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18 Mindfulness Activities for Outdoors

June 23, 2020 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Mindfulness is a critical self-regulation strategy for people of all ages. It can help us feel calm, focused, and in control. Learning to be mindful doesn’t have to be confined to the four walls of a building or classroom. In fact, there are numerous opportunities to practice mindful activities outside.

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Here are a few outdoor mindful techniques to try:

Blow bubbles. A strategy for focusing on deep breathing, blowing bubbles is an interactive and fun way to practice mindfulness. You can find bubbles at your local dollar store, online, or make them yourself with dish soap. Before blowing the bubbles, talk about mindful breathing and focusing on your breath. This is one of the most foundational elements to mindfulness. When we calm our breathing, we can calm our minds.

Watch wildlife. Spend time watching wildlife in your backyard, a local park, or on a hike. Once you spot something, spend time actually watching the behavior of the animal. Binoculars help, but this is something you can do without them, too. Afterwards, talk about all the things you saw that you never noticed before.

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Go barefoot in the yard. In a spot that is safe, like the backyard or a sandy beach, kick off your shoes and let your toes touch the ground.

Watch the clouds. Sit or lie down on the ground. Breathe in and out as you watch the clouds roll by. And of course, take note when a cloud looks like something else. This is a fun activity by itself!

Practice mindful breathing. Of course, mindful breathing is a technique you can practice anytime. Essentially, mindful breathing is focusing on our breath as we breathe in and out. One summer breathing activity is to imagine you have a dandelion in front of you. Slowly breathe in and breathe out. Grab these mindful breathing exercise cards or read up on more mindful breathing strategies to get started.

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Play “I Spy” outside. This is an outdoor games that practices mindfulness through mindful observation. Have one person find a target item. They might say, “I spy something green.” Others in the group should look around and take turns guessing what item might be the target.

Take a walk. Put the electronics away and just go for a peaceful walk. Notice what you see, hear, smell, feel, and taste. These sensory sensations on the walk can be calming and mindful.

Read outside. Find a nice shady spot under a tree or on a park bench. Read a good book aloud or silently for a period of time. When practicing mindfulness, it’s important to focus on feeling calm and relaxed. Don’t pay too much attention to the academic portion of reading in this case. Read and just be!

Go on an outdoor scavenger hunt. Choose a list of outdoor items to look for. You might seek a plant, a butterfly, something that starts with an s, and a bird singing. The options for this are endless. Put together your list before you head out or grab these printable mindful scavenger hunts. Then, take time to find the items as you walk in the yard, field, around the block, or in a local park. Can’t find everything on your list? That’s okay, too! Part of mindfulness is learning to just be and avoiding the need for perfection. That’s a lesson in mindfulness just as well.

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Practice yoga. Learn some yoga poses ahead of time and practice them outside. Some of the best postures for kids include warrior pose, tree pose, and downward dog. There are lots more!

Color with sidewalk chalk. Draw fun designs or positive messages with sidewalk chalk. If you’re not sure what to write, look up some positive quotes ahead of time.

Stack rocks. Find some different sized rocks. Stack them and try to see how high your rock tower can go. This activity works on mindfulness and balance. You can talk about what balance means in our lives.

Color on a clipboard. Grab some coloring pages and a clipboard. Then, find a cozy spot underneath a tree to sit and color mindfully. You can use these free printable mindfulness coloring pages to give it a try.

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Have a picnic with mindful eating. Mindful eating is the practice of thinking about the sensory experience as you eat something. That means thinking about how it feels, smells, sounds, looks, and tastes while you are eating. If the weather is warm, try mindful eating with summer foods like ice cream, watermelon, or smores.

Smell flowers. If you happen to find a garden or some flowers growing, use them for mindful breathing practice. Slowly breathe in to smell the flowers. Think about what sensations you feel as you smell them.

Paint rocks and hide them. Rock painting can be extremely calming. To get started, find some smooth rocks (or you can purchase at a craft store). Use paint to design them with positive messages or interesting designs. Let them dry. Then, when you’re ready, head out to a hiking spot or walking path and hide them somewhere for someone else to find.

Build with sand. Use a sandbox or head to the beach for this outdoor mindful activity. Build some sandcastles or just feel the sand in your hands or a mindful experience.

Gardening. Taking care of plants and weeding is a mindful activity on its own. As a bonus, gardening works on lots of other skills like empathy and responsibility, too.

Journal write. Free writing outside on a sunny day can be extremely calming. Grab a journal and encourage writing time. Encourage kids to write about their feelings, respond to a prompt, write a story, or write about anything they choose. If you’re a Pathway 2 Success member (thank you!), grab the free Mindfulness Journal in the free resource library.

If you love these mindful activities but aren’t sure exactly how to teach mindfulness, I’ve got you covered with this set of mindfulness lessons and activities.

18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

More Mindfulness Ideas:

  • 10 Mindfulness Activities You Can Try Today
  • Mindful Breathing Activities for Kids & Teens
  • 5 FREE Mindfulness Activities
  • Mindfulness Journal Ideas To Try
  • 10 Best Times to Practice Mindfulness in the Classroom
  • Mindfulness Resources
18+ Mindfulness activities for kids and teens to practice outside. These activities are perfect for a mindful summer activity, incorporating physical activity, or just a planned way to get outside of the classroom during the school day. #mindfulness #pathway2success

Filed Under: Social Emotional Learning, Special Education, Tips for Teachers Tagged With: mindfulness, social emotional learning

Outdoor Activities to Build Social Skills

June 6, 2020 by pathway2success 1 Comment

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills

Working on social skills isn’t just an activity to take place in the classroom. We, as kids and adults, use social skills every day out in the real world. This gives lots of opportunities for practicing and strengthening those skills everywhere – even outside.

