FREE PDF DOWNLOAD 52 Social Emotional Learning Prompts for All Ages Great for journaling, discussion starters, morning meetings and more.Topics include social skills, growth mindset, confidence, self esteem, kindness and empathy.Instant access. We’ll send you the PDF and you can print out as many copies as you want!Download Now! © SEL Power Pack
There are so many resources available online these days. I've collected a bunch of free mental health, social-emotional learning, behavioral health, and wellness resources to share with you here. At the time of writing this blog post, the following social emotional learning SEL and mental health programs, curriculum, lesson plans, and resources are all free. Please note that this may change over time. This blog post is packed with information on free resources that you can use in your classro
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) has been found to promote academic success and increase students' commitment to school. Generally, there are five key components that make up social emotional learning. These competencies include self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and decision making. Today, I'd like to focus on ways to help students develop self-awareness. Self-awareness includes one's ability to recognize emotions, have an accurate self-perception, identify strengths, develop confidence, and show self-efficacy. Researchers have found that a student's ability to control his or her feelings, thoughts, and behaviors can be linked to academic success. So, let's take a look at some easy ways to help students develop an awareness of their individual characteristics and personal emotions. All About Me - A - Z This activity helps students to define and identify a variety of aspects about themselves. They'll create a list about themselves with a characteristic, quality, or emotion for each letter of the alphabet. Materials: Piece of paper, pen or pencil Directions: - On a piece of paper, have students create two columns. (Or grab a ready-made poster here.) - Have them write all the letters of the alphabet in each column. - Then, challenge them to write something about themselves for each letter. For instance, they might write "gregarious" for G or "curious" for C. Ideas: - Share your own A to Z list with students first. - Create a class list of emotions and descriptive words to get students started. - Assemble students' finished lists in a class book. Moment of Mindfulness Mindfulness is a great way to build self-awareness. Since mindfulness is all about paying attention to the present moment, it's a great way for students to pause and reflect on how they are feeling, what they are thinking, and what they need in the present. It's simple to do too! Ways to take a moment of mindfulness: - At the beginning of class, have students close their eyes and take several deep breaths. Ask students to pay attention to their breathing. - Share a mindfulness quote with students to help focus students' thoughts during a moment of mindfulness. - Pause during instruction and have students do a self-awareness check. Encourage them to be mindful of their thoughts and feelings. Reflective Journaling Reflective journaling is a powerful way to help students become self-aware. With targeted writing prompts, students can develop insight into their feelings, make sense of their experiences, and build clarity on their thoughts. When students write about their own experiences and feelings, they become more self-aware. Materials: - A notebook and/or computer, pen or pencil, writing prompts - A list of writing prompts that spark self-reflection, these might include: --- Write about a time when you were proud of yourself. --- List ten things that make you feel excited. --- Reflect on how you have changed this year. --- What is something that you find challenging? (Check out a set of 10 engaging prompts here.) Ideas: - Have students respond to their prompts as if they are writing a letter to themselves..."Dear me..." - Read students' responses and respond to their writing in the margins. Add questions and positive notes at the end of their writing to build connections and spark further reflections. - Schedule a time each day or week for journaling to make it an intentional part of your classroom community. Growth Mindset There are many ways to help students develop a growth mindset. When students develop an understanding that all forms of intelligence are malleable, they are inspired to work toward success. That's why it is so powerful to infuse lessons about growth mindset into instruction. Giving students a moment to reflect on their own mindsets builds self-awareness. Materials: - Short lessons or articles about Growth Mindset to help students understand the differences between a fixed and growth mindset. - Series of questions about students' own mindsets. Directions: - After teaching students about Growth Mindset, have students respond to questions about their own mindsets. - Give students a chance to share their responses with a partner, small group, or the entire class. Ideas: - Share and display inspirational quotes about growth mindset. (I particularly love paper desk tents. They are an easy way to display quotes right on students' desks.) - Highlight important people who demonstrate a growth mindset. Emotions Skits Researchers have noted that there are at least six universal emotions. These include happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, and disgust. Help students investigate and demonstrate these universal emotions by challenging them to write a short play or skit that involves a character or many characters experiencing one of the universal emotions. Materials: - List of the universal emotions, paper, pen - Skit planning pages (optional) Ideas: - Review the six universal emotions with students. As a class have students brainstorm what each emotion looks like (how people look when they are experiencing that emotion) and sounds like (what people might say when experiencing that emotion). - Brainstorm situations where people might feel each emotion. Encourage students to share personal situations when they felt a certain way. - Divide students into small groups. Secretly assign each group an emotion. - Challenge students to write a script that their small group could act out for the class that demonstrates that emotion. - Have small groups perform for the class. Have the audience identify the emotion prevalent in the skit. Self Check-In Daily feelings check-ins are a great way to build self-awareness. When students are given the opportunity to assess how they are feeling and share their emotions with others, they begin to know themselves more fully. Self check-ins also help normalize feelings. Materials: - Paper with an open grid shape - List of feelings Directions: - Pass out the gridded paper to students. - Have them fill the grid with different emotions. - Then, have students display the grid on their desks. - Have them place a token or shape on the emotion that shows how they are feeling at a particular moment. Ideas: - Once students can recognize their feelings, help them to develop strategies for regulating their emotions. - Encourage students to track their feelings over an entire school day. Then, discuss how feelings change in different situations. -------------------------------------------------- I hope you've found a few ways to help students develop self-awareness. Incorporating lessons that target social emotional learning is essential in today's classrooms. If you're looking for ready-made resources, check out this set of 10 SEL reading passages and this set of 6 Self-Awareness Activities. Thanks for stopping by! Mary Beth
FREE PDF DOWNLOAD 52 Social Emotional Learning Prompts for All Ages Great for journaling, discussion starters, morning meetings and more.Topics include social skills, growth mindset, confidence, self esteem, kindness and empathy.Instant access. We’ll send you the PDF and you can print out as many copies as you want!Download Now! © SEL Power Pack
These emotional regulation activities strengthen children’s ability to manage emotions by teaching them how to move forward from both small and big mistakes.
