Search Results for: social skills

25 Ways to Integrate Social Emotional Learning

March 15, 2018 by pathway2success 8 Comments

Kids and young adults need social-emotional skills to be successful at school, home, and for the rest of their lives. These are the skills that help kids build confidence, understand their own strengths and weaknesses, collaborate with others, navigate social situations, develop strong relationships, and make better decisions. Without a doubt, these are critical skills for all learners.

In my years as a teacher, I know there is just not enough time for everything. So often, social and emotional learning gets put on the back burner to other important skills like reading, writing, math, history, and science. While these skills are certainly important, I would argue that it’s even more important that kids develop their emotional intelligence through social emotional learning activities. Simply put, if kids are mentally and emotionally healthy, they are better equipped to face the challenges life brings. We just have to make the time to teach, discuss, and practice these skills! Best of all, there are many ways to integrate social-emotional learning into what you are already teaching.

Below I share 25 strategies for integrating SEL instruction and activities into the day. Of course, if you’re looking for a solution that targets these skills more explicitly, I created a yearlong curriculum for elementary social emotional learning and middle school social emotional learning to help all kids learn these skills.

Here are 25 ways to integrate social emotional learning into your classroom:

1. Use Journal Writing. You can use daily journal prompts to help kids think about social-emotional skills in all areas. For example, you might ask kids, “When was a time you used self-control? What was outcome?” to focus on self-management skills. After writing, it’s helpful to have students share their responses with a partner and with the class as a whole. Kids will be practicing writing, partner work, group discussion, and SEL skills all at the same time. I love this yearlong Social Emotional Learning Journal for just a few minutes of writing and discussion every day.

2. Teach Perspective-Taking with Read Alouds. This is one of my favorite strategies for integrating SEL into everyday learning because it is something educators do so often already. While reading, spend time talking about how some of the characters might think and feel. Use this time to highlight that this is perspective-taking, a skill we use to understand others’ emotions and thoughts. Best of all, it can be done with any text you are already reading.

3. Incorporate Art Activities. Art can be a powerful way to target social and emotional skills. Creating a self-collage can help kids develop better self-awareness about who they are. Painting and drawing can serve as positive coping strategies to manage stress. Having partners work together on a shared drawing can increase collaboration and relationship skills. There are lots of opportunities for learning with art!

4. Hold Class Meetings. You can choose to hold a class meeting once a day as a “morning meeting” or just once a week. The purpose of a class meeting can be to boost each other up, to help solve problems, and plan class events together. Having this space for community can help promote a positive climate for all kids.

5. Talk About Managing Emotions. No matter what age, all kids and young adults need practice managing their emotions. This is another skill that can be weaved into literature as you talk about character’s feelings and needs. You might say, “How did Theresa feel when her mom left? How did she manage her emotions? Do you think it was a healthy way to manage them?” Additionally, be open with kids about how to manage their own emotions and give strategies for what kids can do in your classroom. For example, “If you are feeling nervous about the test today, remember to use positive self-talk. Tell yourself that you’ve got this!”

6. Give Responsibilities. Giving kids responsibilities and jobs helps build their sense of self-worth and gives the message that we are all part of a larger community. It’s important that every student has some type of responsibility, whether it is a class librarian, lunch counter, or part of a “clean up crew”.

7. Practice Problem-Solving Skills. If students have an issue or challenge to overcome, avoid solving it for them right away. Encourage kids to think about how they could solve their problem and have a 10 minute policy – students can get your help but they need to think about the problem for at least 10 minutes first. Often, kids will figure out a solution on their own or with a friend during that time. You can use these free social problem solving task cards or grab the full set to get started! Again, this is another skill that can be strengthened through literature by discussing characters, problems, and making predictions about solutions.

8. Build Community with Teamwork. For class projects and assignments, have students work in larger teams to complete a task. Teach students to assign different jobs when working in a team, so that all students have important responsibilities.

9. Encourage Positive Self-Talk. Self-talk is voice in our minds that reassures and encourages us. It also helps us control our emotions so we can deal with problems appropriately. Today, kids hear a lot of negative, so teaching positive self-talk explicitly is really important. Model this and encourage this every day. Use this free positive thoughts and affirmations list to get started.

10. Celebrate Diversity. Spend time discussing and learning about people from diverse cultures, backgrounds, and ability levels. Kids need to hear, see, discuss, and understand that we are part of a larger community within our countries and world. Early discussions about diversity can help promote tolerance, acceptance, and inclusion for everyone.

11. Incorporate Hands-on Crafts. If your students need a craft break or activity before a holiday, use that time to promote social and emotional skills. The craft below is a Positive Self-Talk Flower Craft. Kids can add their own positive self-talk statements, color the craft, cut it out, and then keep it to help remind them how to use this helpful strategy. This is just one small example that can help to maximize your learning time by incorporating SEL into activities like crafts.

12. Encourage Reflection. After students complete a task, assessment, project, or assignment, encourage them to reflect about their own progress. This is a critical SEL skill that can be used across all curriculum, such as math, reading, writing, science, history, and more.

13. Practice Mindfulness. Using mindfulness in the classroom can help teach kids how to calm down before a big test, manage their emotions when they are upset, and just feel happier in the moment. Sometimes, kids don’t really know how to calm down on their own. Teaching mindfulness can help kids learn breathing strategies, how to focus on just one thing at a time, and relaxing our bodies. You can use these Mindfulness Activities to teach kids these strategies right away.

