December

December's SEL theme is empathy, defined for students as being able to understand and care about how someone else is feeling.

What Research Says

"Empathy is the ability to understand and share the feelings of another person. It involves 'putting yourself in someone else’s shoes, and experiencing their emotions [as your own]. It is important to differentiate empathy from sympathy and compassion. While sympathy is feeling sorry for someone’s situation, and compassion is the desire to help, empathy goes further. It requires a deep understanding and connection with others’ emotions" (EverydaySpeech, n.d.).

Accordingly, cultivating empathy is central to enhancing interpersonal relationships, developing effective communication skills, fostering a positive and inclusive environment, and promoting self-awareness and self-regulation. Empathy is recognized as a key skill to help students learn how to effectively work with others, become critical thinkers, and contribute positively to society (Silke et al., 2024). Empathy is further associated with developing self-compassion, a trait that has been shown to defend against anxiety, and has been linked to increased psychological well-being in adolescents and adults (Morizio et al., 2022). And, perhaps contrary to common belief, research indicates that empathy is a skill that can be taught, explicitly targeted, and developed in youth (Morizio et al., 2022).

Empathy is believed to be comprised of both cognitive (e.g. I can understand how people are feeling before they tell me) and affective (e.g. after being with a friend who is sad, I usually feel sad) elements. Research has long demonstrated a consistent link between empathy and improved social outcomes, including better quality peer relationships, enhanced social competency skills, and decreased bullying and delinquency (Silke et al., 2024). A 2024 study into schools that implemented empathy-based SEL programs found that students who participated in such programs demonstrated significantly higher levels of empathy, which was in turn linked with greater measures of student self-reported prosocial behavior (e.g. I am helpful if someone is hurt, feeling ill or upset), social responsibility (e.g. Helping other people is important to me), and emotional efficacy (e.g. I can figure out what made someone feel the way they feel) (Silke et al., 2024).

December's theme of empathy follows November's focus on kindness, as showing kindness to others sets the stage for curiosity, openness, and efforts to understand the experiences and feelings of others. With the holiday season approaching, it is also important to encourage children to be mindful of what others may or may not have, and show generosity and thoughtfulness during this time of year.

EverydaySpeech. (n.d.). The role of empathy in social emotional learning: building emotional intelligence. EverydaySpeech. https://everydayspeech.com/sel-implementation/the-role-of-empathy-in-social-emotional-learning-building-emotional-intelligence/; Silke, C., Davitt, E., Flynn, N., Shaw, A., Brady, B., Murray, C., Dolan, P. (2024). Activating social empathy: an evaluation of a school-based social and emotional learning programme. Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 3..; Morizio, L., Cook, A., Troeger, R., Whitehouse, A. (2022). Creating compassion: using art for empathy learning with urban youth. Contemp School Psychol, 26, 435–447.

School-Wide Activity

Cards for Hospitalized Kids spreads hope, joy & magic to kids in the hospital across America through uplifting, handmade cards. Individuals and groups across the country donate their time and creativity to make handmade cards for kids who are currently receiving treatment in the hospital.  Over 500,000 kids in hospitals in all 50 states have received cards from CFHK since it started! To show empathy and think of others during this time of year, we will make cards this month to donate to CFHK to spread cheer and love to those who could use a little extra!