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What Self Care Activity did you do?

How can you embed moments of "self-care" into your week moving forward?

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This week I was able to unplug and visit a new place and just enjoy the beauty of nature and reconnect with loved ones. Going forward I can make sure to take time to unplug and connect with family members.  Amanda R.

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This week I was able to unplug and visit a new place and just enjoy the beauty of nature and reconnect with loved ones. Going forward I can make sure to take time to unplug and connect with family members.  Amanda R.

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Please answer the question based on the reading. 

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Please answer the question based on the reading. 

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Which of the "13 powerful SEL Activities" would you use in your classroom (students or adults)?

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Social & Emotional Learning (SEL)

Build social and emotional skills into any class.

Summit students rip up their stress.

Summit Preparatory Charter High School in Redwood City, California, uses a variety of activities in the weekly, 90-minute Habits, Community, and Culture (HCC) class, where students learn Habits of Success and develop social and emotional learning (SEL) skills. The school has developed an HCC curriculum for grades nine through 12 and hired two full-time teachers for HCC, but Summit's academic teachers also use some of these activities to build SEL skills and deepen their relationships with their students. Cady Ching, a biology and AP environmental science teacher at Summit, incorporates opening activities into all of her classes: "In my freshman classes, we do them every class period."

Visualization to release stress: Have your students imagine what stress looks and feels like inside their body, and then ask them to release it. "The mindfulness practice makes you think the stress is coming off your body," says Geoffrey, a 12th-grade student.

Noise isolation: There are a variety of sounds that your students hear when they're in your classroom, from students walking in the hallway to outdoor construction noise. Have your students focus on one noise and describe it to themselves and recall the last time they interacted with it.

Here are some of the opening, group sharing, and closing activities that teachers use at Summit:

Opening Activities

Summit students practice mindfulness.

2. Name the emotion you're bringing to class: Have each student call out the emotion they're feeling. This helps each student know how they and other students are feeling, what different emotions look like, and how to better interact with their peers based on how they're feeling.

3. Write down, rip up, and throw away your stress: Have your students write down their expectations and insecurities, rip them up, and throw them away. This emotional check-in takes about three minutes. By acknowledging how your students are feeling at the start of each class, you'll acknowledge their barriers to learning and create a safe space for your students to overcome them.

5. Quote of the day: Introduce a quote relevant to what your students are learning or to a shared experience-for example, an act of violence in the community. You can facilitate a whole-class discussion, group students into pairs, or have each student share a one-word response to the quote. This gives students the space to reflect on their beliefs and experiences and whether they agree or disagree with the quote and other students' opinions, and it gives them insight into their peers' perspectives and feelings.

6. Where we came from: Collect baby pictures from your students. Project one baby picture at the start of class, have your students guess who it is, and then have the featured student share something about their childhood.

7. Starting positive: Have each student tape a sheet of paper to their back and then walk around and write positive qualities about their peers on their backs.

8. Motivational moment: Have two students start the class with a three- to five-minute presentation-and come up with two or three discussion questions-based on their interests. The presentation must be related to the course content in a real-world context. "Many students include a video for visuals and increased engagement, but it's optional," says Ching. Have the rest of the class partner up to discuss their questions for one minute and then give them the opportunity to share out to the whole class. This exercise gives your students insight into their peers' interests.

Grades 9-12 | Redwood City, CA

Enrollment

388 | Charter, Suburban

Per Pupil Expenditures

Free / Reduced Lunch

47%

Data is from the 2014-2015 academic year.

Group Sharing

9. Circle sharing: To encourage active listening, create small groups. Have your students position their chairs in a circle so everyone can make eye contact. To strengthen empathy, you can facilitate deeper discussion around what a student shares by asking, "Why did that student share what they did?" or "What perspective is that student coming from?"

