Being outside in the great outdoors is highly motivating for children and teens. There is so much to explore, learn, and be curious about. It's one of the reasons why using nature to build social-emotional skills just makes sense. Spending more time outside is good for our physical and emotional

33 Evidence-based (and FUN!) SOCIAL SKILLS ACTIVITIES for KIDS + 🎁 FREE PRINTABLE activity. Explore: starting conversations, respecting personal space, expressing emotions

15 empathy books and videos for the classroom to teach kids about empathy, compassion, inclusion, and community. Use these social awareness books and videos during social-emotional learning lessons.

Grab my engaging and free social skills sorting worksheets to help preschoolers and kindergarteners learn about good choices and bad choices.

Activities to teach kids about respect: 30 Respect activities, games, and ideas to teach kids about respect at home and in the classroom.

Learn about the importance of SEL and 11 essential ways that teachers can incorporate social-emotional learning activities into the classroom today.

Teaching self control to kids can often times become a tricky topic. When a child hears, “Use self control”, do they even know what that means? So often we expect kids to know exactly what we mean or how to behave, but we fall short in our teaching and explanation. We cannot expect a child ... Read More about Self Control: What it Really Means to Kids

Teach kids to be kind more often with this trash or kindness game so they decide if social actions are unkind or kind.

Help your students become more empathetic and compassionate with these social emotional learning lessons and activity ideas that are perfect for back to school or for building classroom community any time of the year. Pull out a copy of Each Kindness by Jaqueline Woodson and your students will be re

Build classroom community with your grade 4 5 6 7 students using this social emotional anti bullying activity that will empower students to identify what hurts their feelings and have students see that words hurt the most. This activity will create a kinder, thoughtful classroom environment.

17 Tips to Promote Positive self-talk in kids: Motivate, replace negative inner talk and focus attention on all positives within them.

Art is such a powerful tool to help shape the minds of kids and young adults. Simply put, there are many benefits to using art as a way to teach new skills. Art is often non-threatening to kids and young adults. It is seen as a fun and hands-on activity, rather than hard work. Because it is not perc

16 social-emotional learning games for kids that are great for the classroom or to use at home to build character and social skills!

Looking for a fun, easy way to foster social-emotional skills in your kids? Do you want to foster emotional skills like empathy, compassion and kindness? Do you want your child to see tangible examples of compassion, friendship and how to be themselves? Do you need help figuring out ways to discuss emotional topics with your […]

Sometimes emotions can be really overwhelming for kids to understand. Using feelings printables and free emotions downloads can help!

