on the science of belonging. The preconditions for learning to take place, as well as the inherent good of schools being communities that young people feel as though they belong is less available to teachers, who therefore have fewer tools to build environments and situations that promote it.
Our project seeks to rectify that.
Vision
A world where every child loves going to school because it is a place where they feel known, valued and like they belong.
Mission
To support teachers in understanding the science of belonging, and give them practical tools to build more of it in their classrooms.
- 1. Raise awareness amongst teachers and school leaders of the importance of ‘belonging’, especially for adolescents.
2. Provide resources, tools and information on how to build a sense of belonging in schools and classrooms.
LSX Fellows Announced
During the LSX Summit in Washington DC, fifteen new fellows across four continents and working in five disciplines were announced and met for the first time.
Sub-Teams Confirmed
The fifteen fellows are organised into three teams of five, each including one member of each discipline..
‘Project Voice’
Our team identifies barriers to learning for children, and identifies a lack of agency and ability to express themselves in school. We begin as Project Voice.
The Belonging Project
A review of research literature combined with our own professional experiences lead us to focus on the concept of ‘belonging’ and how it can be better fostered in school. Project Voice becomes the Building Belonging Project.
Meeting In Zurich
LSX Fellows meet in Zurich to deepen relationships, share knowledge and create more concrete plans for the project.
Filming Experts in Belonging
We begin to conduct interviews with some of the world’s leading thinkers on Belonging: researchers, teachers, educationalists, parents, charity directors and pupils themselves.
Building Classroom Resources
As well as interviewing experts to outline the science of belonging, we create a bank of lesson resources for teachers to use in their classrooms. Each is grounded in research on belonging and adolescent identity formation.
Putting it altogether
We create a website to host all of the resources and insights that we’ve collected, aiming to provide time-poor teachers and leaders with a gateway into the science of belonging as well as practical tools to build more of it in their schools and classrooms.
LSX Summit 2024
The Building Belonging Project is launched at the LSX Summit in Washington DC.