Attunement ‘is a kinesthetic and emotional sensing of others....going beyond empathy to create a two-person experience of....connectedness by providing a reciprocal affect and/or resonating response’ (Erksine 1998). Attunement helps regulate our nervous system and helps us develop good social skills (counselling-vancouver.com). In fact, "much of the wiring in our brain is devoted to being in tune with others", and being in tune with others is a self-affirming experience that creates a shared understanding of the world (Van Der Kolk, 2014).
Attunement and attachment are created through shared activities such as drumming, singing, dancing, theater, storytelling, and shared social experiences.
Attunement and attachment are created through shared activities such as drumming, singing, dancing, theater, storytelling, and shared social experiences.
Photo Credit: dhoydragons, March 10, 2022
Attunement is very important. It creates feelings of belonging and good social skills, which are critical for success: As Judy Halbert and Linda Kaiser (2009) point out in their book Leadership Mindsets one is usually fired due to a lack of social skills, not a lack of ability.
Photo credit: David Hoy Elem newsletter, March 11, 2022
Given the importance of attunement then, one would think that a post like: We went and lost ourselves in the woods, followed a moose trail, then practiced attunement with some songs. Not a bad day at all! would garner a comment or a "like", but no, the "like" came from the "playing a stick and dice game to practice subtilizing outside". (This idea is not mine, it came from an outdoor K teacher in Nanaimo.)
Does this hint at what we, as educators, value? Do we value the mechanistic above the holistic? Or is the holistic just so obvious that we do not need to acknowledge it?
Does this hint at what we, as educators, value? Do we value the mechanistic above the holistic? Or is the holistic just so obvious that we do not need to acknowledge it?
References:
R. G. Erksine, (1998) Attunement and involvement: therapeutic responses to relational needs. International Journal of Psychotherapy, Vol. 3 No. 3.
Kaiser, Linda & Halbert, Judy, (2009). Leadership Mindsets. Routledge.
Van Der Kolk, Bessel, (2014) The Body Keeps the Score. Penguin Books.
https://counselling-vancouver.com/attunement/#:~:text=During%20the%20first%20few%20years,and%20deal%20with%20distressing%20events.
R. G. Erksine, (1998) Attunement and involvement: therapeutic responses to relational needs. International Journal of Psychotherapy, Vol. 3 No. 3.
Kaiser, Linda & Halbert, Judy, (2009). Leadership Mindsets. Routledge.
Van Der Kolk, Bessel, (2014) The Body Keeps the Score. Penguin Books.
https://counselling-vancouver.com/attunement/#:~:text=During%20the%20first%20few%20years,and%20deal%20with%20distressing%20events.