This bundle includes 7 escape room activities with interactive challenges related to coping strategies, executive functioning skills, growth mindset, managing emotions, and conflict resolution. Students work together in small groups to solve a variety of puzzles and challenges in order to discover the secret phrase to unlock the door and win the challenge in a specified amount of time. The first version is for small group scavenger hunts around the room while the second version allows you to have students work entirely at their desks in teams! What is an Escape Room? An escape room activity is a challenge that allows kids to work together solving a variety of puzzles in order to "break out" of a room. After each puzzle is solved, they will get a keyword to win or "escape" the room and a new puzzle. Escape rooms are great to have kids and young adults working collaboratively using their critical thinking skills. Keep reading for directions on three ways to use! In this bundle, you will get: { Coping Strategies Escape Room } Coping strategies are incorporated into every puzzle and challenge! Students will discuss deep breathing, coloring, yoga, listening to music, positive self-talk, and more. This version also includes resources to use this as a whole-class lesson. { Executive Functioning Escape Room 1 } The executive functioning skills targeted within this resource include planning, organization, time management, task initiation, and working memory. Each of the challenges actually discusses and forces students to utilize these in order to solve each puzzle! { Executive Functioning Escape Room 2 } The executive functioning skills targeted within this resource include self-control, attention, metacognition, flexibility, and perseverance. Each of the challenges actually discusses and forces students to utilize these in order to solve each puzzle! { Conflict Resolution Escape Room } Conflict resolution skills are incorporated into every puzzle and challenge! Students will discuss learn how to become calm using coping strategies, develop ground rules, determine the problem, express their feelings, understand perspectives, and comprise. { Growth Mindset Escape Room } Growth mindset skills are incorporated into every puzzle and challenge. Students will work on understanding the key elements to a growth mindset, what words to say that reflect a growth mindset vs. fixed mindset, how to learn from mistakes, understanding the power of yet, and developing goals for the future that are action-oriented. { Managing Emotions Escape Room } Skills for managing emotions are incorporated into every puzzle and challenge! Students will discuss and learn to identify emotions, make a positive choice, express emotions using I statements, develop proactive strategies for emotions, use self control, and develop coping strategies for stress. { Positive Thinking Escape Room } Skills for positive thinking are incorporated into every puzzle and challenge! Students will discuss and learn use positive self-talk, use positive thinking to take action and solve problems, read positive affirmations, reduce negative thinking, and more. Three Ways to Use! All escape rooms start out with a major challenge or problem (such as aliens taking over!) Students are instructed that they only way they can get out is to follow a series of challenges to uncover a special phrase to unlock and open the door. Option #1: Small Group Scavenger Hunt Use the small group version to set up your classroom or work area as a scavenger hunt. Students will work together in a small group to answer challenges and find the clues located around the room. Your Prep: • Print the challenges/puzzles. • Use the visual guide to cut out puzzles and place in envelopes. • Keep the introduction and student worksheet to give out to students right away. • Hide all other envelopes in designated area around the room (some locations include under a chair or by the door). If you do not have access to a certain object (such as a window), you can use a printed image of that object and hide the envelope there. Option #2: Groups at Seats Use the whole class version to have students work at their desks/seats. Students will work in teams to answer challenges. When a group completes a challenge, they will raise their hands to show you the “answer” in order to get the next challenge and keyword. When all challenges are complete, you will give a group the final special code. Your Prep: • Print the challenges/puzzles. • Arrange/choose your groups of students. • Copy enough challenges/puzzles for every group. For example, if you have three groups, you will need three separate copies of each challenge and puzzle. • Use the visual guide to cut out puzzles and place in envelopes. You can label the envelopes by challenge number. • Keep the introduction and student worksheet to give out to all groups right away. • Print the student checklist with answers for yourself. You will use this to monitor student answers and hand out challenges as students complete them. Option #3: Groups at Centers Use the whole class version to have students work at centers set up around the room with challenges. You will need to give students 5-10 minutes for each challenge and have students move to the next center when time is up. When students complete a challenge at a center, they should raise their hand to show you the answer and you will give them the special code. When all challenges are complete, you will give a group the final special code. Your Prep: • Print the challenges/puzzles. • Arrange/choose your groups of students. • Arrange each challenge at a different station around the room. It is important to remove the half-sheets that give the answers! These will be given to a group only when they show you they have solved a puzzle. • Keep the introduction and student worksheet to give out to students right away. • Choose how much time you will give each at each center. This might depend on your class or session time. • Be prepared to disassemble puzzles before moving on to the next center. Note: A separate version is included for you to write in your own key phrase. This is important if you are running multiple groups throughout the day and don't want any students to "spoil" the keyword for the challenge. Follow Me! { Click here to follow my store! } Tips for Customers: If you have questions, please contact me through Q & A and I'll get back to you as soon as I can! Please consider leaving feedback on this resource to receive TpT credits! I always strive for 5 stars and love hearing your feedback. Follow my store for notifications about new resources and freebies. Terms of Use: © Pathway 2 Success. One license is for the classroom/personal use for one educator and their students. Materials may not be shared with other educators without the purchase of extra licenses. Materials may not be posted on the Internet where they can be publicly accessed. Personal and classroom use only. Please see full terms of use for more information. Disclaimer: These resources are for supplementary support/education purposes and are not a replacement for education or other necessary supports. Educators, parents, and others who utilize these materials are encouraged to seek out additional support, as needed.

