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PTA Healthy Minds: Building Social and Emotional Skills at Home

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Who we are!

Aveni Ghosh, School Counselor

Mom to 17 month old Achilles :)

Paige Clarke, Mental Health Specialist

Mom to 2 year old Ellis <3

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Let’s get to know each other!

Please share this information:

Name
Children’s grade levels
One moment with your children over the last year that made you laugh out loud

OR

One moment with your children over the last year in which you felt extremely proud

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Quick Movement Activity: 4 Corners!

Where would you most like to take a vacation? (SANS KIDS)

NYC
Mountains
Caribbean all-inclusive
African safari

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Quick Movement Activity: 4 Corners!

2. What wouldn’t you mind for dinner every night?

Pizza
Burgers
Mexican food
Thai food

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Quick Movement Activity: 4 Corners!

3. Biggest pet peeve?

Being late
Being interrupted
Not using turn signals
Internet being wonky

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Quick Movement Activity: 4 Corners!

4. Which SEL skill do you feel is most important for your children right now?

Self-management
Social-awareness
Responsible decision-making
Relationship skills

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What You Will Need

Please be sure you have:

Your voice!
An open mind!

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Session Objectives

Discover what social and emotional learning is and why it’s important
Learn about key social and emotional skills and how to foster their development in family life
Reflect on our own family lives, how this lens already fits in, and ways in which we can use it to enhance our support of all family members
Discuss with and learn from one another creating a safe, supportive learning community

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What is Social Emotional Learning?

Social and emotional learning involves critical life skills like knowing and understanding your own emotions, strengths, and limitations, understanding and communicating with others, learning from diverse perspectives, working through problems and making responsible decisions.

Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL), 2022

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Presenter:

Read the definition on the right side to the group first. Point out that social and emotional learning is also what schools sometimes call “SEL”.
Then, discuss the wheel on the left:
With SEL in the center, the orange, yellow and green pie pieces are the five core social and emotional competencies.
Orange are the ones that involve the individual, the green involve others (or social aspects) and the yellow is a combination of both individual and social skills.
Note that we’ll go through each one of these skills but all are necessary. They can be learned and we work on them for a lifetime.
The outer blue circles labeled at the top are the critical environments and social influences that are significant in a child’s growth and development. If each becomes intentional about positive growing children’s social and emotional development in each environment, the positive impacts are powerful on raising healthy, confident and resilient kids.
The outer blue circles labeled at the bottom are the structures that need to be influenced and intentionally supportive of children’s social and emotional development.

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What SEL IS and what it is NOT

SEL IS......

It boosts academic performance and deepens engagement with content

It builds relationships and skills that builds healthy wellbeing

It helps students understand different perspectives and share ideas

It is shaped by local priorities of families, schools and communities

SEL is NOT...

A distraction from academics

Therapy

A way to teach students a particular political agenda or set of values

A one-size-fits-all approach

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Presenter:

Over the last few years, there have been some misconceptions about what SEL is and what it is not. We wanted to address this in our presentation so you are clear on what it is and is not!

For example, some may argue that SEL is a distraction from academics during the school day. However, research shows that SEL actually boosts academic performance.

While SEL helps student build healthy relationships, it is not therapy.

Finally, some have expressed concerns that SEL is a way to teach students specific values or political agenda. In fact, SEL helps students express their own views and beliefs while allowing helping them to understand different perspectives and ideas.

Finally, SEL is not a rigid or a one-size-fits all approach. How it is integrated into a child's life varies based on the priorities of their families, schools and community.

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Time to discuss the SEL Competencies!

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Self Awareness

Our understanding of our inner thoughts, feelings, and values and how they impact our choices. It involves a sense of our strengths and limitations and our growing identity.

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Self Management

Our ability to manage our emotions and impulses and set and persist toward goals that are aligned with meeting our needs, values and desires.

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Social Awareness

The degree to which we are able to empathize with the thoughts and feelings of others, particularly those who are from different races, cultures, backgrounds and contexts as well as our ability to take social cues to inform our communication and choices.

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Relationship Skills

Our ability to create and sustain healthy relationships with others by communicating effectively (verbally, in writing and nonverbally), listening, demonstrating cultural competence, collaborating and resolving conflicts constructively.

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Responsible Decision Making

Our ability to make a reflective choice that advances us toward a goal while considering the impact on individuals, groups, organizations or the environment (trying to do no harm) in the short and long term while accepting any consequences of that decision.

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What are some challenges to building this specific SEL competency at home?

What are some things you do regularly at home that aid in building/practicing the SEL competency?

What are some resources/tools/toys/materials you turn to at home to aid in building/practicing the SEL competency?

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How are Social and Emotional Skills Developed?

IN RELATIONSHIP

OVER TIME

AT HOME AND EVERYWHERE

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Let’s try it!

Real Life Scenario:

Your first grader is cranky and snappish the whole drive home from school. You feel she’s picking a fight with you as you bring up homework. When you arrive home, she throws down her backpack and runs to her room crying. Is she hungry? Exhausted? Did she get bullied at school? Was her teacher strict with her? You have a million questions and no answers. She has firmly shut the door and doesn’t want to talk.

As a parent, how do you feel?
What social and emotional skills are being tested in you?
What social and emotional skills do you have the opportunity to promote in your child?
What are ways in which you can respond to transform this moment into a skill-building opportunity?

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“An atmosphere that provides support for one’s social and emotional learning is equal to the difference in the outcome of throwing seeds on cement versus enriched soil. And what a difference that is!”

James Comer, Yale Child Study Center

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