pathway2success, Author at The Pathway 2 Success

10+ Social Emotional Activities for Home

March 13, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Social emotional learning isn’t just something that should be practiced and taught at school. SEL skills are life skills, of course! These include skills like empathy, self-control, and decision-making.

Before I even get started, while I was writing this post, I decided to also create a set of SEL printables you can send home with parents and families right away. Of course, if you’re a parent looking for extra activities, I would encourage you to use them on your own, too! They include four choice boards covering skills like responsibility, friendships, strengths, and managing emotions. You can download your free printable SEL activities here.

It’s important to mention that you don’t have to be an expert with social emotional skills to teach and practice them with kids. Even small activities, like reading books and playing games, can strengthen social skills and teach kids important skills along the way. This matters.

Whenever you are doing a new activity, it’s important to let kids know what skills they are working on. This makes every SEL activity more purposeful and targeted. For example, if you are playing board games, just briefly remind kids that they are working on important social skills like taking turns and showing fairness. This can lead to a good conversation about what those skills mean and why they matter.

Here are some SEL activities you can encourage parents to try, or do with your own children!

Empathy in Action

Skills targeted: Empathy, Perspective-Taking

How to try it: Spend some time watching a show or movie. At any given time, pause and discuss how the characters are feeling. You might ask: “How are they feeling?” and “How would you feel if that happened to you?” Use this conversation to build on considering how others feel, discussing social cues, and caring about their emotions.

Acts of Kindness Challenge

Skills targeted: Kindness, Empathy

How to try it: Use this free printable random acts of kindness challenge to encourage kids to be kind to others. For each kind act they do, have them color in the picture. Another option is to have them give an example of each kind act before they color it in.

Just Chat!

Skills targeted: Self-Awareness, Conversation Skills, Relationships

How to try it: Start by asking kids questions about anything from their favorite foods and activities to what three items they might bring on a deserted island with them. Many questions can help work on conversation skills, turn-taking, and self-awareness. You can start with this free printable list of conversation questions or consider these social emotional learning task cards to chat and focus on the skills more explicitly.

10+ free social emotional learning ideas to use at home for parents. #pathway2success

Mindful Breathing

Skills targeted: Mindfulness, Coping Skills, Managing Emotions

How to try it: Let kids know that they will be practicing mindful breathing. Explain that mindful breathing is just focusing on breathing in and out to help calm our minds and bodies. There are many different mindful breathing exercises to try out. One of my favorites is “Cool off the pizza.” In this activity, have kids pretend they have a hot slice of pizza in front of them. Slowly breathe in to smell the pizza and breathe out to cool it down. Another one of my favorites is bubble breathing. If you have bubbles on hand it is even better, but you can also pretend! Practice breathing in and out as you blow bubbles. Learn more about other ideas to practice mindful breathing.

Mindful Scavenger Hunt

Skill targeted: Mindfulness, Attention

How to try it: Explain that mindfulness is learning to focus on the present. This can help our minds and bodies feel calm and in control. On your own, create a list of 10 or 12 items you want kids to find. Note that this can be done inside or outside. For example, if outside, you might want them to find a plant, a pine cone, something blue, and something bumpy. If inside, you might want them to find something yellow, something in the shape of a square, and something that makes noise. You can create your own scavenger hunts (or skip the prep with the ones I’ve made), so it’s entirely up to you and what you have! Give kids time to find these items and have them write them down on a piece of paper to document them.

Kindness Share

Skills targeted: Kindness, Confidence

How to try it: Discuss what it means to be kind and give compliments. come up with some examples together. Then, have each person (kids and adults) write their name on a piece of paper. Pass that paper to your right. When you get someone else’s paper, write something kind and thoughtful about that person.

Organize It

Skills targeted: Planning, Organization

How to try it: Discuss what it means to be organized and how we know when something is organized and tidy. Gather a set of supplies for each child or team. Set the timer to a certain amount (five minutes, for example) and see if the child can return those items to the correct spot.

Mindfulness 5-4-3-2-1

Skills targeted: Mindfulness, Coping Skills, Self-Regulation

How to try it: Explain that kids will be practicing mindfulness, which is a skill that helps us stay calm and in control. Have kids look around their room to find 5 things they can see, 4 things they can touch, 3 things they can hear, 2 things they can smell, and 1 thing they can taste. This is a grounding exercise that can help manage tough emotions and provide a mental reset when needed. After giving it a try, you can move to another room and try the same. More free mindfulness activities and ideas can be found here.

Optical Illusions

Skills targeted: Perspective-Taking

How to try it: Find any optical illusions online or use this free printable worksheet. Have kids review the optical illusions. First, have them think about what they see and write it down. Then, share. Kids should quickly notice that what they see isn’t always what others might see. Explain how optical illusions are like situations; sometimes you and someone else can see the same situation in different ways. As a follow-up, kids can find their own optical illusions online.

SEL Read Alouds

Skills targeted: All SEL skills (varies depending on book)

How to try it: Choose any read aloud. As you read through the book, stop and discuss the social emotional skills embedded in the book. One skill that carries across all picture books, for example, is empathy. You can talk about how the character might feel, what they might be thinking, and how you can tell. Depending on which book you choose, many different social emotional skills can be discussed from confidence to decision-making and beyond. Grab this free printable SEL Read Aloud List to help you get started.

Board Games

Skills targeted: Turn-Taking, Sportsmanship

How to try it: Use any board games you have on hand, such as Monopoly or Candy Land. These games can help support a number of skills, including taking turns, having conversations, and showing good sportsmanship. Check here for some other ideas for social emotional games you can use.

Mindful Coloring

Skills targeted: Mindfulness, Coping Skills

How to try it: Set the tone with some calming music. Have kids color or doodle quietly as they breathe in and out. Note that you can use any coloring pages or books on hand, or grab these free printable mindful colori ng pages to start.

Charades

Skills targeted: Social Cues, Emotions

How to try it: Discuss that our body language and facial expressions can often hint at what we’re doing and how we’re feeling. Have each person or child come up with an activity, such as making a sandwich, and then act it out. See if others can guess the activity. Note that you can also do this with emotions, by having kids act out different emotions and seeing if others can correctly guess.

