At Thomas Nelson, we channeled the Project Backpack Protocol through our UFO Teams (Unicorn Flight Opportunity). We have around six teams, each one containing students, parents, community members, and LEADERs from our school.
During this conversation, we first explored why being a CARETaker, Collaborator, CREATor, CONNECTor, and Communicator were important characteristics for our students to possess. Our team broke down our conversation into the following whys:
CARETaker: It is important for us, as a COMMUNITY, to embrace the mindset of "we versus me." It is essential we take CARE of one another. Learning how to become a CARETaker helps to build compassion for others and make people feel more open. As a COMMUNITY, the RESPONSIBILITY begins with US. To be an effective communicator, students must be able to have a sense of confidence, embrace patience, empathize, and be able to prioritize time around what matters.
Collaborator: Our local industry has echoed the same sentiment over the past two years, collaboration is a must with 21st-century work skills. It is essential our students know how to work as a team. Every career involved some sense in working together, as common goals and collaboration make for a more effective work environment. To be an effective collaborator, students must be open-minded, learn how to have constructive conflict, and organize resources/roles around outcomes of a project.
CREATor: If you create it, you own it. It is essential our students feel empowered to CREATE. Our students' future careers will require them to not only come to the table with solutions but require them to work through challenges that are ambiguous in nature and require creativity. By taking ownership over CREATing, it allows our students to live a purpose-driven life filled with authenticity rather than being compliance-driven. To be an effective CREATor, our students must be able to clearly identify the challenge, know the thought process to design a solution, and feel confident in sharing what they have CREATed.
CONNECTor: Being a strong connector will enable our students to relate to others. This can allow ideas, projects, and concepts to move forward and make progress. Connecting people and ideas allows others to become developed within a team and strengthens one's abilities to see other perspectives. While our students are inherently connected digitally, it is essential we build upon the gifts we all have to CONNECT as humans. It's all about embracing the abundance mentality. To be an effective CONNECTor, our students must be able to communicate effectively, see deeper patterns, and identify resources to help them solve challenges.
Communicator: We felt the ability to communicate effectively and ENGAGE in meaningful conversations was the connecting point of the characteristics from above. Being a communicator is essential to building effective relationships. To be effective communicators, our students must be able to clearly articulate their ideas in a confident way, while also leaving space for communication to be a dialogue between shared ideas.
We did not get a group photo from our Project Backpack meeting, as our LEADERs surprised me with a baby shower near the end of our protocol.