14. Create a Calm Down Area. Not all kids will use this area, but there are some students who truly need it. Set up a small area in your classroom with a bean bag, a few books, a calm down jar, a few fidgets, and anything else you have that is calming. Students who need this space can sit, use coping strategies, and return back to class when they are calm again.

15. Promote a Growth Mindset. Embracing a growth mindset helps kids and young adults learn that we can accomplish our goals with hard work, good strategies, and persistence over time. Sometimes kids feel they are just as smart as they’ll ever be (i.e. “I’m just never good at math, so there’s no use in trying). This mindset can be detrimental to student growth, so it is worth investing time into teaching kids to embrace a growth mindset and instead say, “Math is tough but I’m going to study, work hard, and ask for help so I can accomplish what I want to.” Use these free Growth Mindset Task Cards to get yourself started!

16. Encourage Kindness. One of my favorite ways to promote kindness is encouraging random acts of kindness. Set up a bin where students can write and add a note when they notice someone else doing something kind or helpful. Once a month, draw from the bin to award a small reward. You can also post the random acts up on a bulletin board so that everyone can see.

17. Play Games. It’s helpful to have an assortment of games that focus on social-emotional skills, such as communication, empathy, and problem-solving. Read up more on how you can integrate social emotional learning through games. You can also read my blog post about games you can use to strengthen executive functioning skills, such as self-control, planning, attention, and more.

18. Provide a Daily Check-in. You can do this either through a morning meeting, or just a quick check-in for specific students in need. Have students identify how they are feeling and consider what they might need to improve their emotions in the moment.

19. Discuss Empathy. To me, empathy is one of the most critical skills for kids to develop. It is the foundation for considering about how others think and feel so that we can respond in socially appropriate and compassionate ways. You can practice empathy on its own or through literature by discussing characters and how they might feel in a variety of situations. I also love these social skills task cards to practice the skills when time allows.

20. Create SMART Goals. SMART goals are another way to help kids have control over what they want to accomplish in life. You can have students write SMART goals for an academic area that they need to improve or a social area that needs work. Make sure to check-in on these goals periodically so that students can identify if their strategies are working or not, and make decisions about how to change their approaches to make their goals a success.

21. Teach Coping Skills to Manage Stress. All kids and young adults experience stress even when we don’t see it. It is so important to teach them actual strategies they can use when they are feeling overwhelmed. It’s critical that kids practice these strategies when they are actually calm and don’t need them. That’s so they can effectively use those skills in the moment when they are struggling with emotions. I love this Coping Strategies Wheel to teach and practice some of these skills in a hands-on way.

22. Highlight Skills Throughout the Day. Just teaching or addressing some of these social-emotional skills isn’t enough. When you see them in action in the classroom, highlight and encourage the skill! For example, you might say privately to a student, “I noticed you were frustrated when you couldn’t work with the group you wanted and you did a great job using your self-control and flexibility to go with the flow and choose another group. Thank you.” You can highlight the skills to the whole class, too. You might say, “Before this test, I want everyone to just stop and use some positive self-talk. Give yourself a compliment.”

23. Teach Active Listening Skills. All kids need to learn strong active listening skills for success at school, with friends, and at their future jobs. Kids will use them in your classroom when you are teaching, when they are working with a partner on an assignment, and when they are just chatting with a friend.

24. Teach Group Ground Rules. Group work is an important part of learning in the classroom, but it is not a strength for all learners. Have your kids develop “Group Ground Rules” for what is important when working in a group. Some examples might be: Do your fair share of the work, stay with the group, and give everyone a chance to speak up. Continually remind students of these rules when working in groups or partners.

25. Practice Respectfully Disagreeing. People are going to disagree sometimes, so learning how to disagree respectfully is a critical skill (especially in our digital world). Have students discuss and debate topics, making sure that they actively listen to the other person and respect that opinion even when they don’t agree. You can use these Free Communication Skills Lessons to practice!

Remember that a social-emotional learning isn’t just one thing. It’s an approach that brings all of these aspects into your classroom and supporting your learners every day. I also have developed a yearlong curriculum for elementary social emotional learning and middle school social emotional learning to help all kids learn these skills. Kids deserve to have them!

These are just some ways you can incorporate social-emotional learning into your already-busy classroom. If you have more ideas about SEL, please share!

Teaching Social Problem-Solving with a Free Activity

February 3, 2018 by pathway2success 5 Comments

Kids and young adults need to be able to problem-solve on their own. Every day, kids are faced with a huge number of social situations and challenges. Whether they are just having a conversation with a peer, working with a group on a project, or dealing with an ethical dilemma, kids must use their social skills and knowledge to help them navigate tough situations. Ideally, we want kids to make positive choices entirely on their own. Of course, we know that kids don’t start off that way. They need to learn how to collaborate, communicate, cooperate, negotiate, and self-advocate.

Social problem solving skills are critical skills to learn for kids with autism, ADHD, and other social challenges. Of course, all kids and young adults benefit from these skills. They fit perfectly into a morning meeting discussion or advisory periods for older kids. Not only are these skills that kids will use in your classroom, but throughout their entire lives. They are well worth the time to teach!