Journal Writing

Skills targeted: Emotions, Self-Regulation, Self-Awareness

How to try it: Explain that writing in a journal can help express our feelings and thoughts. Set the timer for 5 or 10 minutes, and have each person just write what is on their mind. Give time for kids to share their thoughts afterward if they want. Another option is to use open-ended prompts for kids to write about. You can learn more about mindful journaling here as well.

Inspirational Quotes

Skills targeted: Kindness, Perseverance, and many more

How to try it: Find a couple examples of your favorite inspirational quotes. This will vary depending on the age level of the children. For example, you might read, “No act of kindness, no matter how small, is ever wasted.” Discuss the quote and what it means. Then, give a topic and have kids find or create their own quotes on that topic. Have them write them down and share them. You can even have kids design their own posters for the quote.

Practice Positive Affirmations

Skills targeted: Positive Thinking, Confidence, Self-Love

How to try it: Explain that positive affirmations are kind and supportive words we say to ourselves to lift us up. For example, before a big test, we might say, “I can do this!” Ask kids to think of their own positive words they might say. Use this free printable positive affirmation s list to have kids find their favorite positive self-talk statements. Practice saying them, writing them down, and creating cards for each of their favorites.

I-Spy

Skills targeted: Attention, Mindfulness

How to try it: This is probably a game you’ve played before, but it’s important to mention because SEL skills can be easily integrated! Start by saying, “I spy with my little eye….”. For example, you might spy something green. Have kids stay just where they are and look around for the item. Instead of just guessing, it’s helpful to have them ask questions that really cause them to think. For example, they might say, “is it something you can play with?” and “is it something you can write on?” After giving some time for questions, allow the child to guess what it is. Whoever guesses it right can by the next to spy something.

Need more ideas? I’ve put together a massive list of 100+ FREE social emotional learning activities, printables, ideas, and more. Use it for yourself or share it to help someone else in need.

Managing Disrespectful & Rude Behaviors in the Classroom

March 3, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Strategies for managing disrespectful, rude, and other challenging behaviors in the classroom. This post is targeted to teachers and principals who need support with challenging behaviors in elementary, middle, and high school. #pathway2success #behaviormanagement

Let’s talk about disrespectful behaviors in the classroom. The child who talks back. The student using their cell phone, even after being told to put it away. The kid who refuses to do their work, and even loudly tells you, “no!” when you try to politely give some encouragement. The student who jokes about your class being dumb, causing an eruption of laughter in the room.

As educators, we’ve all encountered some (or probably all) of these situations from time to time. Here are some strategies to help you manage these challenging behaviors and get back to what you do best – teaching your students.

Change your mindset. First, the most effective strategy is actually a mindset shift. Kids aren’t being rude to be rude or disrespectful. Kids and young adults are coping with challenging feelings the very best way they know how to in the moment. Let’s think about it: Wouldn’t it actually be easier for a student to follow the rules and just fly under the radar? In most cases, it would. So, it’s important to remember that disrespectful, rude, or challenging behaviors are not really directed at you. They are just a way to communicate needs.

Challenging behaviors are the way a child is communicating. Use these strategies, tools, and ideas to help support kids and teens in school. #pathway2success

Have empathy. Remember that we don’t know what goes on in the lives of our learners. Take a trauma-informed approach. Rather than blaming and accusing the student for their behavior, take a step back and consider that they are struggling in some way. Even if we don’t know the reasons for the struggles, it’s helpful to have empathy always.

Be consistent with expectations. Kids and teens need boundaries. Spend time teaching, discussing, and practicing the expectations. Adults can be fun and still have rules. The key, though, is that kids need to know and truly understand them. Prior to group work, talk about what the expectations for being a good ground member are. Act them out and highlight them while kids are working. Before independent work, model what a good independent worker looks like. Give reasons and explanations for these expectations. It’s also important to note that this isn’t just something for the beginning of the year. Reviewing expectations should be a year-round and continuous process. All kids benefit from a refresh and some kids truly need it.

Train yourself to not take offense. This takes real work. Remember, though, that these are kids and young adults. They are still learning and growing. It’s critical to stress that these behaviors are not often meant to be directed at you. Also, think about it: Are you really offended that a 10-year-old made fun of your hair? Do you actually feel upset that a teen said your class was stupid? When we phrase these “rude” situations like this, it seems even a little silly to take offense, really. With that said, there are times when kids and young adults can use their words as weapons. When this happens, it’s important to view those behaviors as needs and skill deficits. Train yourself to not take offense so that you can stay calm and collected.

Consider skill deficits. When a student says something mean or rude, consider how it could be the result of a lack of social skills. For example, if a student keeps blurting out in class, are they really purposefully being rude or are they struggling with self-regulation? If a child tells you that your shirt is ugly, are they trying to be mean or do they lack a strong social filter? While not all “rude” behavior fits into this category, it’s worth taking the time to consider first.

Focus on the relationship. Continually focusing on the relationship with your students demonstrating rude behaviors is extremely important – for you and for them. First, so often, a child or young adult with challenging behaviors needs connection. Spend time talking about non-school related topics, find out their interests, hear about family, and listen to their favorite music. No relationship-building topic is too small. There needs to be connection before there can be correction. There really is no other way. Use this free printable relationship-building questions list or read up on more strategies for building relationships with your learners.

Relationships are a key element to supporting kids with behavioral challenges in the classroom. Help kids and teens while improving the entire atmosphere of the classroom. #pathway2success

Ignore what you can ignore. Sometimes, kids and young adults act out as a way to express their feelings. Of course, they aren’t going about it the right way, but in the moment is not the right time to address it. Other times, kids might be acting out for attention. In both cases, ignoring what you can ignore is often the best action in the moment. Walk away or pretend you didn’t see that eye roll. If you have to address some behaviors in the moment, say, “We’ll talk about it later.” This gives the adult the opportunity to let others know they are handling it, but also reduces any chance for power struggles along the way.

Be prepared for behavioral episodes. Using the word “ADAPT,” you can remember to act calm, de-escalate, acknowledge feelings, problem-solve, and think reflectively.

Avoid the impulse to punish. Now, I’m all for logical consequences. Punishments, though, are a whole different ball game. Sometimes, when a kid or young adult acts out, our first impulse is to punish them by giving them a detention or assigning extra homework. Almost all of the time, these on-the-fly punishments will do more damage to the relationship than they will help the problem. Problem-solving over punishing will always win.

