Social Emotional Learning
12/21/2020
Suggested activities can be repeated and you can choose what to enjoy at any time during the week.
I hope you enjoy them!
Book Club
Visiting Feelings by Lauren Rubenstein Last week, we talked about how people sometimes use colors to communicate how they are feeling. We talked about how some people might even use a thermometer to show others how they are feeling. Visiting Feelings uses words through the use of metaphors and description to illustrate feelings. Talk with your child about different ways to tell others how we are feeling? Are there common expressions you use at home? (e.g., "I was as mad as a hornet!" or "Today I feel blue.") And, for fun, see how many rhyming words your child can pick out from the poetry?
Is it a Tool or a Toy?
Emotions Fortune Teller Do you remember "Catchers"? Well here's a new spin that will provide an opportunity to talk about feelings and ways to cope with strong emotions in a fun way! Print and follow the cutting and folding directions.
Kelso's Problem Solving Wheel Preview a tool we will use in the new year when we cover strategies that help us solve problems in an "expected" way. Feel free to print, post and use at home! I always recommend modeling for your child when ever possible. Make it fun, model thinking out loud and talking through your decision making when choosing the strategy that best matches the problem.
Mindfulness
Mindfulness exercises can be done at any time! I generally guide the students in the beginning and at the end of each lesson. These brain based exercises can help bodies and brains remain calm and focused. This year's series of mindfulness exercises largely came from a collection titled "Little Renegades."
We've practiced "Fox Ears" and "Mindful Owl". This month we will be practicing "Bear Breaths." Enjoy!
Bear Breaths
Take a big breath in, and when you exhale, growl and let your big bear roar out!
Making Holidays Mindful
The holidays are often busy and joyful but they can also bring a whole host of emotions from excitement to fear; from joy to disappointment. Now as a result of COVID-19 and the restrictions it has brought, we may be looking at celebrating holidays in a very different way. Here are some tips from the Mindful magazine to help us all navigate this time.
Recreational SEL
How to Make an Igloo! I thought this was so "cool"! Enjoy this instructional on how to build an igloo! Happy Snowy Days!
How Do Polar Animals Survive in the Cold? Mystery Science always offers "cool" discussions for little minds to think about! Bundle Up!
For the fun of it, Google search "Holidays Around the World" and see how many holidays around the world that you can find that happen in December!
Here's one that I found that is kind of neat! Time and Date - Holidays and Observances Around the World