Playing emotion games and completing fun social-emotional learning activities will help kids learn about how they are feeling, all while they are having fun. Use these simple and engaging Color by Emo

Kids and young adults need social-emotional skills to be successful at school, home, and for the rest of their lives. These are the skills that help kids build confidence, understand their own strengths and weaknesses, collaborate with others, navigate social situations, develop strong relationships

Practical impulse control strategies to assist both you and your child to cope better with this executive skill weakness or improve it.

Teach children about respect, honesty, and gratitude at school and in the classroom with these social-emotional learning lessons and hands-on activities for kids.

Social and emotional learning, often known as SEL, is the process that helps kids learn critical skills, attitudes, and mindsets for social and emotional success. These skills cover five major areas: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationships, and responsible decision-making. I

mind+heart Social-Emotional Learning Curriculum for K-5 is a program for teachers and school counselors that supports student development and teaches social skills and SEL.

Add these respect books and videos to your classroom collection. These are great to teach your students essential character education skills.

33 Evidence-based (and FUN!) SOCIAL SKILLS ACTIVITIES for KIDS + 🎁 FREE PRINTABLE activity. Explore: starting conversations, respecting personal space, expressing emotions

Explore social-emotional activities for preschoolers and toddlers that support cooperation, interaction, and relationship building.

Anger games are great resource to develop coping skills at home, school or in a counseling environment. A review of anger management games available in the market.

15 empathy books and videos for the classroom to teach kids about empathy, compassion, inclusion, and community. Use these social awareness books and videos during social-emotional learning lessons.

Help students reflect on their choices and their consequences through one of these 5 engaging activities for elementary students.

Use this list of free resources to use as social emotional learning activities to help you work with kids and young adults. As a special educator for 10 years, I can say without a doubt that we need more social emotional learning supports for kids and young adults. Some of my best days in the classr

Discover fun and engaging activities to help kids build self-awareness, manage emotions, and boost confidence in today's digital world.

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

Teach kids about showing respect, honesty, gratitude, and acceptance with these respect books and videos during social-emotional learning lessons and character education activities with kids.

Art is such a powerful tool to help shape the minds of kids and young adults. Simply put, there are many benefits to using art as a way to teach new skills. Art is often non-threatening to kids and young adults. It is seen as a fun and hands-on activity, rather than hard work. Because it is not perc

Teach kids empathy and compassion through mindful, fun lessons, discussions, and activities that build social awareness and community.

As a school based counselor, I have to admit that I’ve always been a little jealous of classroom teachers. While I have absolutely LOVED my role, I’ve always wished that things were a little more… clear . My husband taught math for 10 years, and like many other classroom teachers, he had a

Today I wanted to share some of my favorite books to support your lessons on respect. Having strong read-alouds makes it so much easier to introduce and reinforce social-emotional skills. […]