Keep them in the room. As long as students are in your room, they can keep learning. This is especially important for those kids who refuse to do their work. Even if the student is not starting the classwork, leave them be. They will get much more out of the class conversations and discussions than they would in the office or in a desk outside your room. There are exceptions to this, of course, including when students are disruptive to the learning to others or if there are any acts of violence. It’s safe to say that those are times when additional support outside of the classroom is necessary. When possible, though, keep them in the room.

Use de-escalation strategies. Strategies to defuse a bad situation are worth their weight in gold to an educator. I strongly feel these strategies should be emphasized, discussed, and practiced during educator training every single year. Grab this free list of de-escalation strategies to print as a reminder and read up on more de-escalation strategies.

Use de-escalation strategies to reduce behavioral challenges in the classroom. Grab your free copy and learn how to manage challenges behaviors in this blog post. #pathway2success

Consider the why. There is always a reason behind the behavior. If a student is acting out when they have to do math problems at the board, maybe they are really embarrassed to do work in front of others. If a learner disrespects you when you ask for the homework, maybe they didn’t understand it and they don’t want to look dumb. Don’t focus on the what. Focus on the why. These will lead you into the right direction of problem-solving, rather than blaming.

Be self-reflective. Take some time to reflect on the situations that led up to the problem situations in your classroom. Of course, this isn’t a blame game. Being self-reflective means just considering what went wrong and what could have gone better. Could you have asked a question in a different way? Did you put the student in a situation that was maybe extremely uncomfortable for them? Was the classroom too noisy, causing the child some distress? Be open-minded and ask yourself some questions to figure out what you could do better next time.

Strategies for managing challenging behaviors in the classroom: Be reflective! Think about what might have gone wrong and how you can fix it in the future. #pathway2success

Meet privately with the student. Not punitively, meet with the student and talk with them. Rather than blaming them personally, highlight that you noticed there was a problem and you want to help solve it. For example, you might say, “Jane, I noticed there was a problem when you were working in a group yesterday. What’s going on with that?”

Listen. As educators, sometimes we have the habit of talking more than we listen. In this case, rather than talking at the student, give them time to speak. Sometimes, you will be amazed at what you learn. Maybe that student didn’t realize they were calling out. Maybe the student felt disrespected by something you said first. Regardless of what you think about their behavior, give kids a chance to speak. They deserve that. It can become the foundation for repairing relationships and moving on.

Brainstorm solutions. After listening to a student, brainstorm some strategies that might solve the issues together. Again, stay open-minded about suggestions from the student. Offer some of your own ideas as well. Actually brainstorming solutions goes a long way. The best solutions are almost always developed together.

Make a plan together. After brainstorming, set up a specific plan of action with your student. Come up with at least one thing the student can do and one thing you can do to do better next time. For example, if a student was acting out when in a difficult group setting, perhaps they can come up with a list of group ground rules, and you can agree to ask their input about their groups in the future. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It just has to show that you care and you both are working in the right direction.

Make time for social and emotional supports. All kids and young adults deserve a supportive check-in with an adult. This can be done during morning meeting advisory, homeroom, or even study halls. Talk to kids about how their feeling and what’s going on in their world. You can even t each SEL skills with this morning meeting set for the year that I developed. While this intervention won’t fix disruptive or challenging behaviors in the moment, it is a proactive approach that will help learners throughout the year, even halting problems before they start.

Use morning meeting time to practice social emotional skills and reduce behavioral challenges in the classroom. Learn more strategies about challenging behaviors and social emotional needs in this blog post. #pathway2success

Teach the skills. If a student is lacking some social skills, teach them. If they need to work on managing their emotions, teach emotional management and coping strategies. If they need to work on self-control, discuss and practice strategies for self-regulation. While not all educators have time for this set up in their schedules, there are many ways you can integrate social skills into your instruction. Another option is talking with support staff about setting up a small lunch group to teach the skills kids need explicitly.

Focus on your own self-care. Working with challenging behaviors can be stressful. Schedule time for yourself to unwind and relax. Whether you take time reading at home, head to the gym, or schedule time with friends, find what works for you. Use this printable self-care poster for educators to remind you throughout the week.

Challenging behaviors can be stressful to deal with! Use strategies to focus on your own self-care. #sel #pathway2success

Throughout these strategies, there is a solid theme. Educators can learn to ADAPT. This is a acronym I created to stand for: Act calm, De-escalate, Acknowledge feelings, Problem-solve, and Think reflectively. These are the essential elements of handling challenging behaviors in the classroom, including behaviors we see as disrespectful and rude. If you are a subscriber, head over to the free resource library to grab your very own ADAPT poster as a reminder. If you aren’t a subscriber yet but are curious, head over here to learn more and join.

Have you been successfully managing disrespectful or rude behaviors in the classroom? Feel free to share what is working for you!

Executive Functioning Activities to Start the Morning

February 17, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Use engaging and fun executive functioning activities to help jump start kids and teens in the morning. Simple activities like mindful breathing, brain games, journaling, and exercising, can help activate students' brains in the classroom. #pathway2success #executivefunctioning

We all want kids and young adults to start their days off calm, confident, and ready for success. Helping learners nurture their executive functioning skills can be a strategy for getting there. EF skills are the brain abilities we use to plan, organize, and start tasks. Ultimately, our executive functions impact everything from smaller activities like putting the right binder in the backpack to head out to school, to much more complex tasks such as planning for an essay to start and finish before the end of a class.

While some learners struggle with executive functions more than others, all students can build and improve them along the way. Here are eight executive functioning activities you can try to help start students off on the right foot.

Materials Checklist

It’s helpful to have a materials checklist listed just as they enter the door. My favorite spot to post this is actually right outside the classroom. For example, if students need their textbook today, post it and let them know. This gives kids a chance to ask themselves, “Do I have everything I need?” before even walking through the door.

For many classrooms, the list will be the same every day and that’s okay! It serves as a reminder for all students to have a pencil, their notebook, homework, and any other materials they need to succeed.

Preview of the Day

Start the morning by listing your daily schedule on the board. Review it by quickly highlighting your plan for the day. For example, you might say, “This morning, we’re going to review our homework, learn about how to visualize as we read, practice the skill, and start the homework for tonight.” This only has to take a minute, but it can have a positive impact on mindset because it prepares learners for what’s coming.