Here are 5 steps to help kids learn social problem solving skills:

1. Teach kids to communicate their feelings. Being able to openly and respectfully share emotions is a foundational element to social problem solving. Teaching I statements can be a simple and effective way to kids to share their feelings. With an I statement, kids will state, “I feel ______ when _____.” The whole idea is that this type of statement allows someone to share how their feeling without targeting or blaming anyone else. Helping kids to communicate their emotions can solve many social problems from the start and encourages positive self-expression.

2. Discuss and model empathy. In order for kids to really grasp problem-solving, they need to learn how to think about the feelings of others. Literature is a great way teach and practice empathy! Talk about the feelings of characters within texts you are reading, really highlighting how they might feel in situations and why. Ask questions like, “How might they feel? Why do you think they felt that way? Would you feel the same in that situation? Why or why not?” to help teach emerging empathy skills. You can also make up your own situations and have kids share responses, too.

3. Model problem-solving skills. When a problem arises, discuss it and share some solutions how you might go forward to fix it. For example, you might say, “I was really expecting to give the class this math assignment today but I just found out we have an assembly. This wasn’t in my plans. I could try to give part of it now or I could hold off and give the assignment tomorrow instead. It’s not perfect, but I think I’ll wait that way we can go at the pace we need to.” This type of think-aloud models the type of thinking that kids should be using when a problem comes up.

4. Use social scenarios to practice. Give a scenario and have kids consider how that person might feel in that situation. Discuss options for what that person might do to solve the problem, possible consequences for their choices, and what the best decision might be. Kids can consider themselves social detectives by using the clues and what they know about social rules to help them figure out the solution. These are especially fun in small groups to have kids discuss collaboratively. Use these free social problem solving cards to start your kids off practicing!

5. Allow kids to figure it out. Don’t come to the rescue when a child or young adult has a problem. As long as it’s not a serious issue, give them time to think about it and use their problem-solving skills on their own. Of course, it’s much easier to have an adult solve all the problems but that doesn’t teach the necessary skills. When a child comes to you asking for your help with a social problem, encourage them to think about it for five minutes before coming back to you. By that point, they might have already figured out possible solutions and ideas and might not even need you anymore.

If you are interested in helping your kids learn social problem solving skills right away, consider trying out these Social Problem Solving Task Cards. They highlight real social scenarios and situations that kids can discuss. The scenarios include a variety of locations, such as in classrooms, with family, with friends, at recess, and at lunch. This set is targeted for elementary-age learners.

Of course, older kids need social problem solving skills, too! If you work with older kids, you will love these Social Problem Solving Task Cards for Middle and High School Kids. These situations target age-appropriate issues that come up in classes, with friends, with family, in the hallway, in the cafeteria, and with online and texting.

Remember that teaching social problem skills does take a little bit of planning and effort, but it will be well worth the time! Kids will use these skills to help them make social decisions in their everyday lives now and in the future!

Art Activities for Social Emotional Learning

November 14, 2017 by pathway2success 1 Comment

Art is such a powerful tool to help shape the minds of kids and young adults. Simply put, there are many benefits to using art as a way to teach new skills. Art is often non-threatening to kids and young adults. It is seen as a fun and hands-on activity, rather than hard work. Because it is not perceived as a challenge, art activities can often draw in kids and young adults who may be resistant to other types of teaching strategies. Art also helps build confidence, encourages empathy and acceptance of differences, allows for free expression, encourages creativity, and builds problem-solving skills.

The good news is that you can and should incorporate critical learning into art activities! You do not need to be an art teacher or even consider yourself an artist at all to incorporate some of these ideas into your work with kids and young adults. If you want to just get started right away, consider checking out these Art Activities for Social Emotional Learning with ready-to-teach lessons and activities to help build self-awareness, increase confidence, strengthen relationships, manage emotions, build collaboration, and improve problem-solving skills.

Here are some ways to teach social emotional skills using art:

Have students make a collage about themselves. Use old magazines and newspapers to have students find and cut out elements of who they are. Kids can use a variety of words, pictures, or their own drawing to highlight who they are. This can be a great activity for students to get to know each other while building confidence in themselves.

Make a Selfie Portrait. Have students print their favorite selfie of themselves. Around the selfie, have students make up hashtags of their best qualities to illustrate who they are. Some hashtags might include #hardworking, #intelligent, or #kind. This is a fun activity to help students build more confidence in themselves and develop self-love.

Explore emotions with different colors. Discuss different emotions including sadness, anger, worry, and happiness. Have students find and paint with colors that go along with each emotion. For an extension, kids can even color with different shades of each emotion. For example, feeling irritated might be a light orange shade while feeling enraged might be a dark red. Using colors to explore emotions in this way makes it concrete for kids and young adults to discuss and identify feelings.

Incorporate crafts. Just the act of working on crafts can allow for the development of many skills including planning, patience, following directions, fine motor skills, problem-solving, focus, and perseverance. Best of all, you can align almost content area topic with a craft to go along with it, whether you are studying ancient history or three dimensional shapes in math. Kids will also remember that topic better when you add a craft to your planning. In the image below, students examine, discuss, and learn how to reduce negative thoughts with a “Worry Catcher”.