Social Emotional Learning (SEL) has been found to promote academic success and increase students' commitment to school. Generally, there are five key components that make up social emotional learning. These competencies include self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and decision making. Today, I'd like to focus on ways to help students develop self-awareness. Self-awareness includes one's ability to recognize emotions, have an accurate self-perception, identify strengths, develop confidence, and show self-efficacy. Researchers have found that a student's ability to control his or her feelings, thoughts, and behaviors can be linked to academic success. So, let's take a look at some easy ways to help students develop an awareness of their individual characteristics and personal emotions. All About Me - A - Z This activity helps students to define and identify a variety of aspects about themselves. They'll create a list about themselves with a characteristic, quality, or emotion for each letter of the alphabet. Materials: Piece of paper, pen or pencil Directions: - On a piece of paper, have students create two columns. (Or grab a ready-made poster here.) - Have them write all the letters of the alphabet in each column. - Then, challenge them to write something about themselves for each letter. For instance, they might write "gregarious" for G or "curious" for C. Ideas: - Share your own A to Z list with students first. - Create a class list of emotions and descriptive words to get students started. - Assemble students' finished lists in a class book. Moment of Mindfulness Mindfulness is a great way to build self-awareness. Since mindfulness is all about paying attention to the present moment, it's a great way for students to pause and reflect on how they are feeling, what they are thinking, and what they need in the present. It's simple to do too! Ways to take a moment of mindfulness: - At the beginning of class, have students close their eyes and take several deep breaths. Ask students to pay attention to their breathing. - Share a mindfulness quote with students to help focus students' thoughts during a moment of mindfulness. - Pause during instruction and have students do a self-awareness check. Encourage them to be mindful of their thoughts and feelings. Reflective Journaling Reflective journaling is a powerful way to help students become self-aware. With targeted writing prompts, students can develop insight into their feelings, make sense of their experiences, and build clarity on their thoughts. When students write about their own experiences and feelings, they become more self-aware. Materials: - A notebook and/or computer, pen or pencil, writing prompts - A list of writing prompts that spark self-reflection, these might include: --- Write about a time when you were proud of yourself. --- List ten things that make you feel excited. --- Reflect on how you have changed this year. --- What is something that you find challenging? (Check out a set of 10 engaging prompts here.) Ideas: - Have students respond to their prompts as if they are writing a letter to themselves..."Dear me..." - Read students' responses and respond to their writing in the margins. Add questions and positive notes at the end of their writing to build connections and spark further reflections. - Schedule a time each day or week for journaling to make it an intentional part of your classroom community. Growth Mindset There are many ways to help students develop a growth mindset. When students develop an understanding that all forms of intelligence are malleable, they are inspired to work toward success. That's why it is so powerful to infuse lessons about growth mindset into instruction. Giving students a moment to reflect on their own mindsets builds self-awareness. Materials: - Short lessons or articles about Growth Mindset to help students understand the differences between a fixed and growth mindset. - Series of questions about students' own mindsets. Directions: - After teaching students about Growth Mindset, have students respond to questions about their own mindsets. - Give students a chance to share their responses with a partner, small group, or the entire class. Ideas: - Share and display inspirational quotes about growth mindset. (I particularly love paper desk tents. They are an easy way to display quotes right on students' desks.) - Highlight important people who demonstrate a growth mindset. Emotions Skits Researchers have noted that there are at least six universal emotions. These include happiness, sadness, anger, surprise, fear, and disgust. Help students investigate and demonstrate these universal emotions by challenging them to write a short play or skit that involves a character or many characters experiencing one of the universal emotions. Materials: - List of the universal emotions, paper, pen - Skit planning pages (optional) Ideas: - Review the six universal emotions with students. As a class have students brainstorm what each emotion looks like (how people look when they are experiencing that emotion) and sounds like (what people might say when experiencing that emotion). - Brainstorm situations where people might feel each emotion. Encourage students to share personal situations when they felt a certain way. - Divide students into small groups. Secretly assign each group an emotion. - Challenge students to write a script that their small group could act out for the class that demonstrates that emotion. - Have small groups perform for the class. Have the audience identify the emotion prevalent in the skit. Self Check-In Daily feelings check-ins are a great way to build self-awareness. When students are given the opportunity to assess how they are feeling and share their emotions with others, they begin to know themselves more fully. Self check-ins also help normalize feelings. Materials: - Paper with an open grid shape - List of feelings Directions: - Pass out the gridded paper to students. - Have them fill the grid with different emotions. - Then, have students display the grid on their desks. - Have them place a token or shape on the emotion that shows how they are feeling at a particular moment. Ideas: - Once students can recognize their feelings, help them to develop strategies for regulating their emotions. - Encourage students to track their feelings over an entire school day. Then, discuss how feelings change in different situations. -------------------------------------------------- I hope you've found a few ways to help students develop self-awareness. Incorporating lessons that target social emotional learning is essential in today's classrooms. If you're looking for ready-made resources, check out this set of 10 SEL reading passages and this set of 6 Self-Awareness Activities. Thanks for stopping by! Mary Beth

Learn how to teach children self-control the right way with this collection of fun yet powerful self-regulation strategies and activities for kids!