Morning Meeting

Holding a daily morning meeting helps build community. While at first, it might not seem like this practice is directly related to executive functioning skills, it is. By starting the day with a specific and predictable routine, this can help learners organize their thoughts.

Additionally, morning meeting can be the perfect time to talk about skills like organization, self-control, and perseverance.

Another thing to consider is that the classroom can be a scary place for kids with executive functioning challenges. We ask these learners to take risks every day by working on skills that don’t come easy to them. With that, it’s critical that classroom space is welcoming, encouraging, supportive, and accepting of mistakes. One way to gain that sense of positive classroom community is by leading a daily morning meeting. When students feel safe and loved, they will be better ready to pay attention, initiate tasks, and persevere through challenges.

Morning Exercise Routine

Exercise activates the brain. Help give kids a jump start every morning with a quick daily exercise routine. Spend a few minutes with a daily workout video. You could also lead students through simple stretches, jog in place or practice yoga postures.

If you’re looking to make things more interesting, try a timed scavenger hunt around the room, or outside if the weather is nice. Kids can do this in partners or on their own.

Not only is exercise encouraging a healthy habit, but it will also help students improve focus and be ready to learn.

Organize and Prepare Time

Explicitly schedule time first thing in the morning for students to organize and prepare for the day. During this time, students can sharpen pencils, gather belongings, tidy desk or backpack, write in homework log, and turn homework in.

Question of the Day

Writing can be used as a predictable routine to help students start off the day focused, organized, and calm. Choose a daily prompt to write on the board or projector. As students come in, have them respond independently in their journals. You can even touch other social-emotional bases using questions that target critical SEL skills, like empathy, organization, and problem-solving.

Grab a free week of daily social emotional learning journal prompts to start the morning.

Free-write Journaling

Similar to a question of the day, a free write also helps provide a predictable routine. The difference is that students are choosing what to write about entirely on their own. This can serve as a safe space for students to free their minds before starting the day. It can also help them ask any questions or share feedback with you in a private way.

Class Read Aloud

Choose a read aloud or have your students pick one for the morning. In particular, short picture books are a simple and quick way to increase attention for the day. Also, this can be an easy way to integrate other executive functioning skills like flexibility, self-control, and perseverance. As you read, stop and talk about the characters as they use each of those skills.

Brain Games

Brainteasers, riddles, and other puzzles are simple activities to help students activate their brains in an engaging way. Whether you use a crossword, word search, memory game, or play on words, these activities will help start the day off strong. As an added bonus, they can also help practice skills like organization, planning, working memory, attention, and perseverance.

Classroom Jobs

Classroom jobs are a healthy way to start each morning, as they give every child a purpose in the room. This can be a positive strategy in just setting a predictable routine, helping your students feel valued, helpful, and organized for the day. It’s helpful to assign specific classroom jobs to best suit your learners. For example, if a student has a strength with using technology, have them turn on the laptops first thing in the morning. If another student is especially artistic, give them the role of drawing a positive welcome message to others. A classroom job can help all students start the morning with a positive frame of mind and allow them to feel mentally prepared for the rest of the day.

Practice Mindful Breathing

Think of mindful breathing as a brain break. They are a quick activity to help students reset and refresh before moving on. Not only can they be an effective morning strategy, but really can be used between any tasks. Learn more about mindful breathing, why it’s important, and a few simple mindful breathing exercises you can use with your learners.

Positive Affirmations

All kids and young adults could use more positivity in their days. This is especially true for kids who struggle with executive functioning skills. These are the students who are more likely to struggle with basic tasks like following directions, starting work right away, and paying attention. Over time, these challenges can lead to reduced self-esteem. To counteract this, use positive affirmations to help build kids up and feel good about themselves before starting their day. More confident learners are more likely to task risks, stay motivated, and work to their individual potentials even in the face of difficulties. Grab a free positive affirmations list and let your students create their own individualized lists to start.

Download a free printable list of positive affirmations for kids & young adults.

If you want to help build learners’ executive functioning skills, just give one or two strategies a try! Even small steps are steps in the right direction to helping kids and young adults strengthen their executive functioning skills.

Interested in more executive functioning posts? Check out the following articles:

Using Positive Affirmations as a Morning Routine

February 4, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Use morning positive affirmations as a positive and motivating way to start each day with your students! Learn how you can follow a few steps to promote a more positive classroom climate with a free printable download right away. A great way to integrate social emotional learning into every teacher's classroom. #sel #positiveaffirmations #pathway2success

Positive self-talk is a powerful social-emotional tool that can help kids and young adults in many ways, from managing tough emotions to persevering through challenges. Reading positive affirmations, or sayings, in the morning is a healthy strategy to create a routine that builds our positive self-talk voice.

The power of positive self-talk is real. When used on a regular basis, positive self-talk can help build confidence, reduce stress, encourage risk-taking, improve mood, and promote a sense of happiness overall. By taking just a few minutes each day, we can teach kids and young adults skills they can use throughout their whole life.

So often, kids and young adults speak with a negative self-talk voice. Here are a few examples you might have heard:

“This class is dumb.”
“I can’t do this.”
“I’m not good at math.”
“I can’t believe I’m so stupid. How did I make that mistake?”

By explicitly teaching and practicing positive self-talk, we can help those students instead say things like:

“Today will be a great day.”
“If I work hard, I can do tough things.”
“I am strong and beautiful.”
“I make mistakes sometimes, and that’s okay.”

One of the most important ways to change negative self-talk to positive self-talk is to create an ongoing routine. It is truly a practice; one that requires effort, consistency, and encouragement. To create a positive morning routine, just use this free printable affirmations list and follow the simple steps to get started right away.

Grab your free printable positive affirmations activity to start right away.

Discuss the Importance of Positive Self-Talk

Explain to students that positive self-talk are the words we say to ourselves to provide encouragement. We might use positive self-talk before a tough test, when we feel overwhelmed with homework, or after something doesn’t go our way.

Read and Choose Affirmations

Have students highlight or circle their top affirmations. Encourage students to internalize the words and think about what they mean to them. It is helpful for every student to have their own individualized list of positive affirmations, so that it is personalized and special to them. Students can even come up with their very own positive affirmation statements.

