Social Emotional Learning
What is SEL?
Social Emotional Skills Can Be Taught!
Definition
Social Emotional Learning
Social Emotional Learning (SEL) is the process by which children and adults obtain and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to:
- Understand and manage emotions
- Make responsible decisions
- Set and achieve positive goals
- Feel and show empathy for others
- Establish and maintain positive relationships
According to research, SEL offers the following benefits:
- Academic success
- Fewer behavioral problems
- Less emotional distress
- Positive social behavior
Five main areas
Social Emotional Skills Can Be Taught!
Social-emotional learning covers five main areas: 1) self-awareness, 2) self-management, 3) social awareness, 4) responsible decision-making, and 5) relationship skills.
The goal is for children to manage their own emotions in positive ways, communicate effectively, empathize with others, overcome challenges, and resolve conflict.
Social-emotional competencies
The five CASEL competencies
Each competency is a set of skills children can practice and grow — at home, at school, and everywhere in between.
1Self-Awareness
The ability to accurately recognize one's own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior. This includes the capacity to recognize one's strengths and limitations with a well-grounded sense of confidence and purpose.
- Identifying Emotions
- Accurate Self-Perception
- Recognizing Strengths
- Self-Confidence
- Self-Efficacy
2Self-Management
The ability to successfully regulate one's emotions, thoughts, and behaviors: effectively managing stress, controlling impulses, and motivating oneself.
- Impulse Control
- Stress Management
- Self-Discipline
- Self-Motivation
- Goal Setting
- Organizational Skills
3Social Awareness
The ability to take the perspective of and empathize with others, including those from diverse backgrounds and cultures, and to understand social and ethical norms for behavior.
- Perspective-Taking
- Empathy
- Appreciating Diversity
- Respect For Others
4Responsible Decision-Making
The ability to make constructive choices about personal behavior and social interactions based on ethical standards, safety concerns, and social norms.
- Identifying Problems
- Analyzing Situations
- Solving Problems
- Evaluating
- Reflecting
- Ethical Responsibility
5Relationship Skills
The ability to establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals and groups: communicating clearly, listening well, cooperating, and resolving conflict.
- Communication
- Social Engagement
- Relationship Building
- Teamwork
Sequenced learning
One competency at a time
Cultivate SEL themes address the five key competencies individually and sequentially, and use active-learning strategies to engage children and parents in developing understanding of them.
Our approach
The SAFE approach
Cultivate SEL follows the effective SEL approach which incorporates four elements represented by the acronym SAFE.
- SSequenced
- Connected and coordinated activities to foster skills development.
- AActive
- Active forms of learning to help children master new skills and attitudes.
- FFocused
- A component that emphasizes developing personal and social skills.
- EExplicit
- Targeting specific social and emotional skills.
SEL + Character Development = Success
Building character
Children's character is molded by their decisions and affects every aspect of their present and future life. There are character traits that children should learn to be successful in life. These character traits will assist them in making good choices, personal growth, building solid relationships, and becoming lifelong learners.
Parents can discover that teaching character traits will help them learn more about their child's strengths and weaknesses. Developing character is a skill every child needs in order to thrive, find fulfillment and be a positive influence in society.
List of character traits for children
- Compassion
- Fairness
- Appreciation
- Courage
- Generosity
- Honesty
- Loyalty
- Kindness
- Humbleness
- Perseverance
- Optimism
- Respect
- Sincerity
- Responsibility
- Tolerance
- Positive Outlook
Social-Emotional Learning
What is SEL and why SEL matters
Ready to cultivate SEL at home?
Learn how individualized SEL coaching brings these competencies to life for your family.