When discussing emotionally charged topics, it's important to have guidelines to foster a safe space. Summit uses the Courageous Conversation protocol created by Glenn E. Singleton when discussing race. The protocol is guided by four agreements-stay engaged, experience discomfort, speak your truth, and expect and accept nonclosure. Here is an example of elementary school discussion guidelines from School 21.

Summit students sit in a circle for a whole-class discussion.

10. Write a poem from someone else's perspective. Have your students choose someone they don't know. This helps them to understand that they don't "need to be best friends with someone to empathize with them," explains Ballard.

11. Have a conversation with someone you don't know. Have your students pair up with a student they don't know and provide the pairs with five questions to ask each other. Each student introduces their partner to the class, speaking as if they were their partner, while the rest of the class looks at the student being introduced. "We don't see people sometimes," says Ballard, "and this exercise helps students to see each other more deeply."

12. Play interest and identity-related bingo. Instead of squares filled with numbers or vocabulary words, create cards with information relating to your students. Summit's Bingo cards have things like "'I like to read' or 'I was born in a different country,'" says Armando, a ninth-grade student.

I would like to appreciate Brenda for facilitating the conversation in our small group.

I would like to thank everyone for taking this class seriously.

I apologize to everyone for having my headphones in for half of the time.

Closing Activity

13. Appreciation, apology, aha: Have your students get in a circle and share an appreciation, apology, or realization with the group. Students in Ballard's class have shared things like:

Encourage authentic and timely apologies. Apologizing for something that happened a long time ago has less impact than apologizing for something that happened that day or week. Let your students know that they don't have to name who they're apologizing to when they apologize for what they did.

Help students share helpful, not harmful words. "I often say, 'Appreciations, apologies, and ahas should be something that you genuinely think will be useful for people to hear,'" says Ballard.

Have your students snap, clap, or shake both hands when they hear something that resonates with them. "We snap to let people know that we hear them without exerting our own voice in their narrative," explains Ballard. Students shake their hands when peers share things that are emotionally charged. Ballard often gets this started by saying, "Let's shake it up for that."

"When you pay attention to each other, not only does it build a sense of community, but we're more able to understand other people," says Janet, a 12th-grade student. "If you're able to understand people at a younger age, you could work better with them as adults. That changes how the future generations will be. People can be more accepting, more helpful towards each other."

What makes this a SCHOOL THAT WORKS

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Build social and emotional skills into any class.

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In my classroom I teach students to have a growth mindset. It is powerful to teach kids that mistakes are learning and it is okay to make them. I teach them that all things are difficult until they are easy. Amanda R. 

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In my classroom I teach students to have a growth mindset. It is powerful to teach kids that mistakes are learning and it is okay to make them. I teach them that all things are difficult until they are easy. Amanda R. 

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In my class daily, we do midday meeting. We sit on the floor in a circle and share from our lives. Mondays everyone has a chance to share, T-F only 3 people share, but other students are allowed to asked questions about the share. We are learning about our classmates and making connections. The kids love it.

Tammie Perkins

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If I had students in a classroom, I would implement the Quote of the Day activity. I believe asking students to review, thinking about, and analyze what the quotes means to them is an effective way to get a brief look into what students are thinking and feeling. Asking them to share their thoughts and feelings in a small group setting would be one way to ensure a less threatening and more safe classroom environment.

Christina White

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This week I spent time alone and felt all my feelings. I needed some space from the chaos and sat at the beach and just felt the sun, shared my gratitude and reflected on my actions, life, and goals.

We tend to forget about our own emotional needs and our mental health. A way to embed self care during my day is drinking more water, working out, and eating whatever food I want. I love food. We cant neglect ourselves from the things that brings us joy.

One of the strategies is noise isolation in the classroom.

Noise isolation: There are a variety of sounds that your students hear when they’re in your classroom, from students walking in the hallway to outdoor construction noise. Have your students focus on one noise and describe it to themselves and recall the last time they interacted with it.

