Social Emotional Learning, Wellness & Mental Health Considerations for the Fall

Amy Wheeler-Sutton

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This session will be recorded and posted on our website.

All materials can be found here: https://www.pbisvermont.org/training-resources/webinars/

Agenda

1. Opening
2. Equity and SEL
3. Building a culture of wellness for adults
4. Teaming
5. Relationship building
6. Key SEL skills for adults and youth
7. Integrating SEL into academic content
8. Future opportunities

Opening

Introductions

Connection Activity

Overarching Structures

Equity and SEL

Barriers to Equitable Access to SEL

• Poverty
• Exclusionary discipline practices & policies
• Lack of trauma-informed practices
• Implicit bias in staff
• Educators’ stress & burnout

(Simmons, et al., 2018)

Promoting Equity Through SEL

“Most forms of SEL are necessary, but not sufficient to advance an equitable multicultural, multilingual society & global community.”

Examine biases

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Address inequities: education, health, income, environment

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Understand the root causes of inequities (structural & internalized oppression)

Interrupt inequitable practices

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(Jagers, 2018)

Leveraging SEL to Promote Equity

• Classroom community building
• Using curricula that encourage student reflection on their own lives and society
• Cultural integration
• Promoting racial/ethnic identity development
• Integrating equity content into academic subject areas
• Project-based, experiential, and/or participatory approaches

(Jagers, 2018)

Building a Culture of Wellness for Adults

Questions to Consider

• What social/emotional/wellness/resilience supports

do staff need (ALL staff)?

• What role can your PBIS team play in assessing/providing supports? (The Educator Context and Stress Spectrum + Self-assessment)
• How do staff know what supports are available?
• How can you build:
• Relationships, connections, + relational trust between staff (when they may not see each other during the day)
• Collaborative opportunities
• Opportunities for reflection?

Strategies to Consider

• Staff circle example: weather system
• Schedule in breaks for teachers; create protocols for when teachers need unexpected breaks - normalize needing assistance
• Survey staff about biggest concerns - address those first with team
• Informal Chats
• Staff recognition (and self-acknowledgement)
• Ideas for connecting with staff virtually
• Resilience, Keys to Well-being, Self-care strategies, Shared self-care ideas
• Virtual staff morale boosters
• InvestEAP

Teaming

Questions to Consider

• What team(s) has been holding this work?
• Has your PBIS Team been involved in planning for SEL during re-e
• Have all voices been represented during planning?
• Does the team have what they need in order to do this work?
• Are you sending/receiving messages about SEL as a priority?
• Recovery Plan focus area
• What data are you collecting about staff and student needs?
• When/by whom will it be reviewed?
• Do you have an up-to-date action plan with clear SEL goals?

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Strategies to Consider

• One team charged with planning for SEL (preferably the PBIS team) - helps with alignment
• Identify SEL (for students and adults) as a priority and back that up with time, resources, explicit messaging (advocate up)
• Develop/revise action plan and use it to guide your work
• Collect and use data
• Clear communication and feedback loops
• Train and support staff in implementing SEL

Strong Staff Support Students and Families

Team Supports Each Other

Strong Team Supports Staff

Colchester School District - August 11, 2021

CSD Administrators identify the “why” of engaging in social-emotional learning work this year.

Relationship Building

Questions to Consider

• How can you develop strong classroom communities?
• How can you teach, prompt for, and acknowledge expected behaviors?
• How will you know which students/families have strong relationships with staff?
• How will you know which staff have strong relationships with each other?
• How can you ensure staff, students, and families feel safe, both physically and emotionally?
• How do the ways we respond to concerning behaviors contribute to development or damaging of relationships?

