SEL Momentum Monthly February Edition

Welcome February! The shortest month of the year, yet one filled with many wonderful events. As you step into the month of February, may each day be filled with kindness, health and joy.

In celebration of Random Acts of Kindness Week, we encourage you to nurture the positive energy inside you and share it with all those you encounter.

This month's focus is on self-awareness and neuroscience. We hope that you enjoy and find the resources shared with you useful. Know that we are here to serve and support you.

Thank you for the love, kindness, patience and passion that you bring into your classrooms everyday.

With gratitude for all that you do to serve and support our students in EPISD.

Spread love and kindness!

It Starts With Us!

Inspire Empower Thrive

Tag us on Twitter @ElPasoISD_SEL, #EPISDSEL,

@ELPASO_ISD, #IamEPISD, and #ItStartsWithUs

Random Acts of Kindness Day - February 17, 2023

The Science of Kindness

There are scientifically proven benefits to being kind! Studies show that performing one random act of kindness a day, floods your body with feel good hormones like serotonin, endorphins and oxytocin.

Check this out!

Events of Celebration for February

National School Counseling Week

February 6-10, 2023

Random Acts of Kindness Week

February 14-20, 2023

National PTA Founders Day

February 17, 2023

National FFA Week

February 18-25 2023

President's Day

February 20, 2023

Black History Month

February 2023

Career & Technical Education Month

Black History Month Resources

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President's Day Resources

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Random Acts of Kindness

February Work Place Calendar

Social Emotional Learning Competencies

February SEL Competency Focus

Self-Awareness

Council Post: How To Become A More Self-Aware LeaderThere are three data points of self-assessing: moods, physical sensations and the core thoughts that are affecting your performance.

Understanding Feelings for Teachers of Middle School StudentsYour students will learn that better understanding and recognizing their emotions can be an important first step toward healthy coping and deeper relationships.

Cultivating self-awareness to move learning forwardLearn about 7 self-awareness teaching practices designed to assist students with self-agency.

SEL Academic Integration

How You Can Integrate Academic Development and Social Emotional Learning • The Great Books FoundationDanielle MartinSenior Professional Learning Consultant Danielle Martin is an educational consultant for the Great Books Foundation. She has more than 15 years of experience as a teacher, curriculum developer, and instructional coach. She holds an EdM from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and an MA in theater history and criticism from Catholic University.

Teaching Climate Change Through Social and Emotional LearningHigh school students may feel anxious when studying climate change. Teachers can use SEL strategies to help them develop healthy coping skills.

A Continuum of Integrated Supports | Social-Emotional Learning | PBS LearningMediaSchoolwide SEL supports students—whether they are learning behavioral expectations, solving a complex math problem, playing at recess, or writing an essay from the perspective of a literary character. Schoolwide SEL is neither solely a behavior support nor solely an academic support, but aligns with and complements the continuum of supports—typically already present in schools—aimed at student achievement and well-being. Developed in partnership with the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), this video is part of a series that provides practical applications for educators pursuing high-quality, schoolwide SEL.

A Framework for Updating SEL PlansThis five-step guide provides a simple roadmap for incorporating social and emotional learning across the curriculum with equity in mind.

Three Signature SEL Practices

Click on SEL Signature Practices Graphic for More Information

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is the quality of being present and fully engaged with whatever we’re doing at the moment - free from distraction or judgment, and aware of our thoughts and feelings without getting caught up in them.

Mindfulness Essentials

The Neuroscience of Mindfulness:

What Happens When We Meditate?

SEL Foundational Practices

Neuroscience

Applying Insights From Neuroscience in the ClassroomStrategies based on neuroscience that can guide teachers in making decisions when planning lessons

The Power of Reframing to ‘Rewire’ Students’ BrainsTeachers can use the principles of neuroplasticity to help students be aware of thought patterns that are no longer serving them and begin to take risks in the classroom.

Neuroscience Playlist

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The Nervous System Video Series

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Musical Training Improves Fine Motor Function in Adolescents

SEL Curriculum

We have taken our CASEL approved, highly effective, evidence-based Kindness in the Classroom® social emotional learning curriculum and made it better. By including a focus on equity, teacher self-care, and digital citizenship, we are excited to share a more engaging, relatable, and inclusive curriculum.

Click grade level for Kindness Activities

Positive Behavior Interventions and Supports

SEL Book of the Month

I Talk Like A River Activities

Actividades de Hablo Como El Rio

SEL Libraries

Self Awareness Library

Kindess Library

Love Library

Self-Care

Family Partnerships

Families are children’s first teachers and essential to promoting social and emotional learning (SEL) throughout a child’s life. When educators and families work together, they can build strong connections with each other that reinforce social and emotional skills developed in the home, in schools, and in their communities. When families feel valued as partners in the school, they can also learn how to support and build on school-wide SEL practices in their homes. Research suggests that evidence-based SEL programs are more effective when they extend into young people’s home lives (Albright & Weissberg, 2010).