Whether you are a parent looking to boost your child’s social skills at home over the summer or an educator seeking some non-worksheet strategies for improvement, I hope these ideas are helpful to you.

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills

Some important points to help as you work on these social skills through outdoor activities:

  • Be intentional with the skills you are working on. Talk about the social skills and why they matter.
  • Give plenty of practice. So often, one experience isn’t enough to really target a skill. Give it time!
  • Allow choice. Give kids an option of two different activities. This will help them buy-in and feel empowered before they even start.

Here are some activities to build social skills outside the four walls of the classroom.

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills

Gardening

Gardening can sometimes be a favorite activity for kids and teens. Even though there is a bit of work up front, it’s so fun to see something you yourself have grown! Most obviously, this can build a great deal of patience. This can also be extremely rewarding and even act as a coping strategy to see something grow over time.

In addition to these skills, you can work on skill for planning while listing out ideas for a garden, choosing what you want to grow, and designing a map for where to grow each item. This can also involve some research, as it’s helpful to know what conditions different plants need.

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills

Writing Sidewalk Chalk Messages

Grab some sidewalk chalk on a nice day and write thoughtful messages. This activity lends itself to promoting kindness, empathy, and compassion for others.

If you’re not sure what to write, spend some time looking up positive and kind quotes before you head out.

Walking and Talking

A simple activity, walking and talking is just what it sounds like – building conversation skills while walking together. Spend time talking about feelings, interests, thoughts, and hopes for the future. Give plenty of time for back and forth discussion. This activity also provides practice with turn-taking, active listening, and empathy. All the while, you will also be improving relationship skills.

If you’re running out of ideas, grab these free discussion starters to give some ideas.

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills #pathway2success

Birdwatching

Birdwatching is an activity that can help build attention skills while also practicing mindfulness and coping strategies. To start with birdwatching, you don’t need anything special. Just pick a spot in a yard or while out on a hike. Then, use your senses to notice the wildlife around you.

This is a favorite activity, as it also encourages a sense of curiosity, leading to more discussions and learning. If you see or hear something that you’re not familiar with, take extra note of it or take a picture. Then, look it up once you’re back inside. This is a great way to create a positive connection with nature while working on social skills at the same time.

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills #pathway2success

Tidying the Yard

Cleaning up after ourselves is a critical self-management and organizational skill that we all need in our daily lives. You can use these activities to teach about why it’s important to clean up and stay organized on a regular basis. When we have routines for staying organized, it really makes the clean-up process much easier.

Just a few activities kids and teens can help with include weeding, raking, spreading mulch, cleaning patio furniture, and gathering toys.

Picking Up Trash

Taking care of the environment is important! Spending time picking up trash can promote responsibility and respect for the world around us. It can also encourage discussion about responsible decision-making and learning that our choices impact those around us.

Picking up trash can be done at any local park or just when you are out on a hike. Make it fun! Give yourself “one point” for every trash item you find and put in a bag.

During the clean up process, discuss that even though you didn’t leave the trash, it is part of our collective responsibility as humans to help clean up. Of course, this also fosters compassion and care for the environment.

Going on a Scavenger Hunt

Work on attention skills with an outdoor scavenger hunt. You can make the list ahead of time or find one to print out. Have kids mindfully look for different items, like a green leaf or a rock. Mark it down on the checklist and keep looking for more.

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills #pathway2success

Jogging

Jogging, running, and walking are extremely healthy ways to practice coping strategies outdoors. Just like any other aerobic exercise, jogging is known to raise heart rate, burn calories, increase lung capacity, and improve the immune system. While these are generally seen as physical impacts, it’s worth noting that this boosts mental and emotional health, too.

Going for a quick jog is a great way to promote a positive coping strategy when feeling stressed, angry, or even sad. Even more, jogging can be used as a proactive self-care strategy.

Basketball (or any sport)

Basketball, or really any sport, is an ideal activity to work on sportsmanship, fairness, and perseverance, to name a few skills. Choose a sport that your kids and teens enjoy most, whether it is basketball, baseball, soccer, or bowling.

If you want to work on flexibility skills, try a sport or activity that your child doesn’t know well. Practice and learn together!

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills #pathway2success

Leaf Rubbing

Another strategy for focusing on mindfulness, leaf rubbing is an easy and quick activity that can be done almost anywhere. All you will need is paper, a clipboard, and a crayon (or two). Have kids find a leaf on the ground that they like. Place it under the paper on the clipboard and shade in the paper.

Planning a Picnic

Grab a clipboard and start a checklist to work on planning your ideal picnic. Have kids take the lead to work on their planning and organization skills. Rather than telling them what they should bring, ask prompting questions like, “What do you think we might need?”

Letting kids and teens lead an activity like this also helps build self-confidence!

Play Freeze

In this activity, you will be playing music and giving dance time. After a minute or so, pause the music and make sure everyone freezes on the spot. After a quick pause, play the music again and resume.

Use this as a memorable way to practice and talk about self-control. Of course, this is a game that can be played either indoors or outdoors!

Again, it’s important to note that the possibilities are working on social skills outside are limitless!

Outdoor activities to help build social skills including patience, attention, conversation skills, responsibility, and much more. Use these activities to help kids work on social emotional learning at home over the summer or anytime of year! #sel #socialskills #pathway2success

Filed Under: Social Emotional Learning Tagged With: sel, social emotional learning, social skills

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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!

