Social & Emotional Domain (SEL)

Wish you well- 

A greeting / attendance system that teachers learned about in the relationships module of the pyramid training.  

It is just a metal pizza pan or tray. You paint a heart in the middle. You put a picture of each child on the outside of the heart. If anyone is absent, you move their picture into the heart and sing the “wish you well” song. (song sample- https://shop.consciousdiscipline.com/collections/i-love-you-rituals/products/songs-for-i-love-you-rituals-vol-2)

Here is Becky Bailey’s version (hers goes a little beyond morning greeting)- https://consciousdiscipline.com/free-resources/shubert/shuberts-classroom/wish-well-ritual/

Interactive Chart: An interactive chart presents a poem, song, or finger play that provides children with an opportunity to manipulate print in a concrete way.

Here are some interactive songs that could be used for your first large group of the day as a welcome ritual: 

Came To School

(child's name) came to school today, school today, school today

(child's name) came to school today

She/s/He's our friend.

I Have A Friend

I have a friend whose name is (child's name), name is (child's name), name is (child's name)

I have a friend whose name is (child's name), We are so glad you are here!

Here I Am

tune: "Where is Thumbkin?"

Teachers: Where is _? (Child's name)

Where is _? (Child's name)

Child: Here I am, Here I am. (Child stands)

(or have group point and say "There is child's name, There is child's name")

~(Tiffany Norkett, Reedy Creek Elementary, 2014) 

PYRAMID CORNER: Modeling, Modeling, Modeling~ Have you ever been so tired and frustrated when it is time to teach that you feel like you need a reset? It’s OK because that is a teachable moment! 

• ADULTS NEED TUCKER TOO: The next time you feel stress or strong emotions during the school day, pull out your Turtle Technique visual aid and think aloud to your students: “I’m feeling (a little angry and overwhelmed). I know what to do! I can stop, go in my shell, and take three deep breaths. Then I will feel calm enough to continue the day.” You and your students will reap the benefits as you manage your strong emotions and they learn that Tucker works!

• SOLUTION KITS~Start with “Get a Teacher”:  Solution kits and the problem-solving board have now been introduced in RECAP. As you begin to utilize the solution cards when problems arise, you do not need to present all the cards at once. In fact, it may be overwhelming. The one card all children should learn to recognize first is “Get a Teacher.” This allows you to provide scaffolds to children as they calm down and consider solutions. At this stage in the year, it is appropriate to provide them with language to use if needed. As we were reminded last week, this is the Maintenance Learning Stage and most children will not be successful without scaffolding from you. You may also need to individualize instruction by reteaching. Try this version of We Can Be Problem Solvers with updated visuals. 

~Final Word: We are modeling for children all day long, but it does not require perfection. Your best human self is enough. 

PYRAMID CORNER: Problem Solving and Parent Support~ When children don’t know how to count or write their name, we teach. When children don’t have the social skills to handle frustration we… teach! Just like we send parents ideas to help their child at home with academic skills, we can communicate with them about the strategies we use to teach problem solving. 

This Handling Frustration Letter is now located in the !PLC Resources folder (PPM Resources> Parent Education). Feel free to make a copy and modify with the calm- down choices you have taught. 

Final Word~ Do you have students who need extra support to learn pro- social problem solving? How might this resource help parents understand and support what we do and how we do it? How might it also reinforce the parent- child relationship? 

PYRAMID CORNER: Scaffolding the skill of Cooperation~ SOLUTION KITS: Start with “Get a Teacher.”  Solution kits and the problem-solving board have now been introduced in RECAP and should be visible around the classroom. As you begin to utilize the solution cards when problems arise, you do not need to present all the cards at once. In fact, it may be overwhelming. The one card all children should learn to recognize first is “Get a Teacher.” This allows you reinforce the concepts of problem and solution, while you also provide scaffolds to children as they calm down and consider what to try. At this stage in the year, it is appropriate to provide them with language to use if needed. As we were reminded in LETRS training, this is the Maintenance Learning Stage and most children will not be successful without scaffolding from you. You may also need to individualize instruction by reteaching. Try this version of We Can Be Problem Solvers with updated visuals. 

PPM - FRIENDLY SKILLS: I know you are dedicated to sending your students off to Kindergarten ready to do the rigorous work that is required of them. As you look at your data to plan your academic instruction, I want to also encourage you to look carefully at your social-emotional data. It is crucial that we send students to Kindergarten who know how to regulate their behaviors and solve their own social problems with minimal teacher support. 

Reflect: Are my students utilizing their friendly skills and problem solving strategies consistently? 

Students in many classrooms are beginning to generalize friendly skills in new situations or with increasing ownership (production and application stage). Plenty of others continue to engage in varying amounts of negative attention seeking behavior, such as not complying with expectations, whining, tattling, etc. (recognition and identification stage). These students may say the rules with you by rote or repeat the problem-solving process back to you, but may not follow through independently. Other students need frequent reminders of expectations throughout the day (exposure and explanation stage).

Book Lists by Category

Family Connections

Talking About Feelings at Home

Most 4-year olds know the basic emotions of happy, mad, sad, and scared, but a lot of other emotions can mimic these.  By teaching students how to recognize different emotions in themselves and others, they can learn more effective ways to problem solve.  Here is a handout for teaching your child about emotions.  (English) (Spanish) 

Emotional Literacy

Reading children’s books about feelings and emotions is one way to incorporate feelings at home. Linked below is a list of read-aloud books on feelings.

• Today I Feel Silly and Other Moods that Make My Day 

• When I Feel Angry

• When I Feel Sad   

Feelings Activities for Home

Feelings Quilt

Turn That Frown Upside Down

Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure

Attendance Corner

Poor attendance is one of the biggest barriers to your child’s success in school.  Please bring your child to school on time every day.

Help Your Child Succeed in Preschool and Kindergarten Build the Habit of Good Attendance

Satiation is when the teacher knows when students have had enough and notices signs of boredom. Satiation, which means being satisfied or having enough, is used by Kounin to describe students' progressive loss of interest in the task. When students experience satiation or boredom, other behaviors emerge.Dec 8, 2022

Kounin suggests reducing satiation by providing students with a feeling of progress, offering students challenges throughout the lesson, and being enthusiastic. Variety reduces satiation and alleviates boredom. Changing the level of challenges, restructuring groups, extending the task, and using different teaching styles add variety to the lesson.

Additionally, further strategies to prevent classroom misbehaviour and keep the focus on learning include: planning thoroughly, using lesson starters, providing variety, establishing group cohesiveness and responsibility and concluding lessons effectively.