Primary ideas teachers can feel proud of!
Help students develop empathy and social awareness at school using books and videos. Children will relate to the characters in these stories and movies, making it easier for them to learn how they can be more empathetic. Here are 10 books and 5 videos that will highlight these characteristics for students.
Conflict resolution is an important skill that students need to learn – beneficial to them within the classroom as well as in everyday life. Not only will kids use conflict resolution in the classroom, they will also continue to use these skills as they grow. The conflict resolution skills they learn in elementary school will help them solve problems as adults. So how do we teach conflict resolution in the classroom?
Children learn social-emotional skills by watching, practicing, and eventually adopting the behaviors for themselves. Below you will find ideas about what conflict and conflict resolution is, and how to teach students the various aspects of this important life skill.
Conflict is a disagreement or problem that happens between two or more people. It can happen to anyone, from best friends to enemies. Most conflicts start small, but they continue to grow, snowballing into major problems. As teachers, we can explain what conflict is, in order to effectively teach how to keep conflicts from becoming major problems in the classroom.
When there’s a problem, it’s important to address the problem in a peaceful way, understanding both sides of the situation. This is conflict resolution or peaceful problem solving as I like to call it in my classroom. Conflict resolution is an important skill to have, both in the classroom and in life. By helping our students practice and adopt healthy ways of solving interpersonal problems, we help them succeed in other areas of their education and life as well.
There are many steps to teaching conflict resolution. To truly teach conflict resolution, you’ll need to teach your students how to analyze the conflict. They’ll need to be able to identify the problem and try to understand what’s causing it.
Kids will always have some sort of conflict, whether big or small. The conflict between kids can be anything, whether they’re fighting over a toy or pushing another student down at recess. Conflict resolution can be used in the classroom to help keep the peace between kids. When a small problem arises, such as a friend cutting them in line, your students can use what you’ve taught them about conflict resolution to fix the problem before it becomes more of an issue.
Teach kids a peaceful problem-solving method that they can practice and use with growing independence at school. The process involves the children following 4 simple steps to solve their conflict.
Kids learn best when they practice. This is especially true for conflict resolution. When you give your students fun ways to learn conflict resolution, they’ll have a blast practicing it. The more they practice, the more it becomes second nature. If you’re looking forward to teaching conflict resolution in your classroom, here are a few activities you can use to make it fun.
Reading books to your students can help you teach them about conflict resolution in a safe but fun way. The problems the characters face are oftentimes ones that your students have faced as well. As the characters journey through their problems towards resolution, children will get the chance to see a healthy way to handle conflict. Here are just a few books you can read to you students to teach conflict resolution.
There are so many fun ways to teach conflict resolution to your students. Which of these activities do you plan to use in your classroom?
Catch kids when they are being independent and responsible problem solvers with a hole punch in the “Caught Being Responsible” punch cards. Click the image below to download the FREE Responsible Punch Cards.
The Responsibility SEL Curriculum includes 5 lessons and many activities that teach children about responsibility, goal setting, conflict resolution, and anti-bullying.
The mind + heart Social Emotional Learning Curriculum includes 8 units with 5+ detailed, character education, research-based LESSONS filled with TONS of hands-on and mindful ACTIVITIES that encourage children to express themselves and build important emotional and social skills. Click HERE for more details on the program.
As a classroom teacher, you are responsible for preparing your students. You need to prepare them for the next school year, giving them a strong educational foundation. You should also prepare them to be responsible and act responsibly in the classroom. Here are strategies for teaching responsibility in the classroom.
Teaching responsibility in the classroom is important. By teaching your students to be responsible in the classroom, you’re also teaching them to be responsible at home and in their communities. This is a life skill that they will need to practice throughout their lives.
Teach children to set goals and record them to make a plan using the 3 stars and a wish technique. Click the image below to download the FREE Stars & a Wish templates to get those goals on paper.
Encourage and “catch” kids in the act of being responsible, while giving them a hole punch on their card. You could then reward them after their whole card is punched. Click the image below to grab your own ‘Caught Being Responsible’ punch cards!
The Responsibility SEL Curriculum includes 5 lessons and many activities that teach children about responsibility, goal setting, conflict resolution, and anti-bullying.
The mind + heart Social Emotional Learning Curriculum includes 8 units with 5+ detailed, character education, research-based LESSONS filled with TONS of hands-on and mindful ACTIVITIES that encourage children to express themselves and build important emotional and social skills. Click HERE for more details on the program.
Make your classroom a happier place with the use of kindness videos and books. These kindness books and videos for the classroom will help children learn many positive character traits. The hope is they will grow up to make the world a better place. Here are 10 books and 5 videos that will help you bring the topic of kindness to light in your classroom. [Read more…]
Teaching respect in the classroom is a task that teachers must do almost daily. There are many ways educators can tie these social skills lessons into daily tasks. Here are a number of ways to teach children what respect means and how to be respectful in the classroom and beyond.
Teaching respect in the classroom helps students succeed. When children are able to treat each other respectfully and respond to direction and instruction in a positive way, they are more likely to succeed in academics. Distractions and behavioral disruptions are lessened. Communication lines open and are more relaxed. This makes for a more conducive learning environment. Try the following ideas to encourage respectfulness.
When learning about respect, honesty, gratitude, and appreciating differences are important topics to cover. Teaching respect in the classroom is not always a simple task. But when you cover all the topics above, you can begin to see a marked improvement in respectfulness all around.
Encourage children to express gratitude through words and pictures with a gratitude journal. Click the image below to download the FREE gratitude journal templates.
Teach children what respect really means by learning the “Golden Rule” together. Post the poster or have children color their own to hang. Click the image below to download the FREE respect poster.
The Respect SEL Curriculum includes 5 lessons and many activities that teach children about respect, acceptance, honesty, and gratitude.
The mind + heart Social Emotional Learning Curriculum includes 8 units with 5+ detailed, character education, research-based LESSONS filled with TONS of hands-on and mindful ACTIVITIES that encourage children to express themselves and build important emotional and social skills. Click HERE for more details on the program.
Building positive relationships and practicing social etiquette can be a challenge for children. To foster these social-emotional skills in your students, give them examples and plenty of opportunities to practice. These 10 friendship books and 5 videos are perfect for classroom use. Share some to help you introduce concepts such as friendly conversation, sharing, forgiveness, and cooperation. [Read more…]
Dealing with children’s emotions is a hot topic among teachers in elementary schools today. Teachers need to think about how to teach children to recognize and describe emotions, express them, and control them. Explicit lessons about emotions can help children learn healthy social-emotional skills. Here are 15 books and videos about emotions that you can share with your class.
Children benefit from lessons that include real-life, relatable concepts such as how to deal with frustrations, interpersonal conflict, and failure. Developing a growth mindset is an important trait to cultivate in your students. These 15 books and videos will help you teach growth mindset in your classroom.
It is not uncommon to find a lack of empathy in our children’s interactions. Most have experienced a world of self-preservation and independence that makes empathy unnatural or difficult to express. There are ways you can go about teaching empathy in the classroom to meet those children’s needs and help them become more socially aware. [Read more…]
We build relationships with our family, friends, and our colleagues every day, and it’s a very natural process for many of us. But for our students, solidifying these skills requires direct instruction. Teaching friendship skills in the classroom requires making time in our day for thoughtful discussions and community building activities. Below you will find a variety of lesson ideas and activities to help build these skills in your classroom. [Read more…]