Give new opportunities with different materials. Art is an ideal way to teach kids to step outside their comfort zones. Many students might be comfortable with markers and colored pencils already. Instead, have students make images with finger paints or chalk pastels. You really can have them make anything you (or they) want. Afterwards, have students discuss what it was like to try something new. Relate this back to their own lives.

Teach art as a coping strategy. Many kids and young adults need positive outlets to manage their emotions. Art can be the ideal tool to help students calm themselves when they are stressed. Mindful coloring can be a simple and easy way to teach this. You can find kids or adults coloring books at any store for fairly cheap. Let students choose a page on their own and spend time coloring quietly while letting their minds rest. Discuss how students feel before, during, and after coloring to help them recognize that they feel calmer after taking time to themselves.

If you love these ideas and want to get started right away, consider these Art Activities for Social Emotional Learning. They include ready-to-teach lessons and activities to help build self-awareness, increase confidence, strengthen relationships, manage emotions, build collaboration, and improve problem-solving skills.

Games to Improve Executive Functioning Skills

October 1, 2017 by pathway2success 12 Comments

Kids and young adults need extensive practice in strengthening their executive functioning skills. Executive functions are the processes in our brains that help us accomplish all tasks from beginning to end. We use them when we plan our day, organize our materials, begin a chore, focus on important information, use our time wisely, and work through challenges until we accomplish a goal. The specific skills include: planning, organization, time management, task initiation, working memory, self-control, metacognition, attention, flexibility, and perseverance. While all kids could use extra practice with executive functioning skills, the ones who need it the most are often disorganized, struggle to finish assignments, lose items, have difficulty paying attention over periods of time, and give up on tasks that are difficult. These are the kids who could benefit the most from executive functioning skills instruction and practice.

If you’re looking for an executive functioning review game you can download and use right away, check out this Executive Functioning Challenge! It can be played as a board game with partners and small groups, or as a whole-class challenge. The game includes over 200 executive functioning cards so you can play again and again!

Simply put, executive functions are often critical to the success of kids and young adults. So, it makes sense to make practicing them fun and engaging! Games are a great way to weave executive functioning practice into your routine. You can choose to play a game on a Friday afternoon, after a big test, or as a class reward.

Here are ten games for practicing executive functioning skills:

#1 – BLURT

Skills: self-control, metacognition

How to Play: In this game, the teacher reads a definition of a word and kids have to figure out the word itself. For example, a question might be, “What is a partially dried grape?” When the student answers “raisin”, they win that turn. I like to play “around the world” style. All students will sit at desks or chairs around the room. Select two kids to play against each other and have them stand next to one another. Read the card and whoever “blurts” the answer first, wins and gets to move on to the next person. The idea is that only the kids playing can blurt out, and everyone else must have self-control, even if they know the answer. This game can also be played with your own content area questions too, which is great for a review before a test!

#2 – SCRABBLE

Skills: planning, organization

How to Play: In scrabble, kids use random letters to build words and keep score as they go. You can have students play in small groups and even partner kids together who may need extra support with spelling or language. Planning and organization is required because kids need to build off of each others’ words as the game progresses. As an extension, have kids look up definitions to the words they create or use the word in a sentence before points are scored.

#3 – PICTIONARY

Skills: flexibility, time management

How to Play: This game has students drawing phrases on paper or a whiteboard that others must guess correctly. Kids need to use time management to best draw their phrase before the time is up. This is such a fun game! I even love taking pictures of some of the drawings that are both hilarious and amazing.

#4 – DISTRACTION

Skills: working memory, attention

How to Play: In this card game, kids work on remembering numbers given to them while encountering distractions, including questions they have to answer. It is a great activity to teach about distractions that can throw us off!

#5 – 5 SECOND RULE

Skills: time management, task initiation

How to Play: Kids must name 3 things that fit a given topic. For example, kids might need to name 3 professional basketball teams or 3 pieces of jewelry. The categories differ greatly so kids have to be on their toes. As an accommodation, I sometimes play as a “10 second rule” to give kids enough time to process the question.

#6 – FREEZE

Skills: self-control, attention

How to Play: Freeze is a game where you play music and allow kids to be silly and dance. Then, at any moment, say “Freeze!” and kids need to stand completely still. It takes a lot of self-control to stop dancing to a song you’re into! This can be fun to let kids take the role to freeze the class, too.

#7 – JENGA

Skills: self-control, flexibility, planning

How to Play: In this game, kids pull blocks from a tower carefully. They must plan and be careful so they are not the one who causes the tower to fall over. This is a fun game because everyone likes to see towers get knocked down sometimes!

#8 – BRAINTEASERS

Skills: perseverance, flexibility

How to Play: Brainteasers are drawings and words that have a special meaning that kids must figure out. For example, when “man” is written on top of “board”, it means “man overboard”. These type of brainteasers are a great feat in perseverance and flexibility to figure out. They are great for a morning meeting or “do now” when kids walk in the door to start their brains off strong.

#9 – CHESS

Skills: planning, flexibility, working memory

How to Play: Chess requires kids to learn specific rules for different pieces and then use those skills to take out their opponent. This game requires a tremendous amount of planning, flexibility, and working memory to think through your moves ahead of time. It is also a great option when you need a quiet game.

#10 – SODUKU

Skills: perseverance, working memory

How to Play: Sodoku is a math puzzle game that allows kids to use critical thinking skills. Each grid has the numbers 1-9. Each row and column must add up to 9 separately, so the numbers need to be arranged correctly. Incorporate this activity for kids to work on in small groups or just for a fun challenge.