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

Filed Under: Social Emotional Learning, Special Education, Tips for Teachers Tagged With: positive affirmations, positive self talk, self talk, social emotional learning

Mindfulness Journal Ideas You Can Try Today

January 20, 2020 by pathway2success 1 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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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.

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

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!

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


Filed Under: Behavior Management, Positive Behavior Supports, Social Emotional Learning, Special Education, Teaching, Tips for Teachers Tagged With: mindfulness, sel, social emotional learning

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:

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

#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.

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

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.

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

Filed Under: Social Emotional Learning, Special Education, Tips for Teachers Tagged With: morning meeting, social emotional learning

Teaching Kids To Be Self-Aware

September 1, 2019 by pathway2success 2 Comments

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

As an educator, I always felt I knew my learners extremely well. While it is great if an educator or parent knows their kids so well, it’s actually not enough. The real magic comes when we teach kids to start understanding themselves and develop strong self-awareness skills. Self-awareness is having a strong understanding of oneself. That includes understanding our thoughts, emotions, strengths, challenges, needs, and dreams for the future.

Self-awareness is important for children and younger learners because it sets the stage for success. If kids have a better understanding of their emotions, actions, and abilities, they can make better choices to help them be successful in and outside of the classroom.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Here are a couple quick examples of why self-awareness matters:

Imagine a child who just starts crying in class. The child is so upset that they can barely get a word out, and no adult in the room understands what happened. Finally, the child points to the math worksheet they were working on. It has answered scribbled out. The teacher finally realizes that the child was frustrated with the work and did not know how to solve the problems. If that child had stronger skills for self-awareness, he or she could have asked for help, tried a new strategy, asked a peer, or taken a break if their frustrations were escalating.

Next, let’s consider a student with stronger self-awareness skills. This learner knows they want to play on the basketball team this year, so they make a concerted effort to improve their skills and talk to the gym teacher about how to join. By understanding their hopes for the future, this learner has a much better chance of achieving their goals.

The good news is that self-awareness skills can be taught and practiced on a regular basis. Of course, it’s important to note that self-awareness skills don’t develop all at once. Learning them is a process that takes time and practice.

If you want to get started right away, consider checking out this Self-Awareness Unit developed specifically for social emotional learning. It covers everything from building confidence and understanding emotions to using positive thinking skills and considering hopes and dreams. As a bonus, it is the first unit in the complete SEL Yearlong Elementary Curriculum.

Here are some strategies you can try to get your learners started:

Encourage kids to use their strengths. If a student is strong with technology, let him or her be the technology support staff in the room. If another child loves music, let them help pick out some calming selections to play during morning work. The options are endless. All kids deserve a chance to shine.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Teach skills for confidence. Confidence provides a great sense of self-understanding and self-awareness. Feeling confident doesn’t usually come on its own, though. Teach kids how to be confident by learning how to take risks, develop a growth mindset, and celebrate their wins.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Have kids compliment themselves. Encourage students to write a “compliment list” about themselves. They can post this list somewhere at home or keep it in their binder to remind themselves of their strengths

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Let kids share their passions. Give a weekly show and tell time that allows kids to share something important to them. Whether a student is playing the flute for their classmates or telling about a new insect they found, these are moments that can help each child develop a stronger sense of what they are most interested in.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Try new things together. We are all works in progress! Kids need lots of opportunities to try different things and find out what they are most passionate about. Play different genres of music, read different types of texts, and encourage activities that students might not have tried before. Every new opportunity is a chance for students to learn about who they are.

Teach about emotions. Even if students have a basic understanding of feelings, they may fully grasp other more in-depth emotional concepts. Teach students to learn a larger emotional vocabulary, explain that emotions have different levels (slightly annoyed to irate), and discuss how you can feel multiple emotions at once. Learning about emotions will help children understand their own feelings on a day-to-day basis.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Create a daily emotion check-in time. Children benefit greatly from understanding their own feelings. Give 5 or 10 minutes each morning to allow students to check in with themselves. You can have them write in a journal or fill out a check in form to share how they are feeling.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Embrace a growth mindset. All kids should know that they can accomplish more when they work hard and have a positive mindset. Teach what it means to have a growth mindset. Practice a growth mindset with your learners and encourage it on a daily basis. This can help build confidence and a greater understanding of what students can really do.

Discuss hopes and dreams. No matter the age, everyone should have aspirations to look forward to! Give time to discussing hopes and dreams for the future. You might discuss where students want to travel to, what activities they want to try, and what they hope to be like in the future. Note that hopes and dreams can change over time, so this is something you can revisit time and time again.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Research career interests. It’s never too early to consider future career paths! You can assign careers to students or let them choose. Have kids find some interesting facts about that career and share it with the class.

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Develop and monitor goals. Meet individually with students and help them come up with specific goals they want to work on. Again, this is something that can be done with all ages. Whether their goal is wanting to read three chapter books or complete all their homework, SMART goals can help kids have a greater understanding of where they are and what they need to do to improve.

Schedule student conferences. Meet with each student individually on a regular basis. This might look different depending on how many students you work with. The more regularly you can meet with your learners, the better. Spend just 5-10 minutes discussing how the student is doing, what is working well, and what they could improve. This student conference format can help kids gain understanding into where they are and what they need to do to continue working towards goals.

If you are looking for resources to teach self-awareness skills right away, check out this Social Emotional Learning Unit for Self-Awareness or this Social Emotional Learning Curriculum for the whole year.

Whether you decide to start teaching the lessons right away, or just implement a few small strategies throughout the year, know that self-awareness is an important skill for all learners to develop!

