Module 1: Social and Emotional Learning

Article: What is Social Emotional Learning?

§ Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process through which children and
adults:

o understand and manage emotions,

o set and achieve positive goals,

o feel and show empathy for others,

o establish and maintain positive relationships, and

o make responsible decisions.

§ Social Emotional Learning (SEL) identifies five core competencies:

o Self-awareness – the ability to accurately recognize one’s emotions and

thoughts and their influence on behaviour.

o Self-management – the ability to regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and

behaviors effectively in different situations.

o Social awareness – the ability to take the perspective of and empathize

with others from diverse backgrounds and cultures.

o Relationship skills – the ability to establish and maintain healthy and

rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups.

o Responsible decision-making – the ability to make constructive and

respectful choices about personal behavior and social interactions.

§ A systemic approach to SEL intentionally infuses social and emotional learning

into every part of students’ daily lives – across all of their classrooms, during all
times of the school day, and when they are in their homes and communities.

§ Social Emotional Learning (SEL) leads to:

o Increased academic achievement

o Improved behaviour

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 o Strong return on investment

Article: Why Social and Emotional Learning is Essential for Students

§ Effective social and emotional learning programming involves coordinated

classroom, schoolwide, family, and community practices that help students
develop the following five key skills:

o Self-awareness – accurately assessing one's strengths and limitations,

having positive mindsets, and possessing a well-grounded sense of self-
efficacy and optimism.

o Self-management – ability to delay gratification, manage stress, control

impulses, and persevere through challenges in order to achieve personal
and educational goals.

o Social awareness – involves understanding social norms for behavior and

recognizing family, school, and community resources and supports.

o Relationship skills – involve communicating clearly, listening actively,

cooperating, resisting inappropriate social pressure, negotiating conflict
constructively, and seeking help when it is needed.

o Responsible decision-making – involves the consideration of ethical

standards, safety concerns, accurate behavioral norms for risky
behaviours, as well as the health and well-being of self and others

§ An effective SEL program should incorporate four elements represented by the

acronym SAFE

o Sequenced: connected and coordinated sets of activities to foster skills

development

o Active: active forms of learning to help students master new skills

o Focused: emphasis on developing personal and social skills

o Explicit: targeting specific social and emotional skills

§ Benefits of SEL include:

o More positive attitudes toward oneself and others,

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 o More positive social behaviors and relationships with peers and adults

o Reduced conduct problems and risk-taking behavior

o Decreased emotional distress

o Improved achievement, grades, and attendance

§ Promoting SEL in the classroom involves:

o teaching and modeling social and emotional skills,

o providing opportunities for students to practice and hone those skills,

o and giving students an opportunity to apply these skills in various

situations.

§ Social Emotional Learning (SEL) approaches involves training teachers to deliver

explicit lessons that teach social and emotional skills, then finding opportunities
for students to reinforce their use throughout the day.

§ Teachers can also naturally foster skills in students through their interpersonal
and student-centered instructional interactions throughout the school day.

§ School leaders play a critical role in fostering schoolwide activities and policies
that promote positive school environments, such as:

o establishing a team to address the building climate;

o adult modeling of social and emotional competence; and

o developing clear norms, values, and expectations for students and staff
members.

§ Family and community partnerships can strengthen the impact of school

approaches to extending learning into the home and neighborhood.

Article: Shifting the Current School Climate: Sense of Belonging and Social and
Emotional Learning

§ A positive school climate in which everyone feels safe, valued, and respected can
help increase each student’s sense of belonging in school.

§ The following school-wide actions can lead to the healthy development of all
students:

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 o implement policies and practices that foster positive climate;

o provide educators with relevant training;

o encourage teachers to engage in perspective-taking to better understand

students’ experiences; and

o adopt strong anti-bullying policies to promote inclusivity.

§ The following classroom level actions can have a positive impact on students’
social and emotional skills:

o structure dynamic group work to encourage cooperation;

o establish and communicate high expectations for all students;

o strive to find common ground with students; and

o encourage students to focus on mastery rather than performance goals.