Write a Positive Affirmation List

Have students list out their top ten affirmations on a piece of paper. After writing them out, students can color or design their affirmation list. This will be the set of affirmations kids and young adults will refer to day after day. While it’s true that they can go back and add or change statements, it’s helpful to have one static list to start.

Read Affirmations Each Morning

Students can keep this list in their folders, binders, or anywhere else that they will have access to it each morning. Start a morning ritual by giving 2-5 minutes each morning to read through their positive affirmations out loud to themselves (or silently, if you prefer).

Using Affirmations as a Coping Skill

Of course, morning isn’t the only time kids and teens can use their positive affirmations. Positive self-talk is a healthy coping skill. Teach them to pull them out and use them whenever they need them, such as before a challenging assessment or feeling let down by a friend.

Use these simple steps and this printable positive affirmations list to get your learners started. It will make a difference for now and in the future!

Mindfulness Journal Ideas You Can Try Today

January 20, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Mindfulness journal activities for kids and teens to help feel calm, focused, and happy. Mindful activities teach self-control, emotional management, growth mindset, self-love, and so much more. Use this as a daily morning practice or in your calm down area. Perfect for home or school. This post has printable and ideas you can use right away! #mindfulness #pathway2success

Mindfulness is a critical self-regulation strategy that can help kids and young adults feel calm and focused. Pairing mindfulness with journal writing just makes sense. Journal writing is personal and allows learners to connect with themselves. Additionally, it’s something kids can stop and do every day.

Mindfulness is an ideal practice in the morning to help kids and teens start their day off in a positive place. Practicing mindfulness can also be helpful before a big test, after a break, or when kids need strategies for self-regulation. Read up more on the 10 best times to practice mindfulness in the classroom.

There are several simple strategies to help learners practice mindfulness with journal writing. While you can read on and try any of the activities right away on your own, I also understand that it’s easy to be busy and struggle with fitting them all in. If you are needing all these and more no-prep ideas, I have put together an entire yearlong mindfulness journal that you can use right away.

Here are three simple strategies you can use right away with your learners to help them practice mindfulness:

MINDFUL FOCUS

What it is: Mindful focus is an activity where learners mindfully focus on one object for a period of time.

How to try it: Have kids choose one object in the room. Encourage them to hyperfocus on the object. Look at it and think about it for a few minutes. What does it look like? What colors does it have? Is it bumpy or smooth? How does it move? What is it used for? What makes it special? After the mindful focus activity, have students write about their object and sketch a picture.

Why it works: By focusing all of your attention on something, you are focusing only on the present moment. This can be a healthy strategy to help kids ground themselves in times of stress.

GUIDED VISUALIZATION

What it is: A guided visualization is an activity that involves picturing a calming scene, such as a beach or quiet meadow.

How to try it: Use a picture or describe a calming scene. It can be anything from a peaceful walk in the park to a calming waterfall in a forest. Have learners picture themselves in the scene. Then, allow them to write about what they see, feel, hear, smell, and taste.

Why it works: By picturing a peaceful scene, kids and young adults can clear their minds and regain a sense of calm. Visualization can be a healthy tool to use when feeling angry, sad, worried, or overwhelmed.

EMOTION CHECK-IN

What it is: An emotions check-in is a free write about how someone is feeling and thinking in the moment.

How to try it: Encourage kids to just close their eyes and think about how they feel. Consider every sensation in your body and thought that pops into your mind. Rather than judging those feelings, let them be. Notice them and recognize them. Then, have learners write about how they are feeling and thinking. As a simple alternative, you can have learners give colors to their emotions as they draw.

Why it works: Checking in with ourselves is an important strategy for improved self-awareness and mindfulness. By thinking about how we are feeling and thinking, we can make better choices about what we need in the moment.

SHAPE BREATHING

What it is: Students will draw a shape on their journal page and trace it as they breathe in and out.

How to try it: Have students draw a shape on their journal page. It can be any shape, such as a shape or a triangle. Students can even draw lines that wave up and down. Then, have students trace the lines of the shape with their finger or pencil as they breathe in and out. Afterward, students can write about the activity and describe how it made them feel. Use these free printable mindfulness breathe boards to get started.

Why it works: By focusing all of their attention on something as they breathe in and out, learners are practicing mindfulness while practicing deep breathing. This can be a helpful strategy to teach because it can be done almost anywhere.

MINDFUL COLORING

What it is: Students will color a coloring page on their own.

How to try it: Explain to students that they will be practicing mindfulness by coloring. Discuss that they will be coloring, breathing, and just letting thoughts pass through their minds. Note that you can play soothing music while students color to support a calming atmosphere. Need a head start? Use these free printable mindfulness coloring pages!

Why it works: Coloring is an active way to calm the mind. Additionally, this strategy can help learners practice just doing something in a mindful way without focusing on what is “right” or “wrong.” This is particularly beneficial for learners with perfectionistic behaviors. It is a perfect way to practice just coloring and being in the moment.

Just a reminder that you don’t need to be an expert to start a mindful practice in the classroom! Just use any of these ideas to give mindfulness a try! You might also want to read up on 5 free mindfulness activities or just grab the yearlong mindfulness journal to get started right away!

5 Steps for Leading a Morning Meeting Focused on SEL

January 6, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Five simple steps for leading a morning meeting or circle time focused on social emotional learning in the classroom. Morning meeting is the ideal time to build relationships with students while also teaching critical SEL skills like empathy, self-awareness, and decision-making! #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Morning meeting is a positive, engaging, and meaningful way to start the day with students. In short, it’s a time to greet each other, talk about important topics, and make a positive intention for the day.

Even more, though, morning meeting can also be the ideal time to work on social emotional skills like empathy, decision-making, responsibility, and many more. It really makes sense to integrate these skills into morning meeting time; these are skills that all kids need. Providing this social-emotional foundation can help kids and young adults succeed in the classroom and beyond.

Integrating SEL skills into your morning meeting time doesn’t need to be complicated. In fact, this post is intended to be a quick guide to help you get started right away. Of course, if you need a more detailed overview of morning meetings, why they are important, and strategies for implementing them, check out this ultimate guide morning meetings.

You can start by following the five-step process:

#1 Start with greetings.

The best way to start each morning meeting session is with greetings. Take just a minute and have students say “good morning” or fist bump one another. You can have students choose their daily greeting or change it up throughout the week to keep it fun and interesting.