I have always loved using games to teach and support critical skills in the classroom, so I put together some games for social emotional learning skills! This set consists of five games focusing on executive functioning skills, social problem solving skills, empathy, social language, and more. You can really maximize learning time in your classroom by making “break time” skill-focused, too!

If you find yourself needing lessons and materials for direct instruction of executive functioning skills, consider this Executive Functioning Bundle. It teaches all ten executive functioning skills, study strategies, and SMART goals with enough materials for the entire year. You really cannot teach or practice EF skills enough!

Using Task Cards to Teach Social Problem Solving

February 9, 2017 by pathway2success 3 Comments

Social problem solving is the process of figuring out how to deal with social situations and challenges. It involves understanding the situation, identifying a problem, considering solutions, and choosing the best way to handle that specific situation. While many kids and young adults figure out how to maneuver through these social challenges on their own, others often needs lots of help. These are the kids who get into arguments with others, can’t deal with disappointments, become upset easily, or have difficulty making (or keeping) friends. The good news is that social problem solving skills can be learned and developed over time.

The best way to learn social problem solving skills is to practice over and over through multiple situations. This allows kids and young adults to go through the process and develop their social thinking skills. Task cards are a great way to practice a variety of scenarios for social problem solving.

Here are some strategies for using task cards for teaching social problem solving:

1. Put together a variety of social situations on task cards. You can make your own with index cards or use a pre-made set, like the Social Scenario Problem Solving Task Cards. Remember to include lots of different situations, such as times with friends, at recess, in the classroom, with family, at lunch, and any other scenarios that may be important for that child. They key is having many different social scenarios that involve dilemmas or challenges, so that kids can think through each problem in a new way.

2. Put the cards on a ring. You can choose to just keep one set for yourself or give sets to partners and groups. Flip through them in a small group, during morning meetings, or during partners and group practice.

3. Give time for group discussions. Kids learn best from other kids! Allow time for lots of talk on each task card. Discuss things like “What would you do?”, “Why would you do that?”, and “What are some other options you could consider?”. Kids and young adults will disagree sometimes, and that’s okay. Allow for kids to explain their thoughts and really think through their social reasoning. This gives opportunity for social and emotional growth while learning from others.

4. Set up cards at centers. Have a center for each different type of scenario. Have kids work through each center in small groups. Then, after a certain amount of time (10 minutes or so), have each group move to the next center. It’s a fun way to practice social problem solving while allowing some movement, too.

5. Remember to include older kids, too! Middle and high school kids can also greatly benefit from learning social problem solving skills. Make sure to tailor the situations to your age group. For older kids, it’s helpful to focus on friends, relationships, online and texting, in classes, and during less structured time like lunch and in the hallways. Older kids will have just as much fun practicing social situation task cards as long as they are age-appropriate.

Get Started!

If you want to get started practicing social problem solving skills with elementary-age kids right away, try using Social Scenario Problem Solving Task Cards for Elementary. The cards are organized into five different sets that target different situations: With friends, with family, in the classroom, at recess, and at lunch.

If you need to practice this skill with older kids, try using Social Scenario Problem Solving Task Cards for Middle and High School. The social situation cards are organized into five different sets specific for older kids. Those situations include: With friends, with family, in classes, in the hallway and cafeteria, and online and texting.

Using Social Scripts for Autism

August 14, 2016 by pathway2success 4 Comments

Social scripts, also known as stories, are one of the most effective and simple ways to provide support to kids with autism. A social script is a short narrative written in first person that discusses one problem situation. So, they come in especially handy for really any situation that comes up. Sometimes a teacher might use a social script to prepare a child for a scenario or situation, such as: riding the bus, beginning morning work, washing hands after using the bathroom, or working with partners. They can also be implemented when a specific problem situation arises, such as a student who acts out when confused on work or a student who struggles to initiate playing with peers during recess.

Social scripts are an exceptional intervention for kids with autism because they provide structure and routine to situations that may seem scary and overwhelming for the child. They really play on the strengths for kids on the spectrum, while supporting their weaknesses. It should be noted, though, that these scripts can be used with any kids in need. I have used them with kids struggling with Oppositional Defiant Disorder (ODD), ADHD, and Intellectual Disabilities (ID).

You can either write your own social script for your student or find pre-made social script. One benefit to making your own social scripts is that you can individualize the script for your student. This can be quite time consuming for busy teachers, though, so pre-made scripts are also a plus.

Once you have at least one social script ready to use, here is how you can easily implement them in your class:

1. Make a special binder just for that child. Put the stories in sheet protectors and then place them in the binder.

2. Show the student his or her binder. Find a special place for it in the room. Then, allow the student to decorate the cover. The idea is that this binder is specially for the student. It’s important that he or she develops a connection with the binder (because it will be an important intervention in times of distress).

3. First introduce one social script at a time. Introduce that script by reading it with your student at a time when the child is calm. In other words, don’t introduce a “Feeling Angry” social script when your student is upset. Similarly, it won’t help to introduce a “Staying in My Seat” script when the student is getting out of his or her seat during a lesson. It should be first introduced long before at a time when the child isn’t in crisis or struggling. The intervention needs to be started before the child actually “needs” it, or it won’t have the same effect.

