What is Social Emotional Learning? First, it is crucial to define what social-emotional learning is. An article written for The Committee for Children’s website states that social-emotional learning can be defined as “the process of developing the self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success.” (50) What is Social-Emotional Learning and Why is it Important? | LinkedIn
When I read this definition, looks wonderful. Who is against such a noble concept? Who doesn’t want to be better at self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills that are vital for school, work, and life success? In fifty-six-years of living (birthday is January 6, 1966), I have had to lean on those three “components.” I cannot imagine any success I have earned without any of those “components”
So, why do oppose teaching Social Emotional Learning?
I DON’T.
I oppose the government (public schools) taking on the responsibility of being the end-all (exaggeration – noted; hyperbolic – noted) of teaching self-awareness, self-control, and interpersonal skills!
I am going to lean in on this site and respond to the Five Key Social-Emotional. I will present what it is Using the website, I will present what it is and then I will respond to how I would teach three of the five concepts. I will let you do the other two. I would also encourage you to pay close attention to all the material that the public schools are using to teach your son / your daughter / your child what “Social Emotional Learning” is. We need more fathers and LESS GOVERNMENT. Government has role and the expansion of its role is leading to perilous future of a government that was founded on the sovereignty of the individual. https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/what-social-emotional-learning-why-important-viewsonic/
1. Self-Awareness
Self-awareness is sometimes described as the leading skill in social-emotional learning. CASEL defines it as the ability to “understand one’s own emotions, thoughts, and values and how they influence behavior across contexts.”
A Landmark Outreach article outlines some of the primary skills that are associated with self-awareness. These skills include a student’s ability to recognize and identify their own emotions, develop a perception of “self” which matches reality, believe in their capacity to achieve goals, and determine their areas of strength and weakness.
Additionally, developing self-awareness may require students to reflect on and examine their prejudices and biases and create the mindset that facilitates continuous personal growth. Essentially, for students, self-awareness is about self-reflection and building an understanding of who they are as a person.
So that is the experts’ view of “Self-Awareness.” One that is given to many public schools.
As a father / grandfather, I would use the Bible and Stoicism. Also, I would use child stories. I would do some research and I did. Look at what I found.
12 Short Stories on Self Realization and Finding Your True Self
12 Short Stories on Self Realization And Finding Your True Self (outofstress.com)
You will need to decide if any of those 12 stories work with your beliefs / values / principles.
For when your child gets to be adolescence or if YOU AS THE PARENT feel that YOUR CHILD can learn it earlier … here is a stoic’s website about “Self-Awareness.”
Self-Awareness and Emotional Intelligence: The Keys To Your Best Self (dailystoic.com)
And for my Christian friends…
What Does the Bible Say About Self Awareness? (openbible.info)
1 Timothy 4:16 ESV – Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.
Romans 12:3 ESV – For by the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think, but to think with sober judgment, each according to the measure of faith that God has assigned.
2 Corinthians 13:5 ESV – Examine yourselves, to see whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Or do you not realize this about yourselves, that Jesus Christ is in you?—unless indeed you fail to meet the test!
Galatians 6:3 ESV – For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself.
Proverbs 20:5 ESV – The purpose in a man’s heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.
2. Self-Management
Self-management is a concept closely related to self-awareness, and in many ways, it follows on from its development. For example, the CASEL framework describes self-management as the ability to “manage one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different situations” to achieve personal aspirations.
An overview from Greater Good in Education explores this concept further. It states that self-management is a process that involves students navigating their thoughts, behaviors, and emotions so that they develop an ability to make decisions that benefit not only themselves but also those around them, too.
Some of the primary skills associated with self-management include setting goals, maintaining attention, managing and controlling emotions, demonstrating resilience, and utilizing feedback to make personal progress.
When I give you an example website about a certain SEL “area,”, please know … I MAY OR MAY NOT use the website with my grandchildren or my students. My point is … YOU NEED TO WORK! You need to be the father (grandfather in my case). You need to be able to speak the “language” of the educator. Wouldn’t be cool for you to have a conference with a teacher / counselor / administrator and present to them that you have done with a specific area of SEL? Let them know … YOU KNOW!
Here is a example of a website that causes me to pause and reflect on several of the books / resources it suggests:
The Best Books To Teach Kids Self-Control, Mindfulness, and Regulation (nurtureandthriveblog.com)
Again, for my Christian friends,
1 John 2:1-29 ESV -My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. He is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world. And by this we know that we have come to know him, if we keep his commandments. Whoever says “I know him” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him, but whoever keeps his word, in him truly the love of God is perfected. By this we may know that we are in him: …
1 Peter 2:1-25 ESV – So put away all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander. Like newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow up into salvation— if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good. As you come to him, a living stone rejected by men but in the sight of God chosen and precious, you yourselves like living stones are being built up as a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. …
1 Peter 1:20 ESV – He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you
Romans 1:1-32 ESV – Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from David according to the flesh and was declared to be the Son of God in power according to the Spirit of holiness by his resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord, through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, …
James 1:1-27 ESV – James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes in the Dispersion: Greetings. Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given him. …
How about reconnecting with VEGGIE TALES?
- veggie tales about self-control – Bing video
- childhood christian stories about self-control – Bing video
3. Social Awareness
The following skill area associated with social-emotional learning is social awareness. An excellent way to think of this is by contrasting it with self-awareness. While the former refers to a student’s ability to understand themselves and their actions, social awareness is about becoming more aware of other people and feeling compassion for them.
Social awareness also involves demonstrating empathy and understanding. For example, an article written for Understood.org details some of the skills associated with social awareness. Such skills include the ability to understand the perspectives of others, to appreciate diversity in terms of different backgrounds and cultures.
One of the ways teachers may be able to make students more familiar with the concept of social awareness is by explaining the idea of The Golden Rule, which can be summarized as “treat others the way you want to be treated.”
Bottom Line …
YOU NEED TO WORK! If you want to leave a positive legacy, you need to work. If you want what is best for your child, you need to become the best. By the way, “best” does not mean perfect! I am not perfect. As I have written several times. However, I do what I can to be the best or at least one of the best.
In 2022, what I am seeing is a lot of folks who are not willing to work to be the best. For gosh sake, just today (written January 26, 2022), saw a “subreddit” about “Anti-Work!” Work is noble. Work is right. I am just a retired high school band director. I am not an expert, but safe to say, work was and is a part of every successful civilization, and the antithesis would be true, as well. Laziness / dependent on government led to evil growing and the decay / destruction of that civilization.
Without work we are incomplete humans. We are created to work.
Do not allow the government (public schools) to do “ALL” the work. You need to do the work and use what the government (public schools) offers to help you do the work. Defend your right to be your child’s parent and at the same time earn that right / that blessing!
We know the government (public schools) is ready to step-in. DON’T LET THAT HAPPEN. If you do, you are setting-up your child to be not interdependent, but dependent and when that happens, there is no SOVEREIGN INDIVIDUAL. The United States of America will be another “fallen empire.”
DO YOUR JOB!