Social Emotional Learning Curriculum

Puzzled about how our learners behave? Or struggling with keeping them interested in the classroom? The trouble may not be your mastery of the content or the topic itself. Establishing a positive learning environment is the key to harmonious, negative-free behavior and a successful school year. Integrating social-emotional learning in our classroom across all subjects is the gap we can bridge with our learners. 

See the fact file below for more information on putting together a Social Emotional Learning Curriculum, or you can download our 14-page Social Emotional Learning Curriculum pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

Short video explainer

• Before we start, watch a short and simple video explainer about Social Emotional Learning found in the PDF download.

What to Consider

• Shared goal – As educators, we are not only to impart the theories of academics to our learners. Instead, we are supposed to get them ready for real life. Understanding our learners’ emotions and behavior is not the responsibility solely of the counselor. As their immediate guardians at school, we stand as their second parents.
• Diversity of learners – Aside from the variety of our students in terms of learning needs, sex, religion, culture, gender, race, economic status, etc., they have different upbringings and thus have varied developmental skills that influence their behavior towards various situations. 
• Integration – Unlike other Kidskonnect’s high-quality curriculum packs, which provide tips on how to meaningfully teach specific topics such as ancient civilizations, the Solar System, and holidays such as Thanksgiving, Halloween, and Christmas, this SEL curriculum pack will share varied strategies and the importance of integrating SEL into the classroom, which includes integration in teaching history, ELA, math, and science, as part of strengthening their intrapersonal and interpersonal skills. 
• Learner appropriateness – We can think of hundreds of SEL activities, but not all are appropriate for all learners. One size fits all is irrelevant. Thus we need to consider age or grade appropriateness and their individual learning needs. 

How to deliver

• Social-emotional learning is not a one-time topic we can teach in a day or two. It is a universal strategy that should be integrated into the home, community, and school cultures. 
• Before we jump to the integration of SEL, whether you are a science, math, history, or ELA teacher, let’s define SEL and its concepts. According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, Emotional Learning (CASEL), social-emotional learning is the process through which people (children and adults) understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. 
• Given the definition, SEL has five main components to consider. Let’s put the concepts in a diagram (see the diagram in the PDF download). 
• Let’s have a better and more detailed understanding of the concepts presented for effective classroom integration. Self awareness involves identifying our emotions and why we act the way we do. Recognizing our emotions can start with becoming aware of what we feel in a specific situation. 
• Recognizing our learners’ emotions would help us teachers understand their feelings and establish a connection. In a check-in activity, we can ask our learners to hand sign a number based on their feelings at the moment, or in an online class, they can chat with an emoji. In the PDF download is an example of a feeling meter.  
• Recognizing and processing their feelings at the moment is an excellent example of taking a step towards self-awareness. Note that this is only a check-in activity; thus, we do not need to dwell on it. Baby steps in getting to know our learners and their individual meanings are okay. 
• However, if we have kindergarten/elementary learners, we can absolutely use this activity for an entire session. Begin with the basic emotions and the feelings they can attribute. According to Mullen 2019, there are five measurable emotions often associated with specific feelings; anger, joy, sadness, fear, and disgust. In an EL class, engage the learners in a book-reading activity about emotions. A couple of great reads are as follows:
  • The Boy with Big, Big Feelings (Britney Winn Lee)
  • The Color Monster: A Story About Emotions (Anna Llenas)
  • Ravi’s Roar (Tom Percival)
  • Calm-Down Time (Elizabeth Verdick)
  • Llama llama mad at mama (Anna Dewdney)
  • Feelings (Libby Walden)
• Moreover, watching the film Inside Out (2015) is also helpful in teaching kids to get to know their emotions and the associated feelings. 
• In addition to literature and film, art activities are an excellent expression of our learners’ self-awareness skills. Note that colors are highly associated with emotions. 
• It is crucial to consider that as our learners get older, their feelings and emotions also expand and become more complex. An elementary student’s vocabulary about their feelings is simpler than a high school student’s. Moreover, their expression of these feelings also varies. A kindergartener may cry over a crayon they wants, while an anxious high school student may express themself differently. 
• Upon recognizing feelings and emotions, part of the process is devising coping strategies to address them. For example, a student feeling disappointed may be sad or angry. These possible emotions may negatively impact an event in the classroom. They may have low motivation in learning or be easily agitated by a classmate’s noise. Most of the time, overwhelming and uncontrollable emotions result in unexpected behaviors, which is one of the most common interruptions in the classroom. The misbehavior of one learner is so powerful that it can disrupt the flow of ideas and learning of other students.
• To avoid behavior-related disruptions, we can teach and exercise different coping strategies such as deep breathing, positive self-talk, sensory countdown, and benevolence. A simple breathing exercise before the class begins is a relaxing start. A handful of mindful breathing flashcard exercises for kids are presented in the PDF download.
• After we integrate valuing our learners’ emotions, we expand this concept to valuing other people at home, school, and the community. We can make elementary students realize the significant roles of doctors, firefighters, teachers, nurses, janitors, and police officers in our community. ‘My mom/dad is a hero’ themed activity would be perfect for this learning objective. Our young learners will bring a photo or a scrapbook of their parents and proudly share with the class what they do. They can even put a costume on for more fun sharing. 
• For middle to high school students, we can engage them in community programs, such as clean-up drives and community outreach, to impart the more complex values of responsibility, citizenship, and accountability. 
• Another key in setting an SEL-conducive environment is the establishment of rules for a common goal – meaningful learning. Gone are the days when students are punished for misconduct. Today, we can preempt misbehaviors through a preventative classroom approach through shared goal-setting. As teachers, let’s share the responsibility of SMART goal-setting with our learners. 
  • Specific – Be particular with the goal of the classroom, especially with managing learner behavior. 
  • Measurable – Track the progress of our learners by keeping anecdotal records. We can also provide them with regular feedback regarding their progress.
  • Attainable – Never set goals that are too idealistic for us (teachers and students) to target. Make sure that it is realistic and agreeable to all. Note that goal setting with our students is more effective than giving them rules without their consent. 
  • Relevant – Set if the goals are short-term or long-term. 
  • Time-oriented – Teach our learners time management and prioritizing activities. 
• Our learners can keep track of their personal SMART goal-setting in a journal or diary. See a sample of a SMART goal-setting guide in the PDF download.
• Another significant component of SEL is social awareness and our ability to form relationships. One of the most challenging aspects of SEL, teaching and integrating social awareness, may begin with the concepts of empathy and sympathy and their differences. Teaching by example or modeling (especially for young learners) would be effective for this part. We, teachers, could be better, and even though our careers are in progress, we still have some work to do regarding our personal SEL. Let this journey be our time also to improve ours. 
• To know a learner’s empathetic capacity, see how they will respond to different situations (it can be in the form of images or statements). For middle to high school learners, let’s add questions such as “How do you feel?” or “From your perspective…?” in analyzing a painting or inferencing a text source. See sample images in the PDF download.
• An example of integrating social awareness in our class is when misbehavior occurs. As mentioned previously, punishing our students for unwanted behavior is less effective. Instead of punishment, let the student know that their misconduct would affect not only the teacher’s discussion but also their classmates’ learning time. Aside from emphasizing that learning is a shared responsibility of everybody, respecting their classmates’ learning is a sign of empathy.
• Building a relationship with classmates, teachers, and other community members may be challenging to some, and bullying is one of the barriers to a positive relationship at school. According to stopbullying.gov (2021), about 20% of students in the US (ages 12-18) experienced bullying at school, while 15% were victims of cyberbullying. Most bullies (56%) could influence other students’ perception of the victim, while hallways or stairwell was the most common space in school where bullying occurs, at 43.4%.
• Similar research in the UK reveals that 47% of their respondents in 2020 were bullied due to physical appearance, while 30% were because of their interests. Other reasons include fashion, gender identity, mannerisms, disability, race, culture, low and high grades, and low and high household income. 
• As mentioned, we teachers are our students’ parents at school. Bullying is a barrier to a healthy relationship at school and should not be oversimplified. Research also suggests that unaddressed bullying incidents can lead to extreme feelings of exclusion, rejection, despair, and isolation – all contributors to depression and anxiety. 
• In addition to adequately handling unwanted behaviors, developing our students’ interpersonal skills may begin with basic communication, such as saying ‘sorry,’ ‘please,’ and ‘thank you,’ encouraging positive talk, and introducing random acts of kindness. Communication could be as complex as responding to criticisms and accusations.  
• A skit or role-play focusing on positive communication in unpleasant situations could be a great activity to develop altruism and conflict resolution skills among students. Practical tasks such as watering plants, turning the lights on and off in the classroom, tracking attendance, and keeping the room tidy would help develop self-management and a sense of responsibility.
• Aside from the activities mentioned, see some more SEL activities we can use in the PDF download.