Teaching kids to be more self-aware can help them develop confidence, understand emotions, and work towards individual goals. Teachers can use these strategies and printable activities to help kids develop self-awareness and focus on social emotional learning. #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Filed Under: Social Emotional Learning Tagged With: sel, self awareness, social emotional learning, social skills

100+ Read Alouds to Teach Social Emotional Learning Skills

August 24, 2019 by pathway2success 1 Comment

100+ Read aloud short stories to integrate social emotional learning into the classroom. Elementary teachers and even middle school educators can use these texts to discuss SEL skills like empathy, friendships, emotions, decision-making and more. Read and grab your free printable list! #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Social emotional learning skills are important. Every educator wants their learners to understand their own strengths and challenges, effectively cope with stress, persevere through challenges, have empathy for others, develop lasting friendships, and make positive decisions. These are really just a few examples of what skills social emotional learning can cover.

There are numerous benefits to teaching SEL skills in the classroom, such as a reduction of behavioral problems and giving learners tools to problem-solve on their own.

Sometimes, the best solution is to dedicate a time period to social emotional learning each day. If this is something you are planning in your classroom, I’ve developed a COMPLETE yearlong SEL curriculum for elementary learners (and I have a SEL curriculum for older kids, too)!

100+ Read aloud short stories to integrate social emotional learning into the classroom. Elementary teachers and even middle school educators can use these texts to discuss SEL skills like empathy, friendships, emotions, decision-making and more. Read and grab your free printable list! #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

With that said, sometimes time in the classroom is short. Although it can be extremely beneficial to teach SEL skills explicitly, there are always helpful ways that teachers can embed them into what they are already doing. For example, educators might use a daily SEL journal during writing time, have class discussions during break time, or use art activities to highlight SEL skills. One of the most helpful strategies for integrating SEL can be through literature.

The idea behind using literature to target social emotional learning skills really is quite simple. Educators can read the text as they normally would, stopping along the way to highlight critical skills that come up.

One of my favorite examples is Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. In this short story, Alexander is having an awful day. It is such a terrible day that he wants to go and live in another country. However, rather than packing up his belongings and ignoring what is happening in his life, Alexander learns to cope with his emotions. He also learns about starting fresh each day. There are so many social lessons that can be learned from this one short read aloud.

With this, I put together a complete list of read alouds to use for social emotional learning. Grab a copy of your free printable SEL read aloud list to get started right away.

Read aloud list for social emotional learning

To get started, just find a skill you want to work on and select a book! As always, you know your learners best. It’s possible that not every book will work for your students, and that’s okay. Find the ones that suit their individual needs and see how much fun integrating SEL with literature can be.

The links to books below are Amazon affiliate links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. That means when items are purchased from any Amazon affiliate links, I earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Of course, you’re also welcome to find them at your library for free!

Here are just a few examples from the complete list:

DEVELOPING SELF-AWARENESS

  • Giraffes Can’t Dance by Giles Andreae
  • Chrysanthemum by Kevin Henkes
  • It’s Okay to be Different by Todd Parr
  • The Name Jar by Yangsook Choi
  • Hooray for You! A Celebration of You-ness by Marianne Richmond

BUILDING CONFIDENCE

  • I’m Gonna Like Me by Jamie Lee Curtis
  • Amazing Grace by Mary Hoffman
  • Exclamation Mark by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
  • I Like Me! By Nancy Carlson
  • Zero by Kathryn Otoshi

UNDERSTANDING EMOTIONS

  • Visiting Feelings by Lauren Rubenstein
  • Jabari Jumps by Gaia Cornwall
  • The Way I Feel by Jonan Cain
  • The Color Monster by Anna Llenas
  • In My Heart: A Book of Feelings by Jo Witek

HOPES AND DREAMS

  • Hiromi’s Hands by Lynne Barasch
  • Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty
  • Big Al by Andrew Clements
  • Matthew’s Dream by Leo Lionni
  • The Wonderful Things You Will Be by Emily Winfield Martin

STUDY HABITS

  • Farmer Duck by Martin Waddell
  • Planning Isn’t My Priority by Julia Cook
  • Don’t Forget the Bacon by Pat Hutchins
  • See You Later, Procrastinator! By Pamela Espeland and Elizabeth Verdick

SELF-CONTROL

  • Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein
  • How to Be a Superhero Called Self-Control by Lauren Brukner
  • What If? by Collen Doyle Bryant
  • What Were You Thinking? Learning to Control Your Impulses by Brian Smith

PERSEVERANCE & RESILIENCE

  • Salt in His Shoes by Deloris Jordan
  • Brave Irene by William Steig
  • Apples to Oregon by Deborah Hopkinson
  • Unstoppable Me! By Dr. Wayne W. Dyer
  • Wilma Unlimited by Kathleen Krull
  • The Most Magnificent Thing by Ashley Spires

RESPECT

  • David Goes to School by David Shannon
  • The Way I Act by Steve Metzger
  • Respect and Take Care of Things by Cheri J. Meiners

EMPATHY

  • The Invisible Boy by Trudy Ludwig
  • The Bicycle Man by Allen Say
  • Do Unto Otters by Laurie Keller
  • Stand In My Shoes by Bob Somson
  • Zen Ties by Jon J. Muth

KINDNESS

  • Each Kindness by Jacqueline Woodson
  • Those Shoes by Maribeth Boelts
  • Pinduli by Janell Cannon
  • Good People Everywhere by Lynea Gillen
  • Kindness Starts with You by Jacquelyn Stagg
  • A Chair for My Mother by Vera B. Williams