Article: Seven Social and Emotional Learning Strategies for Remote Teaching

§ Social Emotional Learning (SEL) does not need to be a single designated subject
like math or science; teachers can leverage SEL strategies to promote learning in
everyday classroom activities. The following strategies may be used:

o Emotional check-ins for students – ask each student how he or she feels
and follow up with any students who express negative emotions like
anger, frustration, or sadness.

o Incorporate SEL into story time or literature lessons – ask students to put
themselves in the character’s shoes and think about how they would feel
in a similar situation.

o SEL journal prompts – encourage your students to engage in self-

reflection and articulate their feelings in writing.

o Art projects – self-reflection through art is another fantastic way to help

students understand their feelings and express them in creative ways.

§ These SEL strategies can be used with students who may be completing classes
remotely:

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 o Schedule virtual check-ins – try to schedule recurring time to connect with
your students.

o Apps, games, websites – take advantage of technology and find apps that
students can use to practice social emotional learning.

o Reading strategies – ask students to write about what’s happening in a

story they have been assigned to read and how they think the characters
are feeling as a result.

Article: Developing Teachers’ Social and Emotional Skills

§ Social and emotional competencies (SEC) are critical to avoid burnout and
increase teacher well-being.

§ Teachers can use their emotional intelligence to feel better about themselves and
the world around them by:

o connecting with their own emotions and feelings before reacting to

student misbehavior,

o finding ways to unwind after a busy day, and

o identifying our internal drivers.

§ There are three ways in which teachers’ SEC affect students and the learning
environment:

o Teachers’ SEC influence the quality of teacher-student relationships

o Teachers model SEC for students intentionally or not

o Teachers' SEC influence classroom organization and management.

§ Teachers can develop their SEC through the following pursuits:

o Know yourself – clearly see what you feel and do, know your strengths
and challenges, and recognize your behavior patterns

o Choose yourself – proactively respond to situations instead of reacting on

autopilot

o Give yourself – put your vision into action, know your purpose, and do
things for a reason.

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Article: Six Social and Emotional Strategies for Teachers

§ Communication

o Share and receive feedback – allows students to share and engage their
classmates

o Acknowledge emotions – this is a display of trust and understanding

amongst the students and builds connections with each other.

§ Self-reflection

o Mindfulness – this lowers stress and increase emotional control.

o Reflection zone – provides a quiet place for reflection

§ Evaluation

o Measuring effectiveness – using surveys and classroom data on

behaviours and engagement

o Celebrate success – recognize teachers who are successfully implementing

SEL practices and celebrate students who are using these skills

Article: The Power of Social and Emotional Learning for Building Strong
Relationships

§ Social and emotional learning is the process through which children and adults:

o acquire and effectively apply the knowledge, attitudes, and skills

necessary to understand and manage emotions,

o set and achieve positive goals,

o feel and show empathy for others,

o establish and maintain positive relationships, and

o make responsible decisions.

§ SEL can be incorporated into the lesson plan by:

o asking students simple questions that provoke meaningful answers,

o modeling behaviors and skills, and

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 o intentionally fostering classroom culture norms can all contribute to
improved SEL in students.

§ The more we can create opportunities for students to learn in meaningful,

emotionally charged, and personal ways with their peers, the more we can
ensure they will absorb the content and skills we want to build in traditional
subjects such as math, science, and social studies.

§ Introducing students not only to peers within their own classrooms but also to
peers from different communities and cultures can expand their ability to
develop relationships with a wide range of individuals.

Article: Family Engagement and SEL

§ The following strategies may be used by schools to engage families in social

emotional development and to create strong relationships:

o Learn about families – family composition, likes and dislikes, special

skills, concerns

o Invite families to generate SEL goals for their children

o Designate staff to focus on SEL and family engagement

o Create a resource centre for families

o Plan ongoing SEL initiatives

§ To build on the work of schools, families should practice social-emotional

learning by:

o Focusing on their children’s strength

o Using visual aids to help their children plan for future

o Asking about feelings

o Staying calm when you are angry

o Being willing to apologize

o Encouraging them to help and share

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Article: Families Play a Very Important Role in Social and Emotional Learning at
School

§ Below are five strategies for engaging parents and families in SEL programmes

o Educate students and families – create an infographic or flyer that

formally introduces these concepts in a more concrete manner

o Maintain open communication with parents – brainstorm different

methods such as texting, phone calls, parent support groups, video
conferences, or assemblies.

o Generate take home resources – send your students home with

information and tips for SEL that can be applied at home.

o Celebrate family success – celebrating the work families are already doing
goes a long way.

o Lead with equity – when involving families in this process, lead with
empathy and equity.