Learning outcomes

• If we successfully integrate SEL activities in our classroom, why not expand to the entire school curriculum? Aside from teachers and students, other educational stakeholders (parents, community administrators, and school staff) should also engage in SEL. 
• More than achieving academic excellence, our students’ lifetime fulfillment stems from an SEL-friendly home, school, and community. When they start to make ethical and respectful decisions about their intrapersonal and interpersonal relationship, we also succeed as their guardian. 
• Based on a study by OECD (2020), schools with high-quality SEL programs proved to be a factor in closing academic gaps and improving achievements. Students with strong SE skills are more likely to engage in learning, have higher self-esteem, fewer behavior issues, and are less likely to drop out of school. 

Social Emotional Learning Worksheets

This is a fantastic curriculum bundle that includes everything you need to know about Social Emotional Learning across 14 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about Social Emotional Learning, which is the process through which people (children and adults) understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions. 

Complete List of Included Worksheets

• Teaching Social Emotional Learning
  1. Short video explainer
  2. What to consider
  3. How to deliver
  4. Learning outcomes
• Lesson Plan Template
• Suggested Worksheets

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the 5 social-emotional learning skills?

According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, Emotional Learning (CASEL), the five core SEL skills are Self-awareness, Self-management, Social-awareness, Relationship skills, and Responsible decision-making.

What is the meaning of social-emotional learning?

According to the Collaborative for Academic, Social, Emotional Learning (CASEL), social-emotional learning is the process through which people (children and adults) understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions.

What are some activities for social-emotional development?

Activities for SEL development may include breathing exercises, feeling meter, storytelling, film viewing, coloring, smart goal-setting, journal writing, source inferencing, role-playing, debating, interest presentation, and calming down corners.

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