Roberto’s fifth-grade year was life-changing. Entering the year, he was a likable, bright, energetic boy with some attention issues and a history of being the class clown. However, early in the year, his father was laid off and his parents began to have conflict. As
A Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Coach is a relatively newer type of support position in K-12 schools. An SEL coach helps to organize the people, resources, and tasks that must take place during SEL implementation. Schools need SEL coaches or lead implementers to help with
As May comes to a close, we’d like to acknowledge that it is Mental Health Awareness Month. We know that it’s not only students who need urgent mental health support—with teacher burnout and mental health crises on the rise, it is critical that students and
As educators, we often wear many hats to support our students. Coach. Mentor. Counselor. Cheerleader. Guide. The relationships we build and nurture have the power to transform a kid's life. Teachers make a difference. So, we balance many roles to provide holistic care for each
Schools have made tremendous progress changing the narrative of school discipline through the use of our alternative discipline framework, but were thrown a serious curveball with the COVID-19 pandemic shifting priority structures in schools. As students returned to in-person instruction, their behavioral needs have intensified;
The social and emotional lives of our students is of paramount concern, especially as we enter the third year of pandemic teaching. We have witnessed firsthand how much we depended on our ability to learn about our students and communicate with them, and the difficulties
January is a time for resolutions; a time to set goals, renew commitments, or vow to improve. Typically, these resolutions last about a month. . . and for some of us (myself included) a month is being generous! So, I am going to try something
It may not come as a surprise that when I interviewed over twenty industry experts, almost all said that social-emotional learning (SEL) skills are important. CASEL’s 5 social emotional learning competencies are self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making. For students to be effective communicators, we have to thread these social
The hussle and bussle of the holidays can create stress and overwhelm as people prepare for the giving season. When you consider that many educators feel stressed and overwhelmed already, you may ask, “How can we prepare to give to others, without totally diminishing the bit of emotional
Undoubtedly, all teachers enter the classroom desiring to serve their students best. The question is: what do teachers do intentionally and “on purpose” to ensure each student has “joy moments” as a regular and routine component of their daily instructional learning experience? Joy moments are