The pandemic has shed light on the importance of social and emotional learning (SEL) in schools, though educators have recognized its value in the classroom for years. In HMH’s 6th annual Educator Confidence Report, published in 2020 in collaboration with YouGov, 77% of educators expressed concerns about students’ social and emotional well-being, and 94% agreed that students need more SEL support.
Nearly overnight in March 2020, as schools closed and turned to remote learning, the well-being of students beyond their academic success became a major concern for teachers and administrators—and it will continue to be viewed as such moving forward. Beyond the pandemic, factors such as the prevalence of social media and a widespread focus on mental health and classroom climate have made SEL a priority in many districts.
If you’re looking to implement an SEL curriculum, you can start with these social and emotional learning activities.
SEL Activities and Lesson Plans
The following SEL lesson plans for students in elementary school through high school include writing prompts, downloadable posters, worksheets, reading lists, and more. With these activities and social and emotional lessons, you can help students build the skills needed for success in and out of the classroom.
Use these five social-emotional learning activities for elementary school students to work toward building strong relationships. Explore SEL lesson plans for each competency.
Embrace SEL in the classroom with these SEL activities for middle school that address CASEL’s five core competencies.
These seven SEL activities for high school students are based on CASEL's core SEL competencies. Help your students become independent and meaningful contributors to society
Share these SEL remote activities with your students at home to help them develop SEL skills, like self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and responsible decision-making.
Integrate social-emotional learning into your English language arts curriculum with this literacy activity, where students read and study a text and practice important SEL competencies.
Ready to help your kiddos develop meaningful relationships and connect with their classmates? Try these classroom community-building activities for elementary students.
Help students in Grades 3–12 tap into what they're feeling with an informal writing activity.
Check out a few suggestions for empathy activities for middle schoolers and find new ways for teaching empathy in the classroom.
Use these SEL World Kindness Day activities and ideas for the International Day for Tolerance to ensure that every day includes a little (or a lot of!) kindness in your school.
Fourth-grade teacher Perry Hollins shares tips for teaching current events through an SEL lens.
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Discover more great social emotional-emotional learning resources for teachers.
Learn more about HMH Into Reading (Grades K–6) and HMH Into Literature (Grades 6–12), which have SEL lesson plans and support built into the curriculum.
The views expressed in our blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of HMH.