Social emotional learning has gained a lot of attention lately. Some questions I've seen recently include: What is SEL? Why does it matter? Why are teachers teaching these skills in school? While most are on board with the idea of social-emotional supports in the classroom, there are some who are ra
A teacher’s guide to teaching social-emotional learning in the classroom. This guide has articles, children's book suggestions, videos, and a program filled with lessons and activities.
Social emotional education in the classroom can be hard to fit in, BUT it is possible. Read to learn ways to do it and how to keep it FUN!
When Discovery Education reached out to me about their new, free SEL activities, I was excited to share with you all what they have.
One of the very best times to integrate social emotional learning practices into the day is first thing in the morning. It's a great way to help kids and teens start their day off feeling connected, respected, and valued. By putting social-emotional learning first, we have pave the way for kids and
A few weeks ago, I had the wonderful opportunity of co-moderating the #escchat (elementary school counselor chat). It was an amazing time collaborating with school counselors from all over the country on the topic of social emotional learning. Social emotional learning is the buzz word everyone is talking about and for good reason. But what exactly is it? It is often used in conjunction with character building and guidance lessons. While it does have some of those components, social emotional learning is much more than that. It is a required life skill set. The What Social emotional learning is how we (adults and children) learn to manage our emotions while also understanding them. Self regulation and emotional awareness are key to this. It also encompasses showing empathy, being responsible, making responsible decisions, and establishing and maintaining positive relationships. Social emotional learning is not another program or initiative that a campus or district puts into place. Social emotional learning is a skill set that we must have to be healthy kids and adults. The Why Research shows that incorporating social emotional learning boosts student achievement. And that is no surprise. I am a big believer that we can't get to Bloom's without meeting Maslow, meaning that our students cannot get to those high levels of learning if basic needs aren't met (safety, basic needs, belonging). SEL is also proven to help with behavior. If students are taught how to regulate emotions, be empathetic, and how to have positive relationships, behavior concerns will decrease. For example, think of a student that may have outbursts or get upset easily. If taught healthy self regulation skills, they will not only be able to utilize those strategies, but as they get older, they will be able to regulate feelings of frustration and anger in a healthy way. When I was an elementary counselor in a larger, urban school district I began studying SEL (around 2013). The campus that I served consisted of around 91% low socioeconomic students and we also had the opportunity to serve refugee students from Burma, Nepal, and the Congo. It was vital to teach these skills just as we taught curriculum for content areas. I think that is the key to social emotional learning. It is not a program. It is not a temporary "buzz" topic. It is a needed set of skills for students to be well equipped as they grow older. Misconceptions Many believe that social emotional learning is character building and comes from a counselor. Social emotional learning isn't just about highlighting a character trait or receiving a guidance lesson from a campus counselor (while those are all wonderful things). It is a whole campus teaching approach that is best for ALL kids. Another misconception is that social emotional learning is provided or focused on solely for students who are currently struggling with behavior or emotions. Yet, SEL is beneficial for ALL students. It could be beneficial for adults, too. Think of how often you may see people get so upset and not be able to control their emotions. While we are all human, it is important to be able to regulate ourselves and our emotions so they we can interact in positive ways with others. Resources Everywhere you turn, SEL is being discussed. With it being such a needed skill, where can you turn for support and guidance? Below you can find some wonderful resources from organizations that solely focus on Social Emotional Learning. I am currently also working on resources and resource guides that will be available in my TPT store. Follow @stylishschoolcounselor on Facebook (here) or Instagram (@stylishschoolcounselorblog) for updates. CASEL: Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning https://casel.org/ Edutopia: They have a wonderful page of SEL resources and articles https://www.edutopia.org/social-emotional-learning Whether you are a classroom teacher who is wanting to equip your students with more than academic support or a counselor who wants to spark the conversation of incorporating SEL into your everyday routine...you are taking a very exciting step. It all starts somewhere! Want to see more posts like this? Check out my post on Mindfulness here! -Melanie
Learn about the importance of SEL and 11 essential ways that teachers can incorporate social-emotional learning activities into the classroom today.
