How might we make it feel less scary for schools to try new things, thoughtfully and inclusively?
Use this guide to frame your decisions as two simple sentences – easy (for both you and your school community) to understand and learn from, together.
Below you'll find instructions on how to make a two-sentence plan, a guide to using social media to involve your community, and a community outreach template you can modify for your school.
Think of something your school is trying out for the fall, and try to describe it in these two, simple sentences. Imagine that you have ten seconds to explain this to someone who knows nothing about schools or education. You don’t need to capture all the details or nuance here. How would you explain what you’re trying and what you hope to achieve?
🎨 You can use these slides with your team to make your own.
✨ Share yours with other schools!
We recommend sharing your two-sentence plans on social media channels that will reach students and families who are typically excluded from the planning process.
For example, the recent racial justice movement on social media has shown how engaged many communities are on Instagram. By sharing your two-sentence plans publicly on social media, you create space for students, families, and educators to share their thoughts. This will provide your team with critical perspectives needed throughout the year to continuously make small decisions that best serve your students and teachers.
Think about the kind of information you’ll need from students and families to evaluate whether your new plan is working. You can post questions along with your two-sentence plan for students and family to answer in comments, favorite each other’s comments, or privately message you to share their experiences. We know that moderation may cause challenges, but your efforts are a great investment in a healthy, supportive school community. We made a social media guide to walk you through important steps, using Instagram as an example.
Once you’re ready, you can modify this Outreach Flyer to inform students and families about your new efforts. Tag @schoolslearntoo in your posts to share with other schools, or use the hashtag #schoolslearntoo to see what other schools have tried.
Check out @schoolslearntoo for examples of how other schools are using two-sentence plans to share decisions and to request feedback from students, families, and teachers.