#2 Introduce a topic.

Morning meeting truly is an ideal time to highlight critical skills like empathy, using healthy coping skills, appreciating diversity, responsibility, and so many more. Each day (or week), choose a skill to work on. Introduce that skill by discussing what it means and why it is important.

For example, you might say, “Today, let’s talk about respect. Showing respect means being kind and treating others the way they want to be treated.”

Ultimately, the skills you choose are entirely up to you. You can come up with a set plan for each like I’ve done with these morning meeting cards, or you can highlight the skills your students need in the moment.

#3 Start a discussion.

Get kids talking about that skill or topic by asking questions. For example, you might ask, “What does respect mean to you? What are some ways you show respect? Have you ever felt disrespected? How did that make you feel?” and so on.

Avoid the urge to answer for your students. Of course, guiding them is good, but it’s important to give them time to discuss together as a group. We all know that kids often learn best from other kids. This can be a great time to witness that.

#4 Practice the skill.

Have students spend a few minutes practicing the skill in some way. This provides opportunities for students to further understand and generalize the skill. There are many different activities you can try, such as the few listed below.

Role-play: If working on respect, have students work in partners to role-play a scenario that shows respect. After a few minutes, ask for volunteers to show their role play to the class.

Making connections: When learning about perseverance, encourage students to think of a character from a book or movie who had to persevere through challenges. Give time to talk about that character and how they overcame their struggles.

Giving advice: If focusing on problem-solving skills, come up with some simple problem-solving scenarios and have students give advice to each person. For example, “Martha got on the bus and realized she forgot her homework at home. What advice would you give to her?”

There are many more options for practicing each skill. It’s helpful to change up the activities from day-to-day to keep it fun, fresh, and interesting for your learners.

#5 Reflect.

Give time to students to share something about what they have learned. Encourage them to summarize the topic in 10 words or less. Another favorite reflection activity is to have students share how they will use that skill today or this week. Not only does this serve as a quick assessment for educators to see who has grasped the concept, but it also gives extra learning opportunities for students.

After reflecting on the skill, it’s also helpful to give time for students to talk about any other concerns, thoughts, or needs they have before moving on with the day.

Getting Started

If you’re looking for an all-in-one solution, you can use these morning meeting cards for social emotional learning to make your mornings fun, engaging, and no-prep.

Whether you work with older students or younger learners, you can always tailor morning meeting to fit the kids and young adults you are working with. It’s a great way to help kids start their days off strong while also helping them learn critical SEL skills.

10 Reasons Why It’s Okay to Take a Sick Day

December 17, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Educators need to be able to take sick days when they need them for physical and mental health needs. Instead of worrying about everyone else, teachers and support staff need to stop and focus on themselves! Here are 10 reasons why. #selfcare #pathway2success

Teacher guilt is so real. Unless you’ve taught, it’s actually hard to describe. There are a million reasons to head into school when you’re not feeling well, from having to write sub plans to feeling worried about leaving your students with someone else for the day. What is worst is that teachers will go to extreme lengths to report to their duties, crawling into the school with a fever or the flu.

I think part of the teacher guilt comes into play because teachers LOVE what they do every day. As teachers, we want to be there. We want to show up. We want to greet our kids with a smile. We want to be there to know our students are working on the skills we know they need.

It’s okay to love what you do and still need a day off here and there. Actually, it’s not just okay; it’s healthy.

If you agree with these or think another teacher friend needs to hear it, please pass this message along. It’s important and it matters.

Even though you do not need any of these, here are ten reasons why it’s truly OKAY to take a sick day.

Your Mental Health Matters

I think it’s important to highlight mental health first and foremost. Whether you need a day to tend to your fever, or time just to time to clear your mind after a stressful couple of weeks, that’s okay. Both are 100% valid reasons. Sometimes, it’s easy to ignore mental health needs, but that shouldn’t be the way. Take care of yourself. And as always, if you need more support, find a therapist or counselor to help. You matter.

Spreading Germs Isn’t Cool

Even if you think you can handle coming to school with a fever or hacking cough, recognize that sharing your germs isn’t going to help anyone. It can, though, get other colleagues and kids infected, which isn’t fun. If you are that sick, keep those germs at home until you are better, please.

Rest Helps You Get Better Quicker

Rest is a strange thing. We all know we need it, but we don’t want to make the time for it. You might be able to drag yourself into school day after day feeling horrible for two weeks, when if you had just taken a sick day earlier on, you could have rested and recovered much quicker.

Your Role as a Parent Come First

If you are a parent, please know you have all of my admiration. Teacher-parents go above and beyond taking care of their classroom children through the day and their real children in the afternoon and night. With that said, your role as a parent in taking care of your children is so important. When your kids need you, they need you. And that’s okay.

Your Family Deserves the Best You

It’s true that many times you can make it through the day feeling horrible. However, by the time you get home, you’re beat. Your family is important and they deserve the best you. YOU deserve the best you. Taking a sick day can help you get there so you can get back on track to spending the time with them that you love.

Your Students Deserve the Best You

Let’s face it; A sick teacher isn’t on their game. I’ve experienced it myself many times. I had less tolerance for the small stuff. Your students deserve the best you. Taking a day when you need one truly does help you be the best you.

It Builds Flexibility In Your Students

I remember in my first year of teaching I was terrified to be out sick. I didn’t want to leave my students. They relied on me. It was then that a good colleague and friend taught me that kids can’t have everything perfect for them all the time. They have to learn how to cope with change, including when their teacher is out. You being out sick and taking time for yourself actually builds flexibility in your students, and that’s a good thing.

Your Colleagues Will Survive

If it’s not bad enough that as teachers we worry about our students, I know from experience that we also worry about our colleagues, too. The truth is that life goes on at school without you. Your substitute will find their way. To be honest, many subs are some of the most amazing educators doing a great job in a tough situation (let’s give them all the credit they deserve). Your other colleagues will be fine, too. School life goes on without you. It really does.

You Are Modeling Self-Care

Sometimes, in our society, self-care isn’t valued as much as it should be. We want our learners to value taking care of themselves, listening to their bodies, and focusing on their own mental and physical health needs. So, with that, we have to model it. Be up front with students and tell them that you were sick and needed a day to take care of yourself. It’s healthy. If you need another reminder of self-care, grab this free educator self-care poster to hang up!

