5 Tips for teaching SEL

Written with Kristen K. Carroll

A Day to celebrate social emotional learning is coming up!
Won't you join the movement?
​Promote SEL today and every day!

What is Social Emotional Learning?
According to Committee for Children, "Social-emotional learning (SEL) is the process of developing the self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success." www.cfchildren.org/what-is-social-emotional-learning/

To celebrate SEL Day, we're sharing five ideas for promoting SEL in your classroom, program, school, or home:

1.  Help children become aware of their feelings. 
Helping children label their feelings with appropriate words gives them an important tool for self-regulation. 
Even very young children can learn to identify their feelings.  Start with the basics (happy, sad, mad, scared) with infants and toddlers, and add more precise words as children get older.  Search “children's feelings words” online for lists that build children’s emotional vocabulary.

Reading books about feelings is a great way to boost awareness.  Our own book "EEPWORM’s Emotional Day" addresses many different feelings that yellow eepworm experiences in a single day, and introduces a helpful mindfulness strategy for dealing with one of them.  In our note for parents and teachers, we provide 15 different feelings words  to guide your discussion about the emotions in the story.    ​

2.  Post a feelings chart in your classroom or home.
There are lots of examples of feelings charts you can use in your classroom or home.  Providing one with pictures of faces helps young children understand and label their emotions.  But feelings charts aren't just for kids!
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One of my favorite feelings charts was developed by Marc Brackett, the Founder and Director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence as part of his RULER approach to social-emotional learning.  His "Mood Meter" helps us chart our feelings in 2 dimensions, pleasantness and energy.  The chart groups feelings into 4 color groups, blue, green, yellow and red.  Look for the Ruler Mood Meter online.  There’s an app for it - check it out!

3.  Cultivate an attitude of gratitude and positivity.
Feeling grateful and thinking positive can help to create a calm and joyful classroom. Model expressions of gratitude, and encourage children to feel and express gratitude.  When we feel grateful for the positive things in life, it's easier to  treat others with more kindness and compassion.
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Think positive!
​We can also make the effort to focus on what we and the children can do, not what we or they can't.  Even when we get challenged by a child’s – or an adult’s - behavior, we can try to think positive thoughts:  “I’ve got this,” or “I can stay calm and help this person.” ​

4.  Provide practice of problem-solving.
​ Problem solving skills take a lot of practice and can be learned through opportunities for peer conflict resolution. Encouraging children to attempt to figure out how to solve a problem on their own promotes independence and self-confidence.  Practice can also come from discussing scenarios and providing feedback on various solutions.  When children learn to have healthy discussions and use active listening, they develop respect for others' opinions, even when they disagree.

In my preschool classroom, I taught children a simple method of problem-solving.  I coached them through the process, and eventually they could solve problems themselves!

• Define the problem ("It looks like you both want to play with the truck")
• Brainstorm solutions ("What do you want now?" Let each child tell what they want.)
• Evaluate the solutions ("Will it work if...)
• Choose one both can agree on ("You've agreed to each play with it for 5 minutes")
• Help them implement the solution (Play a chance game to see who goes first, set a timer)

5.  Put together a calm-down kit or area.
Gather materials that help children learn about feelings and how to handle them.  Include pictures, books, games that deal with feelings and a variety of sensory play items.  It's also helpful to provide art media, music and other creative expression activities.  And don't forget our own EEPWORM® toys!

We hope these ideas are helpful!  Share your ideas as well, and together we can promote SEL and help children thrive!