FRIENDSHIP SKILLS

  • How to Lose All Your Friends by Nancy Carlson
  • Making Friends is an Art by Julia Cook
  • Love Monster and the Last Chocolate by Rachel Bright
  • Jessica’s Box by Peter Carnavas
  • Louise and Andie: The Art of Friendship by Kelly Light

INCLUDING OTHERS

  • The Boy Who Wouldn’t Share by Mike Reiss
  • Rulers of the Playground by Joseph Kuefler
  • A Sick Day for Amos McGee by Philip C. Stead
  • The Invisible Boy by Patrice Barton
  • Same Same But Different by Jenny Sue Kostecki-Shaw

CONFLICT RESOLUTION

  • Eat Your Peas by Kes Gray
  • Sharing a Shell by Julia Donaldson
  • There’s a Bear on my Chair by Ross Collins
  • Where the Wild Things Are by Maurice Sendak
  • Iris and Isaac by Cheterine Rayner

BEING RESPONSIBLE

  • The Paperboy by Dav Pilkey
  • I Just Forgot by Mercer Mayer
  • Arthur’s Pet Business by Marc Brown
  • The Emperor’s Egg by Martin Jenkins
  • The Way I Act by Steve Metzger

MAKING GOOD CHOICES

  • What If Everybody Did That? By Ellen Javernick
  • Do Unto Otters by Laurie Keller
  • Making Smart Choices by Lucia Raatma
  • Land of Or by Katie Mullaly

PEER INFLUENCE

  • The Juice Box Bully by Bob Somson and Maria Dismondy
  • One by Kathryn Otoshi
  • The Hueys in the New Sweater by Oliver Jeffers
  • A Bad Case of the Stripes by David Shannon
  • Bully on the Bus by Carl W. Bosch

REFLECTING ON CHOICES

  • David Gets in Trouble by David Shannon
  • Lilly’s Purple Plastic Purse by Kevin Kenkes
  • Beautiful Oops! By Barney Saltzberg
  • After the Fall by Dan Santat

Happy reading! If you love this list, remember to grab a copy of the complete free printable SEL read aloud list!

Reading books for social emotional learning

If you’re interested in more ideas for SEL, here are a few posts that might be helpful:

  • Using Games to Teach Social Emotional Skills
  • 100+ Free Social Emotional Learning Resources
100+ Read aloud short stories to integrate social emotional learning into the classroom. Elementary teachers and even middle school educators can use these texts to discuss SEL skills like empathy, friendships, emotions, decision-making and more. Read and grab your free printable list! #sel #socialemotionallearning #pathway2success

Filed Under: Social Emotional Learning, Special Education, Teaching Tagged With: empathy, sel, social emotional learning, social skills, special education, teaching, teaching ideas

20+ Strategies for Teaching Empathy

August 13, 2019 by pathway2success Leave a Comment

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Teaching empathy is important. In the simplest of terms, empathy is the ability to notice, understand, and share the emotions of others. It is a critical social skill for all people to have. In many ways, empathy is the social skill that paves the way for all other social skills. It helps us to take someone else’s perspective, understand each others’ emotions, connect with one another, show compassion, make good social choices, and ultimately develop lasting relationships.

What does a lack of empathy look like? Learners who lack empathy can end up with many social challenges. These kids and young adults may struggle to build friendships, have difficulty working with others, and make poor social decisions overall. Most importantly, kids and young adults who lack empathy are often unaware their behaviors can negatively impact others. These learners might do or say something that makes sense to them in the moment, without giving consideration to those around them.

Learners who lack strong empathy skills might:

  • Do or say something that appears rude or inappropriate, such as loudly commenting on someone else’s pimple.
  • Engage in socially unexpected behaviors, such as cutting to the front of the line when they want to be first.
  • Make comments that hurt others’ feelings, such as telling someone their shirt is ugly.
  • Fail to recognize times to be sensitive to others, such as mentioning how much they love their dog right after a friend’s dog passes away.

How can educators build empathy? It is critical for educators to recognize that having a lack of empathy is a skill deficit and not a behavior problem. In the words of Ross Greene, “Kids do well if they can.” There are many ways to teach, highlight, and practice skills for empathy, so these abilities can be learned over time. If you want to get started right away, I have created a whole unit targeting perspective-taking and empathy. It’s important to note that some learners are going to struggle with these skills more than others. What’s important is that you work on them slowly and watch the skills grow. Quite often, these strategies can be integrated into the classroom to help support a positive learning community for all. It’s a win-win!

Here are some strategies for building empathy:

Use literature. Using short stories and novels, you can help learners to think about the emotions and motives of characters. You might ask: How do you think they feel right now? Why do they feel that way? What might they be thinking? How would you feel if you were in their shoes? What might they do next? Best of all, using literature is an easy way to integrate social-emotional learning since it’s something that teachers teach every day!

Teach “being in someone else’s shoes.” Use situations to encourage students to think about how they might feel. Then, go the extra step and have students think about how someone else might feel. This is a critical component of empathy because how we feel might not be how someone else might feel. It’s a skill that can sometimes require lots of practice and discussion with others.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Watch videos and movie clips. Similar to literature, videos and movie clips can be a strategy to think about the emotions of characters. This may be a helpful tactic for learners who struggle with reading or just a fun activity for the end of the week. Just play a quick video clip (or watch a whole movie) and discuss the characters’ feelings, thoughts, motivations, and reactions.

Talk about emotions. Talking about feelings should be normal and expected in the classroom! Model using I-statements and teach about different emotions as they come up.

Use optical illusions to teach perspective-taking. Optical illusions are a fantastic way to teach perspective-taking because they show students that we all think differently and that’s okay! Simply show an optical illusion and have students independently write down what they see. Then, have them discuss. Soon, students will realize that they don’t all see the same thing. It’s a great way to start the discussion on perspective-taking and empathy. You can use this free perspective-taking lesson to try right away!