Strategies to Consider

• Positive greetings at the door - use their name!
• Daily check-ins for all students (potential survey, 5 Minute Chats)
• Morning Meeting/advisory/community-building circles to develop classroom communities: increase belonging, connection, trust, engagement, relationships, etc.
• Relationship mapping

Building a Classroom Community

Key SEL Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes for

Adults and Youth

Questions to Consider

• What key knowledge, skills, and attitudes will students and adults need within each competency, at which ages:
• to transition back into the school setting?
• to manage realities related to the pandemic?
• to manage ongoing uncertainty and change?
• How will you teach and support student learning of these skills?
• How will you support staff in strengthening these competencies?
• Do you have SEL standards in your district?
• MVSD presentation

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Strategies to Consider

• Identify the key skills you want to prioritize
• Use your PBIS Framework to promote SEL teaching and learning
• Expand PBIS matrix based on data
• Find the moments during the day to integrate SEL teaching
• Support all staff in gaining awareness of their own SEL strengths and needs

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Integrating SEL Into

Academic Content

Questions to Consider

• Where are the places SEL fits naturally?
• How can we support teachers in understanding this isn’t another “thing” and boost their confidence that they already know how to do this?
• What supports do teachers need in order to be able to integrate SEL?
• Common planning and reflection time
• Observe other classrooms
• Coaching
• How can we model integrating SEL for our staff?

What Does Integration Mean?

• Streamlining academic + behavior practices to support students in a “whole child” approach
• Strategically weaving together academic + behavioral instruction and content into one seamless experience for students
• Non-example: teaching classroom behavioral expectations as an independent learning unit outside of academic instruction

Given the educational complexity at the classroom level, integration is a must -- more efficient + effective

Classroom Integrated Academics and Behavior Brief

“We are often asked to make choices between strengthening social-emotional learning (SEL) skills and growing academic skills in our students. But this is a false dichotomy.

The skills that students need to learn are the very skills that SEL provides—things like reflection, perseverance, and focus. The question isn’t whether we can or should teach these skills, but how to do it, especially when we’re already swamped trying to meet our academic goals.”

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/three_keys_to_infusing_sel_into_what_you_already_teach

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Strategies to Consider

• Break it down into competencies
• Examine lesson plans/routines to see where you can address self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making
• Prompt skills in the moment
• Highlight connections between content + SEL competencies
• Make a conscious effort to model + narrate using social skills
• Classroom Integrated Academics and Behavior Brief

In the chat box...

Think of a favorite book you use in your classroom/school.

What SEL competencies might you address when using that book?

What might this look like?

Co-Construct SEL Learning Targets

Examples:

• Self-Awareness: We can identify what we understand and learned (from today’s lesson) and what we still need more support with.
• Self-Management: We can be mindful of our air time so everyone has a chance to share in our group.
• Social Awareness: We can practice active listening through building on one another’s ideas by referring to them.
• Relationship Skills: We can be welcoming and respectful to everyone as we participate in the protocol (e.g., chalk talk).
• Responsible Decision Making: We can consider the well-being of self and others when making decisions.

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/three_keys_to_infusing_sel_into_what_you_already_teach

Reminder:

Students who are explicitly taught social/emotional skills AND experience engaging, differentiated, high-quality instruction are less likely to exhibit challenging behaviors -- this work will save teachers time in the long run and foster student growth

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Want the research? Read on… https://casel.org/impact/

Want more ideas? SEL Every Day: Integrating Social and Emotional Learning with Instruction in Secondary Classrooms

Future Opportunities

• Coordinators “Welcome Back” Webinar (Sept. 9th)

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• PBIS in 60 Min Webinar (Sept. 14th)

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• Annual Forum (Oct. 7th)

References

CASEL. (n.d.). Retrieved August 10, 2021 from https://casel.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/CASEL-SEL-Framework-11.2020.pdf.

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Jagers, R., Randall-Garner, P., & Van Ausdal, K. (2018, February 5). Leveraging SEL to promote equity:What educators need to know and do. [Webinar]. In CASEL Webinar Series. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o2bB-08hikM

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Simmons, D. N., Brackett, M. A., & Adler, N. (2018, June 1). Applying an Equity Lens to Social, Emotional, and Academic Development (Issue brief). Retrieved https://www.rwjf.org/en/library/research/2018/06/applying-an-equity-lens-to-social-emotional-and-academic-development.html

Type into the chat box one commitment you’ll make to prioritizing SEL this school year and any remaining questions you have.

Thank you!!