4. The following day, re-introduce the same social script and have the student read it aloud. Ask questions and discuss the social script. Use this as both an intervention and teaching time. Continue with this for a few days until the student becomes more comfortable with the script. Let the student know that you will ask him or her to read the script sometimes. Explain that it will help when he or she is having a difficult time.

5. Finally, when the student is in need (i.e. feeling angry, going on a field trip, etc.), direct him or her to their binder and have the student read the story again. You can follow up with questions such as, “What should you do?” or “What does the story tell you?”

6. Go ahead and implement other scripts this same way. Simple!

More Tips for Using Social Scripts

Give lots of praise and positive reinforcement after the student reads the story or script. Be specific, such as, “Great job reading your story when you were feeling angry! I bet that helped you figure out how to feel better.” This will build on the understanding that the social scripts are a positive way for the student to help him or herself. Some prompting, encouragement, and rewards may be necessary in the beginning. If the student refuses to read the story, you may need to incorporate incentives. Set up a plan that include, “When you read your story when told, you will get to ______” (their preferred activity, such as coloring or music).

The goal is that the child will read the story completely on his or her own when needed. Ultimately, you will be able to phase out any prompts and the student will use this intervention as a tool on their own.

If you want to try out this intervention right away, I have worked on creating specific scripts for kids with autism. The first S ocial Scripts for Autism – Emotions is focused solely on emotions, including feeling angry, confused, bored, nervous, and more. Other sets include social scripts for Friendships, School, and Life Skills.

If you love them all, consider buying the bundle. Keep in mind that while these scripts are an ideal intervention for kids with autism, any child with needs can benefit from them.

Give social scripts and try and see what they can do for the students in your classroom!

Executive Functioning Skills Explained

August 1, 2016 by pathway2success 2 Comments

Executive functioning skills are getting a lot of attention right now in education. Honestly, it’s not even the amount of attention that they deserve, though. Executive functions are essentially the building blocks for completing all tasks in life (in school and beyond).

If you think of executive functioning, you might just think of a student who has organizational issues: his binder is a mess, he can’t find papers he needs, and forgets homework at home. It’s true that organization is one executive functioning skill, but there are actually many more. Neuropsychologists and educational researchers continue to try and identify the specific executive functioning skills in separate categories so that they can be better understood. In turn, this allows us to teach these skills to young adults while setting up strategies for success in our classrooms. The main executive functioning skills include: planning, organization, time management, task initiation, working memory, metacognition, self-control, sustained attention, flexibility, and perseverance.

What’s even more interesting is how all the skills actually work together to complete tasks. You almost never use an executive functioning skill in isolation. Instead, the skills are woven together to allow tasks to be completed in a complete and coherent way. For example, when you go grocery shopping, you have to plan out which stores you’ll go to and organize with coupons or a sales flyer. Then, you will finally set out for the store (task initiation). You have to think about what items you already have and what you will need (metacognition). You have to use time management to get there at a time that works for you and gives you enough time to shop. While shopping, you will probably use your working memory to figure out prices and best deals, while also using self-control to avoid indulging in foods on the no-list. You may even have to adapt your list when the store doesn’t have a certain item you expected (flexibility). You will most likely keep focused while shopping, so you can get home on time (attention). Finally, even if you are tired of shopping and the lines are horrendously long, you will stick to the task to finish and get the groceries home (perseverance). That is just one small task of how executive functioning skills are used in an everyday life experience.

Now, imagine what it is like for kids and young adults juggling all of these mental skills while: learning new math skills, writing a research paper, getting to classes on time, completing homework assignments, working in small groups, completing science labs, participating in gym class sports, and so much more.

Here is a short summary of each of the executive functioning skills:

Planning is the ability to put together a strategy for attaining a goal. It includes analyzing what you need and what steps you should take to complete task.

Organization is the ability to develop and maintain a system to keep materials and plans orderly. That includes a system for homework, keeping track of assignments/papers, and being organized at home, too.

Time Management means having an accurate understanding of how long it will take to complete tasks and being able to use time effectively to actually finish those tasks on schedule.

Task Initiation is the ability to independently start tasks when needed. It means being able to start something even when you really don’t want to.

Working Memory is the mental process that allows us to hold information in our minds while we are working with it. Examples include computing math problems mentally and remembering information for short periods of time during research or note-taking.

Metacognition means knowing what you know and what you don’t know. It’s a critical skill for assessing your progress on tasks and changing your methods as you go. Metacognition is also the skill that allows you to stop yourself when you are stuck before going ahead too far.

Self-control is the ability regulate yourself, including your thoughts, actions, and emotions. This means being able to manage your anger and wait your turn to share. Not only is this skill critical for academic success, but social success, too.

Sustained Attention is being able to focus on a person or task for a period of time. It includes being able to avoid distractions and shifting your focus when needed.

Flexibility means being able to adapt to new situations and dealing with change. Changes that cause difficulty might include a schedule change or when a plan doesn’t come together for a project.

Perseverance is sticking to a task and not giving up, even when it becomes challenging. Further, it’s being able to use strategies to get through a task, regardless of the roadblocks that pop up along the way.