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Keep an emotion vocabulary board. Improve each student’s emotional vocabulary by keeping a board posted with all different emotion words. Students should recognize that there are multiple shades to every emotion, from irritated to irate and content to elated. Make these words part of the norm so that students can learn to use them effectively.

Identify emotions in photos. Get random old magazines or use your own photos. Have students look through magazines or photos to find images of people. Encourage them to identify how each person might be feeling or thinking. This is such a fun activity that can be done again and again.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Teach social cues. Learners who struggle with skills for empathy can greatly benefit from learning about facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice. These can be critical cues for them to start recognizing the thoughts and feelings of others. This can be fun to teach as “social detective work.”

Role-play social scenarios. Discuss a variety of social situations and have students act out what they might do. For example, “Imagine you see someone fall down in the hall. What would you do?” This social situation encourages students to think about how someone else might feel as well as how they should respond. Come up with your own scenarios to discuss or use task cards. I have created social scenarios for elementary students and social scenarios for middle and high schoolers. Start off with this free social problem-solving task cards set to see how your students do!

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Play empathy games. For learners who struggle with empathy, it is a difficult skill to learn. Games can be a highly motivating way to learn these skills. I developed a fun empathy game with many different scenarios to help learners think about how others feel and how they might show empathy to others. Best of all, there are so many scenarios that kids can play again and again.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Watch animal live cams. Who doesn’t love animals? I’ve found that kids who really struggle to show empathy with other kids are still very likely to empathize and care about animals. With that, there are many free animal live cams you can stream. In my classroom, we loved watching an owl cam, a bald eagle nest, and even a giraffe who was about to have a baby. Of course, there are many ways to integrate science, reading, and writing to any of these animal live cams. This can be a great way to help kids learn to care about and for something else.

Have a daily morning meeting. It’s important to give every student a daily check-in time. Every child and young adult needs to know they are valued, loved, and supported. Use a 10-minute morning meeting time to check-in with students and let every voice be heard.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Teach coping strategies. Kids and young adults need effective strategies for managing their tough emotions. Spend time teaching, discussing, and practicing a variety of strategies that might work for them. Practice mindful coloring, listening to music, exercising, and even yoga. It’s important to practice these activities when students are calm so that they can use them when they really need them the most. Use these coping strategies visuals or grab this free coping strategies list to give you some ideas on how to start! Also, read up on some fun and unique ways to teach coping strategies to kids and young adults.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Start an emotion journal. Help students connect with their own emotions by journaling and writing about how they are feeling. This is something that can be done first thing in the morning to help students start the day off in a positive way. Give time for students to share their feelings if they are comfortable. Not only will students benefit from expressing themselves, but others will build empathy by hearing the thoughts and feelings of those around them.

Teach how to see the other side. Learners need to understand that we all have different opinions and thoughts. Use topics such as “favorite pizza” and “best sport” to drive conversations about differences of opinions. Help all students see that we all think differently and that’s perfectly okay.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Give responsibilities. Use student strengths and abilities to give every student a responsibility in the classroom. If a student does well with technology, have him or her be the computer troubleshooter. If a student loves nature, have them water the plants on a regular schedule. Responsibilities are a great way to have each student caring and thinking beyond themselves.

Teach how our words matter. Have each student draw a heart on paper and cut it out. Talk about different things we can say to each other that can be kind or hurtful. For each statement, have students make a fold in their heart. At the end of the activity, open the heart back up and discuss that the marks are still there long after the words have been said. Remind students that our words leave a lasting impact so it’s important to stop and think about what we say to each other.

Build confidence. Sometimes kids and young adults who lack empathy appear to be over-confident because they don’t seem to care how others feel in the moment. However, this can actually be superficial. These learners may actually struggle with feelings of rejection from their peers, leading to lower self-confidence. Make sure to spend time on building every child up and helping them share their strengths, passions, and dreams. When kids feel better, they usually do better, too. Use these confidence-building activities to get started.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Collaborate with school specialists. If you have a student who is struggling with showing empathy, talk with the school counselor or social worker for additional input and ideas. It might even be beneficial to have them come into your class for a quick lesson or activity.

Practice mindfulness. Kids and young adults can greatly benefit from learning to be in touch with their own emotions first and foremost. Spend 5 or 10 minutes practicing mindfulness after lunch, before a big test, or just to start the morning out in a more positive way. Read up on ways you can practice mindfulness and some free resources to help you practice mindfulness with students.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Encourage random acts of kindness. Kindness is about being thoughtful without expecting anything in return. Teaching and encouraging kind acts can help learners start to think about the feelings of others. You can start a random acts of kindness jar or bulletin board in the classroom. When a student witnesses a kind act, have them write it on a slip and post it. At the end of the month, you can choose to pick one randomly to win a special reward.

Engage in community service. Empathy and compassion go hand-in-hand. Encourage learners to think about the community and world by doing community service acts. Spend time cleaning up the courtyard, visit another class to read books to younger students, or even come up with a plan to donate supplies to a local animal rescue organization.

Start a kindness share. Give each student a piece of paper (have them cut it into a heart if you want!). Have students write their names on the paper and pass it to their right. When they get a piece of paper, they should write something kind about that person right on the paper. Continue the share until all students have written something kind about someone else. At the end, every child will have given back AND gotten kind words in return.

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Teach students to respectfully disagree. Part of building empathy means recognizing that others can think differently from you. Help students learn the skills to accept and respect the opinions of others when they disagree. Encourage students to use phrases like, “I see your point,” and “I have a different point of view, but I see where you are coming from.”

