Why is SEL Important?
What is Social Emotional Learning? (Many answers accepted)
Social emotional learning refers to any moment, experience, class, or lesson that is teaching you how to better manage your emotions or social interactions with others.
Social emotional learning happens all the time all around us.
Primary emotions are...?
Love
Fear
Anger
Joy
Surprise
Sadness
Example:
Stimuli: I see a bear
Triggers threat signal in the brain
What is my action?
Run from the bear.
Feeling nervous before a test can cause this body part to ache.
Stomach
WHY are social emotional skills important?
Social emotional skills are critical to having self love, building healthy relationships, and maintaining a job or pursuing higher education.
What is an emotional reaction we have to primary emotions. For example, a person may feel annoyed as a result of becoming irritable or angry.
Secondary emotions
Example #2
Stimuli:I see my friends hanging out
Triggers reward signal in the brain
Action: ?
Go over and see/hang out with friends. This triggers a joy signal to the brain
This "gut feeling" you sometimes get actually comes from signals between your gut and this major organ.
Brain!
What social emotional skills would an employer look for?
Communication
Emotional Intelligence
Empathy
Kindness
Adaptability
Teamwork
What SECONDARY emotion might the person be feeling?
Connor is trying really hard to turn in his Math QPA by Friday but he is stuck on this one really difficult problem
nervous
True or false?: Teen brains feel emotions more intensely.
During adolescence, the emotional part of the brain (amygdala) develops faster than the reasoning part (prefrontal cortex). That’s why emotions can feel so overwhelming—and why SEL is so important!
Chronic stress can cause this part of your body to tighten, leading to headaches.
Neck/Shoulder
Fun fact: Students who participated in SEL programs were _____% less likely to be involved in physical aggression. (Whichever team is closest gets the points!
42% (almost 50% of students who participate in SEL are less likely to be involved in physical aggression.)
Emotions guide our b______ and c_____, so being mindful of our emotions is important.
Behavior and choices
True or false?: Stress actually shrinks your brain.
Chronic stress can shrink the prefrontal cortex, which affects decision-making, memory, and impulse control. That’s why managing emotions matters so much!
Your muscles often do this when you're angry.
Tighten up / get tense
SEL (Social-Emotional Learning) is important because it develops essential life skills like
*self-a______
*self-m________
*social a________
*r______ skills,
*responsible d_______- m________.
self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making, which lead to better academic performance, positive classroom behavior, improved mental and physical health, and increased chances for success in college and careers.
Name two ways you can check on yourself
How to check in with yourself
Pause and take a deep breath
Ask yourself:
What am I feeling? Lean into a deeper emotion beyond your primary emotion
Why am I feeling this way?
Part of social emotional learning involves understanding where our feelings come from.
our emotions are a result of our brain p_____ s_____ and releasing chemicals that help us decide what action to take. The brain is always working to protect us or make us happy.
Processing stimuli. Stimuli is anything that our senses pick up on. For example, something we see, hear, smell, taste, or tough.
Name 3 ways to relax your body when you are frustrated or upset.
Take slow, deep breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth: This tells your nervous system to calm down and helps slow your heart rate.
Splash cold water on your face or go for a quick walk/stretch: Cold activates your calming system, and movement burns off excess energy from frustration.
5-4-3-2-1 Grounding Technique
👀 Name 5 things you can see,
✋ 4 you can touch,
👂 3 you can hear,
👃 2 you can smell,
👅 1 you can taste.
✅ Connects your body back to the present moment.