Any educator can help to teach and support these critical skills, whether a special education teacher, classroom teacher, school counselor, psychologist, or paraprofessional. Parents can benefit from learning about these skills too, especially when it comes to helping manage homework and projects at home. If you’re getting started and are looking for some basic materials, consider my Executive Functioning Lessons and Activities. The ultimate goal is to teach and foster stronger executive functioning skills, so that kids and young adults can do more independently.

If you are looking for the next step up, consider the Executive Functioning Advanced Workbook. It has over 100 student workbook pages that teach and provide practice around the same skills. Best of all, there is no prep for the teacher.

If you’re interested, here are some other executive functioning topics I’ve written about:

If you want a reminder about these skills, be sure to grab this FREE Executive Functioning Poster!

Strategies to Focus on SEL Through Distance Learning

April 7, 2020 by pathway2success 3 Comments

9+ strategies and ideas to focus on social emotional learning during distance learning. This post includes free ideas, printables, and even digital resources to help teachers and support staff get started. #pathway2success

In the midst of a challenging situation, it’s critical to make time and space for social emotional supports for learners. Simply put, social emotional skills are the foundation for overall well-being. Kids and teens need to feel safe, respected, loved, and valued. They need to have strong coping skills to work their emotional challenges and they need to improve cognitive flexibility to deal with the changes that are happening, so many outside of their control.

For these reasons, it’s important that social emotional skills take the front seat when it comes to distance learning. While these skills are important all of the time, it’s easy to argue that learners need them now more than ever.

Whether you are a classroom teacher, school counselor, social worker, paraeducator, or parent, this list includes specific strategies and ideas to help support all learners during this distance learning experience.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Read Stories

It’s easy to say that literature is a great way to integrate SEL into the day. Pretty much any book or short story targets a variety of social emotional skills like kindness, empathy, perspective-taking, and more. It’s important to note that picture books aren’t just for little kids. Many older kids love a good read aloud, too!

Record a video of you reading a text (making sure the author gives permission for this first) and send to your students. You could even do a live read aloud with some videochat tools, like Zoom or Screencastify.

Use this free digital and printable list with ideas for SEL read alouds.

If technology isn’t an option, you can always recommend students and families read books as use. Use this free printable that highlights picture books for every area of social emotional learning.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Virtual Morning Meeting

Morning meeting is the semi-structured time of day when students and educators greet each other, check-in, and learn some important skills before starting the day. While it’s certainly preferable to lead a morning meeting in a face-to-face way, it’s also important to note that virtual morning meetings can work, too!

One of my favorite ways is to use a video conversation app, like Flipgrid, to start the conversation on a daily SEL topic. Topics you could choose might be positive self-talk, staying organized, or showing kindness. The specific topic is really up to you. After choosing the topic, record a video of you briefly explaining the skill.

Then, ask a question you want kids to respond to. If you are focusing on kindness, you might ask them to share a kind act they’ve done in the past week. If you are highlighting strengths and abilities, you might ask kids to talk about something they are great at doing. The best part is that with a video conversation app like Flipgrid, kids get to connect with you and each other.

Another option is to schedule a weekly or daily time with your learners to meet online using the software or programs your school is encouraging. That might be Zoom or any other program, depending on your school or student needs.

If you need some extra ideas for morning meeting topics to discuss, I’ve created this set of morning meeting cards for older learners and this set of morning meeting cards for elementary students. They specifically target one SEL skill every day, making it easy to go over all the skills kids need in every domain of social emotional learning.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Virtual Emotions Check-Ins

This is a stressful time for everyone, kids and teens included. Spend 1:1 time with individual students and check-in with how they are doing. Use this virtual conference time to ask students how they are feeling, what strategies they are using to focus on wellness, and techniques for managing stress.

Virtual check-ins can be simple messages through emails or Remind, or they can be in the form of videos using Google Hangout or other video programs.

Use this free digital and printable activity as a mindful morning check-in.

I also created this free digital and printable mindful morning activity to help learners start off the day in the right way.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Digital Task Cards

As an educator, I have always loved task cards. They are a simple activity to teach skills in a way that feels so different from a worksheet. Of course, in times of distance learning, it might not be as practical to send sets of task cards to each of your students. That’s where digital task cards come in.

For many of my favorite social emotional task cards I’ve already created, I have added a digital component. This makes it easy for kids and teens to still get the social practice they need, while responding to the cards right on the digital Google Drive page.

While there are many distance learning activities to choose from, these social problem-solving task cards are a free set to get learners started.

Use these free digital task cards to help learners work on social skills.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Video Instruction

Using videos can be a valuable tool in teaching a variety of skills. Some educators are using pre-recorded YouTube videos to share with their learners, while others are recording their very own personalized videos to send to their students.

If you aren’t quite sure how to get started, try recording yourself on your phone while teaching a mini-lesson to your students. For example, you might record a lesson teaching about using coping strategies, using positive self-talk, or practicing mindfulness (all skills that are extremely important right now).

Make a quick video just to practice and get started. Then, send it to your learners. Not only will you be sending valuable skills, but your students will love seeing you teach again.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Digital Lessons and Workbooks

One of the best ways to provide lessons through digital learning is Google Classroom. Using Google Drive digital-friendly resources, students can respond right on the workbooks and activities. Not only does this make things much easier for the student and families at home, but your students can then send their completed assignments straight back to you for review.

Browse a complete collection of digital resources for kids and teens.