Social and emotional intelligence is foundational to understanding ourselves and the people around us. The ability to form and maintain meaningful relationships carries such incredible weight and value. I heard a study recently that the impact of loneliness on health outcomes (life expectancy,
A kindness challenge from the Kindness Unit of the Social Emotional Learning curriculum. Work through these scenarios as a group to help build valuable skills. This curriculum is flexible, no prep, and easy to implement.
What is Social Emotional Learning? Social emotional learning, or SEL, is a framework to help kids and young adults learn critical skills, such as managing emotions, understanding healthy relationships, improving social skills, and making responsible choices. These skills are the foundations
Social-emotional activities can support distance learning at home. Grab your free copy of the SEL distance learning pack and editable calendar and children's book list!
In this blog post, I'm going to give you 5 Social Emotional Learning Art Ideas that you can use in your Art Classroom! As well, I'll tell you about what Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is, how to instruct it, and how to encourage students to engage in the lessons. I'll give you lesson ideas that you can use right away with your students, and I will also give you links to Art Projects that are ready-to-use! Before we begin, let’s understand what Social Emotional Learning, or SEL is and what it can look like in the art classroom or through art!
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) provides an educational framework focused on teaching students social and emotional skills at school.
Social-emotional activities have never been more important for younger kids.
31 FUN SOCIAL SKILLS ACTIVITIES for KIDS (including some tips for kids with autism): starting conversations, respecting personal space, expressing emotions
Social Emotional Workshop offers practical tools for social emotional learning and counseling.
HOW TO CHECK YOUR HEALTH
Social emotional learning is the foundation of a successful classroom by creating an environment of inclusion and respect.
Teach children about respect, honesty, and gratitude at school and in the classroom with these social-emotional learning lessons and hands-on activities for kids.
Using social stories to teach social skills gives students direct and meaningful direction in learning essential social skills.
Discovering emotions through facial expressions and self portraits
Art is such a powerful tool to help shape the minds of kids and young adults. Simply put, there are many benefits to using art as a way to teach new skills. Art is often non-threatening to kids and young adults. It is seen as a fun and hands-on activity, rather than hard work. Because it is not perc
This emotions and feelings booklet allows students to communicate HOW they feel develop coping and self management strategies, self regulation, calming strategies, emotion regulation when feeling mad, angry, confused, sad, embarrassed, worried and scared etc. The booklet can also be a way for students to communicate to YOU exactly why they are feeling a specific emotion along with a means to let YOU know what YOU can do to help them calm. At times, when students feel an intense level of an emotion, it can be difficult for them to fully articulate exactly what is wrong and what they need you to do to help them. Sometimes requiring a student provide a verbal response can even further intensify an emotion resulting in actions and behaviors that may not always be appropriate for a situation. Students can keep their emotion book with them so that they can be encouraged to independently utilize the different coping/self help strategies that they can engage in whenever they feel a negative emotion. Using the booklet, students will be able to efficiently communicate their needs, and with teaching and guidance, students can be taught to communicate their needs BEFORE their level of an emotion intensifies. Having students communicate to you about HOW they feel, WHY they feel that way and what you can do to help them can help reduce problem behavior or a student ‘shutting down’/become non-responsive, as students are able to get their needs met before a situation escalates. Different variations of booklets are provided including booklets that have: - Written descriptions/strategies, - Visual descriptions/strategies (both pre-made and visuals that can be added/switched out as needed) - Written AND visual strategies - Blank descriptions so students can write what is wrong with a dry erase marker - Booklets that can be fully edited/personalized for a student Emotion pages included in this booklet are: Angry Mad Worried Confused Excited Happy Shy Nervous Scared Sad Upset Hurt Sick Check out other products that pair well with this tool: I am feeling communication cards Self regulation and emotion control lapbook Keep calm. Controlling my emotions
Helping little ones understand their own feelings and the emotions of others takes time and consistency. Effort spent in this area helps children learn tactics to control their own behaviours which is a great help to their social development. I have listed here over 10 activities and 10 You Tube songs you might like to
Social and emotional intelligence is foundational to understanding ourselves and the people around us. The ability to form and maintain meaningful relationships carries such incredible weight and value. I heard a study recently that the impact of loneliness on health outcomes (life expectancy,
Social-emotional activities can support distance learning at home. Grab your free copy of the SEL distance learning pack and editable calendar and children's book list!
Social and emotional learning, often known as SEL, is the process that helps kids learn critical skills, attitudes, and mindsets for social and emotional success. These skills cover five major areas: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationships, and responsible decision-making. I
5 school counseling activities using string to focus on growth mindset, anxiety, trauma, coping skills, and impulse control.
Children's social emotional development plays a crucial role in their ability to find success in school and also later on in life.
Inside Out Emotional Thermometer - Very helpful tool working with children. #socialwork
We’ve collected social and emotional learning (SEL) resources for building a culture of safety, kindness, and upstanding in your school.
Helping little ones understand their own feelings and the emotions of others takes time and consistency. Effort spent in this area helps children learn tactics to control their own behaviours which is a great help to their social development. I have listed here over 10 activities and 10 You Tube songs you might like to