Teach social-emotional learning explicitly. Give social and emotional learning the time it needs by dedicating time each day or week to these skills. One of my favorite strategies for this is using a daily ssocial-emotional learning journal to teach and discuss the skills every day of the year. I have also developed a complete social emotional learning curriculum for elementary learners to help students learn the skills they need in an explicit way. I also have a complete social-emotional learning curriculum for older kids.

Do you have other strategies for building empathy? I’d love to hear them! Share your thoughts in the comments!

Use these strategies and ideas to teach and build empathy with kids and young adults! Learners who have a lack of empathy can struggle with other social skills. Help elementary, middle, and high school kids build these skills by using literature, teaching lessons, practicing with games, and more. Also includes a free printable lesson for kids and teens. Helpful for kids with ADHD, autism, and other needs. #socialskills #empathy #pathway2success

Filed Under: Behavior Management, Classroom Management, Social Emotional Learning, Special Education, Teaching, Tips for Teachers Tagged With: empathy, perspective-taking, sel, social emotional learning, social skills

12 Basic Social Skills Kids Need

May 1, 2019 by pathway2success 5 Comments

Basic social skills kids and teens need, along with several activities for how to teach them! Use these free ideas to help students improve skills for listening, taking turns, working with others, understanding personal space, being a good sport, and more. Also includes a link to additional social skills lessons for elementary, middle, and high school age learners. #socialskills #pathway2success

Social skills are a critical element to helping kids succeed socially, emotionally, personally, and even academically. These are the skills are the behaviors that help kids join in conversations, collaborate with peers, develop lasting friendships, self-advocate when they need help, and so much more. It would be ideal if all learners walked into classrooms equipped with strong social skills ready for success. The truth is, though, that kids are kids; they are still developing, learning, growing, and trying to make sense of the social world around them. As adults, the biggest impact we can have to help kids learn social skills is to teach them.

Quite often, I get asked, “But doesn’t everyone need social skills? Why do you target kids specifically?” To me, the answer is obvious. If we teach kids and young adults these social skills from an early age, they will have the foundations they need as adults. So, when kids need social skills, let’s teach them!

To help highlight how important these social skill are, I created a complete set of Social Skills Visuals. You can use them as a bulletin board, post them as reminders all around, or use the pages to highlight a few skills each week. And if you’re looking for even more ways to teach social skills, feel free to check out my social skills activities for elementary and social skills lessons for older kids.

Here are 12 basic social skills and strategies for teaching them:

Basic social skills kids and teens need, along with several activities for how to teach them! Use these free ideas to help students improve skills for listening, taking turns, working with others, understanding personal space, being a good sport, and more. Also includes a link to additional social skills lessons for elementary, middle, and high school age learners. #socialskills #pathway2success

Following Directions. This is having the ability to listen, understand expectations, and follow through in a timely manner. Learners need to learn how to follow directions to help them complete tasks, whether it is an assignment in class or instructions from a future boss.

Strategies to teach following directions:

  • Play games for following directions, like Simon Says and Freeze.
  • Practice giving both verbal and visual directions.
  • Teach and practice how to read directions BEFORE starting an assignment.
  • Have learners highlight or underline directions on assignments before starting.
  • Have learners make a checklist for following directions for any task (like making a peanut butter and jelly sandwich) to help them see why directions should be clear and followed well.

Using Manners. Our manners are the courteous behaviors to we to show we are kind and respectful. All kids need to understand manners so they can be socially appropriate in a variety of settings, such as a restaurant, at the library, or even answering the phone.

Strategies to teach using manners:

  • Post visuals of “manner words,” such as please, thank you, and you’re welcome as reminders.
  • Make it a habit to model and say these words with students and colleagues.
  • Explicitly teach about manners and discuss what manners we use in different settings.

Having a Positive Attitude. A positive attitude is the first step to having a growth mindset. By having a positive attitude, kids can learn to be more optimistic and see the bright side of things.

Strategies to teach having a positive attitude:

  • Model having a positive attitude, even when things don’t go as planned (ex: “I was really looking forward to outdoor recess today, but now I am excited to play some chess instead!”).
  • Practice and discuss positive self-talk.
  • Read picture books about a positive attitude: Ish by Peter H. Reynolds and Because Amelia Smiled by David Ezra Stein.

Working with Others. All learners need skills to positively work with others by listening, collaborating, helping, and doing their fair share.

Strategies to teach working with others:

  • Explicitly teach skills for working well with others.
  • Make a list of “group ground rules” for how to work successfully with others (listening to each other, staying with the group, staying positive, etc.).
  • Give lots of practice in partners and small groups.
  • Make sure students are frequently working with different people.
  • Sometimes give learners the chance to pick their partners, while assigning students at other times.
  • Keep a list of sentence starters kids can use in groups to collaborate such as, “I really like how you…” and “Can we try…”

Good Hygiene. Proper self-care means keeping yourself well-groomed and neat. This is an important skill because not only is it about being clean, but it helps everyone make a positive first impression.

Strategies to teach good hygiene:

  • Talk about what good hygiene means, such as washing hands and showering/bathing daily.
  • Give reminders for hygiene, depending on age level.
  • Talk to the school counselor or social worker about coming in for a lesson on hygiene.

Using Polite Words. Using kind and polite words is just another way to spread kindness to others. Sometimes, I call this “using kind words only.”

Strategies to teach using polite words:

  • Teach about kindness and why it matters.
  • Discuss polite and kind words.
  • Teach about using a social filter, including thinking about how our words impact others.