You’re Not Indebted To Your Job

I saved this reason for last because I think we have all felt this way. As teachers, we LOVE our schools and classrooms dearly. We want to be there (even on the tough days!) And if we aren’t there, there’s a huge sense of guilt. Let’s be clear, though. You are not indebted to your job, classroom, school, or district. You are a valuable educator. One who matters. And your physical health and mental health matter.

If you love this message or feel a colleague needs to hear, please remember to pass it along. You matter. Your mental and physical health matters. You are an amazing educator. Take care of yourself because you deserve it.

Mindful Breathing Activities for Kids & Teens

December 8, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Mindful breathing is a technique that can help improve focus and restore calm into the classroom. Best of all, it’s a strategy that helps develop self-regulation skills, something that kids and teens need throughout their lives.

What is Mindful Breathing?

The idea behind mindful breathing is that if we can control our breathing, we can also calm our body and mind. With that said, it’s not just a nice theory; there is actually scientific evidence behind it. When upset or overwhelmed, our bodies invoke a stress response known as “fight or flight.” It’s an important response that helps us avoid serious danger. The trouble is that we can also have this same response during arguments, worries, or when something doesn’t go our way.

Practicing deep breathing helps to slow the heartbeat and lower blood pressure, allowing us to feel calmer, focused, and more in control.

Practicing Deep Breathing

It’s important to note that practicing deep breathing really is a practice. For many kids and young adults (and even adults), it feels silly and unnatural to breathe in a deep and controlled way. By making it a habit to practice deep breathing, though, it can become a healthy routine in our lives.

Use these mindful breathing exercises to integrate mindfulness and social emotional learning into the classroom. Mindful breathing can help kids and teens manage emotions, improve focus, and feel calm. Check out these free ideas you can use right away! #mindfulness #pathway2success

To practice deep breathing with kids and young adults, first explain mindfulness and why it is important. Discuss the benefits with them so that they can understand why they are adding this practice into their lives.

Then, choose any deep breathing strategy and give it a try together! Remember that this might feel silly to kids and young adults. That’s okay! The goal is to give it a try and keep up the practice.

Mindful Breathing Exercises to Try

By making mindful breathing fun, easy, and memorable, students are more likely to be able to use it when they really need it in the future. Below I’ve listed some breathing strategies kids and young adults can practice. If you love them, check out the Mindful Breathing Cards that you can print and use today.

Bubble breathing. Most kids know what it feels like to blow bubbles. If they don’t, you can certainly even use actual bubbles for this breathing activity. Have kids close their eyes and imagine they are blowing bubbles as they breathe in and out.

Shape breathing. Have kids draw any shape or design on a piece of paper (or on the board). Then, have them slowly breathe in and out as they trace their finger along the shape. With this breathing technique, kids are focused just on the shape, allowing them to really calm their minds in the moment.

Apple pie breathing. Have kids imagine there is a warm slice of apple pie in front of them. Have them slowly breathe in to smell the pie and then breathe out. Note that this breathing exercise really can be done with any type of food. I also like to do this with pizza or a warm cup of cocoa.

Marching band breathing. One of my favorite strategies involves kids imagining that their breath is a marching band. Students should count to the beat of four as they breathe in and out. You can incorporate movement with tapping or clapping as well.

When Should Kids Practice Deep Breathing?

There are many times when kids and young adults might want to practice deep breathing on a more regular basis. Here are a few:

In the morning to start of the day on a positive note
Before a big test or quiz
After a transition
Right before a morning meeting
At the beginning of a class
After lunch or recess
As an intervention for students struggling with tough emotions

Whether you practice mindful breathing with a whole class, small group, or with individual learners, this practice can help give kids and young adults the tools they need to be successful. Use some of these mindful breathing exercises or grab the full set to get started today.

Self-Care for Teachers

November 25, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

The Case for Educator Self-Care

Saying that teaching is tough is a bit of an understatement. Between teaching, creating lesson plans, answering parent emails, grading, and everything else educators work through, teachers are under a substantial amount of stress. While some of these challenges are less under our control, one thing that is under our control is how we address self-care.

Self-care is any deliberate activity aimed to support mental, emotional, and physical well-being. Although it seems like a simple concept, taking care of ourselves is something that can be easily forgotten. This is especially true during the holiday season, during parent conferences, and the back to school rush, just to name a few specific times.

As educators and as humans, taking care of ourselves is critical. It helps reduce stress, improves mood, and promotes a sense of calm. More self-care can even help you be a better teacher. It’s worth taking the time to incorporate more self-care into your life. And most importantly, you deserve it for yourself.

Making Self-Care a Practice

Self-care is best when it’s planned proactively. That means taking the time to schedule important things for yourself and not overcommitting so that you do have time for you.

It’s important to note that self-care isn’t always spa appointments and bubble baths. More often than not, healthy long-term self-care is about setting limits, making positive time for yourself, and encouraging yourself to make good choices. It might mean waking up earlier to go to the gym, spending time reading your favorite book, or saying “no” when asked to lead an extra after school club.

To add more self-care into your life, choose a few activities that you think will help you. Don’t try to do them all. Stick to a few that you know you can commit to. Make a plan for yourself and reassess as you go.

Strategies for Self-Care

Here are 15+ ways you can add self-care into your life:

Treat yourself when you need it. Whether it’s a coffee, a massage, or a shopping trip, treat yourself when you need it. It’s important to find what works for you.

Remember to start fresh every day. As an educator, some days are hard. It’s so important to start every day with a fresh mindset. Not only does it help the students, but it will help you, too.

Connect with uplifting colleagues. Find the teacher friends who will listen to you, encourage you, and lift you up.

Do physical activities you enjoy. Whether it’s a daily workout, a yoga class, or jogging with your dog, find the physical activities you love to do most. Then, make them a routine in your life. Sometimes, this can be hard! Make a schedule and try to stick with it. Even in the times when you don’t feel like doing it in the moment, you will always be thankful later on.

Take a break when you need one. We all need breaks sometimes, in the classroom and outside of the classroom. Whether you need a mental health day or just a few minutes to yourself, take a break when you need it most.