I have added digital versions to a number of social emotional resources already. The reason why I’m adding digital version to pre-existing materials is simple. If you have already purchased a social emotional activity from me, you get the update for free. You deserve to have both options so that you can use digital materials now, but always have the choice to using print/paper copies in the future. Browse through the complete collection of digital resources to get started. Many resources are paid, but some are free, too!

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Using Apps and Websites

There are a number of websites and apps that students can use to practice social emotional skills. Some are free all of the time, while others have offered free membership for a period of time. Some possible apps and sites to try out include:

Breathe, Think, Do
Emotional ABCs
Smiling Mind
GoNoodle
Calm

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Daily Journal

More than ever, now is a great time to get kids journaling on a daily basis. Not only is writing in a journal a calming and mindful activity, but it’s also a great way to help kids share thoughts and feelings. Even more, you can use journaling as a specific way to target social emotional skills.

Each day, assign a journal topic for kids to write about. For example, you might have them list out some positive thoughts and then writing in a journal about how positive thoughts can be helpful.

Another simple strategy is to encourage kids to journal about their thoughts and feelings each day. Not only will this help them in the moment, but we are living through historic times, so it will be meaningful to them later on.

If you are looking for a simple solution, there are many pre-made digital journals to choose from. You might have students fill out a daily mindfulness journal, for example.

Use a daily journal to target social emotional skills.

My favorite journal, though, is a daily SEL Journal, with every week targeting a different social emotional skill. I created this SEL Journal for elementary students and this SEL Journal for older learners.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Family Check-Ins

With all that is going on, it’s also important to check in with families. If we want kids and teens to do well, we need to also support the families they live with. Provide a weekly check-in with families just to briefly ask how things are going and if they need any support.

With a weekly check-in, educators can also suggest a couple of simple activities for families to help build SEL skills at home, such as reading literature, playing board games, having conversations, or even watching a movie together and talking about how characters feel. It’s important to note that there are numerous strategies to work on SEL at home, but we have to give families the tools to get there.

SEL Distance Learning Strategy: Assign Mindful Activities

Whether learners have technology or not, educators can always encourage mindful activities at home. Assign 10 minutes of mindful time each day. You can ask students to complete a specific activity or have them choose from some ideas below:

Drawing or coloring
Free journal writing
Spending time outside
Reading
Go on a mindful scavenger hunt
Practicing deep breathing
Listening to music

Use digital mindful breathing cards to help focus on self-regulation skills.

One of my favorite mindful activities is mindful breathing because it’s a strategy kids can use anytime. I recently added a digital version to these mindful breathing cards, making it easy for kids and teens to carry them along with them wherever they go.

If you’re still looking for ideas, know that I have several free digital resources you can download and send home to students and families right away.

Side note: I’ve recently gotten some questions about how to properly send materials to students/families, so I’ll share here, too. All of my resources, free and paid, can be sent to families and students through e-mail or any other password-protected means, like Google Classroom or an app. Just please don’t post openly on a website, since these can be found from a Google search.

As always, if you have any questions or feedback, please reach out. Thank you for all you do.

Distance Learning

Given the coronavirus pandemic, I am continually putting together resources to help teachers and parents with distance learning. During this time, social emotional learning activities are even more critical than normal. The resources below all contain links to digital activities on Google Drive (as well as printable materials). Below are some of my favorites, but I am constantly adding to the collection. You can view more digital resources here.

Integrate writing and social emotional learning with this complete yearlong SEL journal. Cover one section per day to learn about skills like growth mindset, self-control, coping strategies, and more.

A year’s worth of social emotional learning choice boards for kids and teens. Digital prompts allow kids to respond to SEL questions every day.

Engaging and interactive lessons to teach and practice mindfulness with kids and teens. Activities include positive affirmations, creating mindful crafts, mindful coloring, mindful listening, and more.

A complete yearlong journal that targets mindfulness. Other skills are also integrated, such as growth mindset, self-awareness, positive self-talk, emotional awareness, and more.

Introductory executive functioning lessons to target planning, organization, time management, and more. The lessons include self-assessments, activities, and posters.

Cards to teach and practice mindful breathing in a fun and memorable way. Breathing exercises can be practiced at the beginning of the day or anytime learners need them.

A complete unit to teach young adults how to effectively manage emotions. These lessons cover understanding emotions, expressing yourself, adapting to change, coping strategies, and more.

A comprehensive no-prep workbook targeting all executive functioning skills from planning to perseverance. This workbook provides strategies and supports for older learners.

A complete and comprehensive set of yearlong lessons and activities to target executive functioning skill for young adults. This set includes a year and semester pacing guide.

A set of indoor and outdoor scavenger hunts to practice mindfulness in an interactive way. Learners will use their senses to find objects around them.

A yearlong journal focused on social emotional learning skills for elementary students. Each week includes 5 prompts to target SEL skills.

A workbook focused on teaching kids and teens strategies for managing worries in healthy ways.

Social skills task cards focused on teaching empathy, conversation, conflict resolution, and more. These include digital prompts for learners.

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!

Search Results for: social skills

Teaching Social Problem-Solving with a Free Activity

Art Activities for Social Emotional Learning

Using Social Scripts for Autism

Executive Functioning Skills Explained

Distance Learning

Find It Fast

Instagram

pathway2success1