Taking Turns. Learning to turn-take involves alternating between two or more people. This is an important skill to show courtesy and respect during conversations and other activities.

Strategies to teach taking turns:

  • Explain what it means to take turns and discuss scenarios, such as in sports, conversations, games, and more.
  • Practice turn-taking with board games.
  • Practice turn-taking with conversations (whole class and small groups).
  • Have students hold a special tangible (a ball or stuffed animal) when it is their turn to talk.

Greetings. Welcoming others and making them feel valued is an important social skill. By teaching kids and young adults how to properly greet others, it can help create a positive community for all. This is also an important lifelong social skill for the workplace and beyond..

Strategies to teach greetings:

  • Model greetings each morning with each student as they walk in.
  • Teach different greeting and allow students to choose how to greet each other.
  • Start the day with a morning meeting and a greeting.

Waiting and Having Patience. Developing patience is a critical skill during times when we have to wait. Kid and young adults might have to wait in line at the pencil sharpener or wait for their turn to speak in a group, just to name a few. By having patience, they show that they are courteous and respectful to all.

Strategies to teach waiting and showing patience:

  • Teach strategies for what to do when waiting (doing something else, using positive self-talk, etc.).
  • Discuss scenarios when kids have to wait and discuss how they can handle it.
  • Read picture books about patience: Waiting by Kevin Henkes and Are We There Yet? by Dan Santat.
  • Use social scripts to help teach skills for how to wait in social situations.

Being a Good Sport. Learning to be a good sport can help kids and young adults be respectful when they engage in games and activities. It can also help them positively cope with losing by focusing on having fun instead of winning.

Strategies to teach being a good sport:

  • Teach and discuss expectations for being a good sport.
  • Focus on having fun, playing, and learning rather than winning.
  • Give reminders about being a good sport before activities.
  • Use social scripts to remind about being a good sport before activities.
  • Practice being a good sport during games (anything from board games to outdoor sports during recess).
  • Practice and discuss having a growth mindset to help when students lose.

Listening to Others. Skills for listening are critical to building positive relationships with others. Kids and young adults should learn how to focus their attention to others, put away distractions, and really think about what someone else is saying.

Strategies to teach listening to others:

  • Start the day with a morning meeting and give time to share thoughts.
  • Teach the basics for listening: making eye contact, putting distractions away, thinking about what someone is saying.
  • Give discussion time in your content area subjects.
  • Practice listening with discussion times.
  • Teach students how to summarize what they heard: “So what I heard you say is that…”.

Understanding Personal Space. Having a good understanding of personal space helps everyone feel more comfortable in social situations. It also gives way to teaching that consent is needed to be in someone else’s personal space.

Strategies to teach personal space:

  • Teach students that they have an invisible bubble around them called their personal space. Explain why having personal space is important.
  • Teach and discuss expected behaviors with personal space such as standing an arm’s length away while talking and keeping hands to self.
  • Act out what personal space looks like in different scenarios.
  • Teach students how to ask permission if they would like to give a friend a hug.
  • Read picture books about personal space: Personal Space Camp by Julia Cook.

If you have more suggestions or ideas for teaching these skills, feel free to share! I would love to add to the list. Be sure to also check out all of my social skills resources to get started teaching these important skills right away!

Basic social skills kids and teens need, along with several activities for how to teach them! Use these free ideas to help students improve skills for listening, taking turns, working with others, understanding personal space, being a good sport, and more. Also includes a link to additional social skills lessons for elementary, middle, and high school age learners. #socialskills #pathway2success

Filed Under: Autism, Behavior Management, Classroom Management, Social Emotional Learning, Teaching, Tips for Teachers Tagged With: social emotional learning, social skills

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⭐ Kristina Scully
💖 SEL & Executive Functioning
💻 Blogger at www.thepathway2success.com
👩‍🏫 Curriculum Specialist
🏫 10 Year Special Ed Teacher

Pathway 2 Success
Stop. Think. Act. Reflect. These are the steps to Stop. Think. Act. Reflect. These are the steps to becoming a self-control STAR! I love this digital workbook because it covers everything about self-control: what self-control is, how to "hit the pause button," listing choices, considering consequences, feeling proud of choices, and learning how to improve for the future.⁣
I'll add the link in my profile if you love it as much as I do!⁣
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Daily organization time! I really can't stress thi Daily organization time! I really can't stress this enough. We all need it. As a teacher, I always was in my room early before the kids got in. This gave me time to organize the room, board, get my lessons in order, and just generally plan for the day.⁣
But kids and teens need this too! Time to organize binders, write in homework logs, clear out backpacks or desks, figure out what they need for homework for the night, and so on.⁣
A really simple support that can have big results.
This is so true. Take the time and work on SEL ski This is so true. Take the time and work on SEL skills. It's important and they are always worth the time!
If you have a library of short stories, you alread If you have a library of short stories, you already have a TON of tools for teaching social emotional learning right at your finger tips.⁣
And for the record, I'm a fan of using short stories even with older kids. ⁣
You don't need a specific lesson plan or outline to do this, either. Read the book, discuss the story, and integrate questions related to the SEL skill. It's such a meaningful and natural way to talk about skills like emotions, empathy, and perspective-taking.
Calming strategies should be individualized. This Calming strategies should be individualized. This doesn't just go for kids, so I'll use myself as an example. Something that helps me feel calm when I'm stressed is cleaning and organizing. For some, I totally know this would be more stressful, right? It's about finding what works for every individual.⁣
This is why trying many different strategies with your learners is important. Lots of practice and exposure to various coping strategies can help them find what works for them.⁣
What are some coping strategies you practice with your students?
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