Spend time journaling. If you love writing, journaling can be an excellent strategy to improve self-awareness and help you become more in touch with your everyday emotions. Spend just a few minutes a day writing down how you’re feeling, what happened, and what thoughts are going through your mind. Sometimes, just writing them down can help you think things through.

Use positive self-talk. Positive thinking can have a huge impact on our mental health and well-being. Work to recognize your more negative thoughts. Then, reframe them into more positive ones. Saying phrases like, “Today is going to be a great day,” and “This might be tough, but I can do it,” can help you through tough times.

Go for a walk or spend time outside. Spending time outside can be extremely healing and mindful. On the nice days, make an effort to spend a few extra minutes outside, whether that means reading on the porch or taking a walk around the block. You can even consider spending some time outside with your students when weather allows.

Read a good book (just for you). As educators, many of us are often reading to help choose books for our learners or improve our teaching craft. Instead of focusing on reading for teaching, spend time finding and reading a book just for you.

Plan an activity to look forward to. It’s always nice to have something positive to look forward to. Schedule a special dinner with friends, grab tickets for a concert, or plan your family vacation ahead of time.

Spend time with friends and family. It’s true that spending extra time with family and friends can help you feel happier and more fulfilled. Your time with family and friends matters.

Leave work at school for the night or weekend. As an educator, the work is really never done. There is always more than can be planned or graded. Practice leaving work at school over the night. Even more, leave it for the entire weekend to give you the extra family time you deserve.

Spend less time on social media. While there are many benefits to social media, there are a lot of drawbacks, too. Consider taking a peek in your phone’s setting to see how much time each day you’re really spending on social media. Now, just imagine what else you could be doing with that time for yourself! Make a goal to spend a little less time on social media each day.

Bring healthy snacks and meals. Good nutrition can go a long way in helping you to feel your best. Spend some time over the weekend planning what you could bring during the work week. Try planning to bring in one healthy snack each day, like carrots, nuts, or yogurt. Again, it’s important to find what works for you!

Delete your work email from your phone. Sometimes, self-care is about setting limits. If you notice that your work emails are interfering without life outside of school hours, it’s worth considering deleting it from your home. Your you-time matters and the work can wait.

Be comfortable saying “no” to more obligations. You can’t do it all, and you shouldn’t expect yourself to. The next time someone asks you to commit to an extra obligation, really ask yourself if you want to do it or not. Be comfortable saying “no” when you don’t want more added onto your plate.

Give yourself grace. Be kind to yourself! Recognize that you won’t always be perfect and that’s perfectly okay.

If you need some extra reminders, grab this self-care poster for your classroom or the teacher’s room!

What other self-care activities are the most meaningful for you? Share yours!

Teaching Kindness with a Free Activity

November 11, 2019 by pathway2success 4 Comments

Teach kindness with a free printable learning activity for kids and young adults. As teachers and parents, we know that teaching about being kind can create a more positive learning environment for everyone! Complete a kindness challenge with a fun lesson to help encourage a caring and positive community for all. #kindness #pathway2success

Kindness is an important social skill the plays a huge role in creating a positive learning environment for all. When we have kinder students, kids are better able to work together, share, express differing opinions in respectful ways, and help each other when someone is in need.

To help teach and encourage kindness I’m sharing how a quick and simple lesson on teaching kindness with your learners, as well as ideas for keeping the positivity going. This would be great to do during World Kindness Day, Thanksgiving, Valentine’s, or during the first few days of school. Of course, this is an activity you could do ANY time. Kindness is always cool.

Keep reading for more ideas and a free activity worksheet you can use right away.

Discussing Kindness

Start the lesson by discussing what it means to be kind. Kindness can mean many different things. Sometimes, it is doing something nice for someone else. Sometimes, it is treating someone the way they want to be treated in the moment. Other times, it is doing our part to clean up and take care of the environment. Kindness is even about being loving and thoughtful to ourselves.

Encourage students to come up with a list of ways to be kind. This can be done as a whole group or in small groups. You can even make it a challenge to come up with the biggest list of kind acts before reporting back to the whole class.

Students should come up with lots of different acts of kindness, from opening the door for someone else to helping someone with a homework assignment. What’s most important is that learners notice we can show kindness in big and small ways every single day.

Understanding The Chain of Kindness

Ask students to think about and describe a time someone was kind to them. Have them think about how that made them feel. Have them then share times when they were kind to someone else. Have them also think about how that made them feel.

It’s critical for kids and young adults to see that kindness creates more kindness. It is a chain. When we are kind to someone, it not only makes that person feel good, but it makes us feel good, too. The more kind acts we do, the kinder our entire world becomes.

Making a Kindness Challenge

Come up with a list of kind activities together (or use the one I’ve put together). Encourage students to complete a kindness challenge by actually doing each of the activities throughout the week.

Best of all, this is something you can do again and again by coming up with new lists of kind activities. You could even have a challenge every single week or month.

Make it extra exciting by adding a special reward at the end of the challenge. Just randomly select one winner who completed the challenge and give a special reward, like sitting in the teacher’s chair or getting to choose the movie for the end of the week.

If you want to get started with an activity and fun visual you can use right away, grab this free kindness activity!

Keeping the Kindness Going

It’s important to continually discuss and practice kindness. While one lesson or activity is a great place to start, it’s critical that students see kindness on an ongoing basis. Here are a few other ideas for keeping that kindness going.

Give kindness shoutouts. Dedicate a bulletin board in the classroom to “kindness shoutouts.” Allow kids to write out when they see someone else being kind in the classroom. Have them write it on a piece of paper that you (or the students) can post on the bulletin board.

Model kindness. It’s helpful to get other educators on board with highlighting acts of kindness throughout the whole year. It goes without saying that kids are most certainly watching the adults, how we interact with other adults, and how we interact with kids. Modeling kind behavior all the time needs to be a consistent focus.

Share kindness quotes. One of my favorite quotes about kindness is, “We never know what someone else is going through. Just be kind.” Sometimes, we all need this reminder.

Use literature. There are a number of read alouds that can be used to highlight kindness, gratitude, and giving back. Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson and Good People Everywhere by Lynea Gillen are a few good ones to start with. Grab this free Social Emotional Learning read aloud list for a few more ideas.

Do you have a favorite kindness activity? Share it!

10 Reasons Why It’s Okay to Take a Sick Day

Self-Care for Teachers

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