Social Emotional Learning (SEL)

We work on having a "Growth Mindset" with our emotional management, empathy, kindness, and problem-solving. We will learn to identify feelings and role play situations to practice the tools we have learned. We use a program called Second Step.

We are currently on: Unit 3: Emphathy & Kindness

Unit 1: Growth Mindset & Goal Setting

Lesson 1: We Watch. We Listen. We Think.

In this lesson, your child will learn that paying attention means watching, listening, and thinking carefully about something. They practice different ways of showing they’re paying attention.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to show you how they can pay attention, for example, when you are reading a story with them or explaining how to do something.

Lesson 2: Why We Pay Attention

In this lesson, your child will learn two important reasons for paying attention: to learn and to stay safe.

Try This at Home: Ask your child why they think it’s important to pay attention during different activities, for example, when listening to information or instructions, when helping out with a task, or when crossing the street with you.

Lesson 3: Mistakes Are Okay!

In this lesson, your child will learn that mistakes are a natural part of the learning process. They’ll practice encouraging their classmates (and themselves) while the class learns and practices a skill together: snapping their fingers.

Try This at Home: Remind your child that everyone makes mistakes and that mistakes help us learn. Point out when you make mistakes or tell them a story about a time you learned something from making a mistake.

Lesson 4: Practice Makes Better

In this lesson, your child will learn that it’s important to practice and keep trying in order to get better at something they want to learn.

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to choose something they want to get better at (such as, tying their shoes, adding or subtracting, writing their name, dribbling a ball, or snapping their fingers). Set aside a few minutes each day for them to practice the skill, and highlight the progress they’re making.

Lesson 5: Let’s Practice and Learn!

In this lesson, your child will show what they’ve learned about the importance of paying attention, practicing, and continuing to try after making mistakes. They’ll put these skills to use while learning a rhyme with accompanying movements.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to show and teach you the rhyme they learned, along with the movements, so you can do it together.

Unit 2: Emotion Management

Lesson 6: Sometimes We Feel Happy

In this week’s lesson, your child will learn to use body language and context clues to figure out when someone feels happy. They’ll practice looking at the person’s face and body, as well as thinking about what’s going on in the situation.

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to notice when others around them feel happy. Have them practice using body language and context clues to figure out when family members, friends, or characters in books, movies, or on TV might be feeling happy.

Lesson 7: Sometimes We Feel Sad

In this week’s lesson, your child will learn to use body language and context clues to figure out when someone feels sad. They’ll practice looking at the person’s face and body, as well as thinking about what’s going on in the situation.

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to notice when others around them feel sad. Have them practice using body language and context clues to figure out when family members, friends, or characters in books, movies, or on TV might be feeling sad.

Lesson 8: Sometimes We Feel Mad

In this week’s lesson, your child will learn to use body language and context clues to figure out when someone feels mad. They’ll practice looking at the person’s face and body, as well as thinking about what’s going on in the situation.

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to notice when others around them feel mad. Have them practice using body language and context clues to figure out when family members, friends, or characters in books, movies, or on TV might be feeling mad.

Lesson 9: We Can Feel Calm

In this week’s lesson, your child will learn two ways to help themselves feel calm when they encounter strong feelings: asking for help and slow breathing.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to tell you some ways they’ve learned to feel calm when they get upset. Have them teach you how to use slow breathing to feel calm.

Lesson 10: What Are They Feeling?

In this week’s lesson, your child will show that they can use body language and context clues to figure out how someone is feeling. They’ll also show they can use slow breathing as a way to help themselves feel calm when they encounter strong feelings.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to tell you how they think others around them might be feeling, for example a sibling or a character in a story, a movie, or a TV show.

Unit 3: Empathy & Kindness

Lesson 11: We Can Be Kind

In this lesson, your child will learn that a kind act is something they can do to help someone feel good. They’ll practice suggesting kind acts to do for people in different scenarios.

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to think of a kind act they could do for someone, for example a sibling, grandparent, or neighbor.

Lesson 12: Why Kindness?

In this lesson, your child will learn that kindness is a way to show people that they care and that doing kind acts can make both the giver and the receiver feel good. They’ll share personal examples and discuss how they felt when they gave or received kind acts.

Try This at Home: Help your child think of a kind act they can do for someone and support them in carrying it out. With your child, discuss how they think the receiver of the kind act felt. Ask your child how they felt doing a kind act for someone.

Lesson 13: Showing Kindness

In this lesson, your child will practice two kind acts: asking, “Would you like to share?” and “Would you like a hug?”

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to offer to share items at home. For example, have them help you make a snack and then offer to share it with other family members. Encourage them to offer hugs to family members or friends when they are tired or sad or need encouragement.

Lesson 14: Kindness at School

In this lesson, your child will learn different ways they can show kindness at school. The class will share ideas for kind acts they could do for one another.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to tell you about the kind acts they and their classmates have been doing for one another at school this week.

Lesson 15: Demonstrating Kindness

In this lesson, your child will show what they’ve learned about kindness and the power of kind acts to help people feel good. They’ll draw themselves doing a kind act for someone at school.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to show or tell you about their drawing of doing a kind act for someone at school. Encourage them to draw a picture of themselves doing a kind act at home too.

Unit 4: Problem Solving

Lesson 16: We Can Say the Problem

In this lesson, your child will learn how to state a problem without blame or name calling. They’ll practice identifying problems in given scenarios, listen to their teacher state the problem, and then repeat the statement.

Try This at Home: Children may be tempted to blame others when they’re upset about something. Encourage your child to avoid blame by describing what happened without focusing on who is at fault.

Lesson 17: Ready to Solve Problems

In this lesson, your child will learn that taking time to feel calm before reacting is a helpful first step to solving a problem.

Try This at Home: Let your child see you taking a moment to feel calm at home when things are busy or stressful. For example, say, “Today was a really busy day. I’m going to take a few slow breaths to help me feel calm.” Invite your child to join you.

Lesson 18: Apologizing Can Help

In this lesson, your child will learn that apologizing is one way to begin to solve problems. They’ll practice using the phrases, “I’m sorry. Are you okay? How can I help?” as a way to help solve problems.

Try This at Home: Ask your child to teach you the three parts of the apology they learned. Encourage them to apologize when the opportunity arises at home.

Lesson 19: Taking Turns and Sharing

In this week’s lesson, your child will practice solving problems by offering to share and take turns.

Try This at Home: Encourage your child to offer to share and take turns with items at home.

Lesson 20: We Can Solve Problems

In this lesson, your child will show what they have learned about solving problems. They’ll suggest ways to solve problems in different scenarios and draw a picture of themselves using a problem-solving strategy.

Try This at Home: If problems or disagreements arise at home, for example, between siblings, ask your child to suggest a way to help solve the problem.

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