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This week I read a book, sat outside and enjoyed the sun, went out of town. Today, I chose not to stay an extra hour at work to be able to sit in silence in my car and read. -Maribel Gutierrez

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This week I read a book, sat outside and enjoyed the sun, went out of town. Today, I chose not to stay an extra hour at work to be able to sit in silence in my car and read. -Maribel Gutierrez

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I can try to embed more reading because I have been falling behind on my reading challenge.

This week I am going to try and incorporate more mindfulness moments in my classroom because I had not been doing them as often as I have in the passed. I am going to find mindfulness videos as well as using my bell chime to ding while the kids rest their head on their desk and focus on their breathing.

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Completed a Virtual Workshop with woman across the world. KR

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Completed a Virtual Workshop with woman across the world. KR

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I will continue to gain ;knowledge in diverse settings.

I often have my students participate in circle time to share their experiences and ideas.

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Coping skills are essential for people of all ages. In Kinder it is important to focus on teaching self awareness. I often have students stop and use their breathing tool to calm their body, afterward I lead them in a quick guided meditation that allows them to visualize and acknowledge how each part of their body feels beginning at the feet and ending at the top of their heads. This routine allows them to connect with their body enough to know where they are feeling their angst. Once we know where we are holding our tension, we release the tension through one of three modalities: talking/sharing, writing in our journal, or brushing it off and sending back into the eather. This helps them to release emotionally and allows them to be open for working with their peers and to their studies for the day.

Kimberly Roberson

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This week I took a yoga class to help put me in the right mindset.  I also went for a run with my friends.  It was great to get out and share the fresh air and catch up with my girlfriends. Mickee R

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This week I took a yoga class to help put me in the right mindset.  I also went for a run with my friends.  It was great to get out and share the fresh air and catch up with my girlfriends. Mickee R

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I thanked myself for the wins no matter how small. I did my taxes. I'm glad they are done. -Lindsey Langston

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Got the amount of sleep that I needed to be fully rested

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Got the amount of sleep that I needed to be fully rested

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During morning time I would have a students write in their gratitude journal and reflect on the things that they are grateful to have in their present life. I would also have them to evaluate their day by sharing how they currently feeling, so that it gives me an idea how their day is going or got started. Midweek, I would have them reflect on a quote from the 365 Days of Wonder and have a few minutes to share with a partner or volunteer to share openly during circle time. This helps students to connect and it gives them a time to reflect on quotes that encourages them to reflect on others or themselves.

Maria Salas

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I spent time in my hammock underneath my orange tree reading my latest book. I took my pillow, water bottle, sunglasses and enjoyed the quiet. Well, except the sound of the bees pollinating the blossoms. :) I can continue to incorporate reading time in to my nightly bedtime routine.

Morning meeting/circles are my favorite way to connect with my students and for them to connect with each other. Since I taught second grade, they were more than happy to share about their feelings.

Michele Jarrett

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Self Care: This week I made it a point to write down special time for myself in my planner. I utilize my planner to keep me accountable for most other things related to work, bills, family etc. I like the idea of writing down specific goals for myself in my planner. This not only keeps me accountable but helps me in the area of self awareness and self care. Some things I added included text/phone calls with my loved ones, a few days to workout, and I even wrote in some days that I will go outside after work.

SEL Activity: The SEL activity that I would have loved to implement in my 4th grade classroom would have be "Appreciation, Apology, Aha". This is such a great closing activity for collaborative group work such as math tasks or projects. Many times, we are so focused on the end product, that we rarely take the time to give feedback on what was happening behind the scenes. Taking time for students to reflect on what they appreciate builds relationships. Additionally, having students apologize for wrong doings or their mistakes can help with self-awareness.

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I use morning circles every day. We use it in a variety of ways. Sometimes we are just doing a check in where students share about their weekend. Other days we need to delve into a toolbox lesson or relearn a strategy for getting along well with others. Circles are powerful. They can inspire and engage learners of all ages. April Raguindin

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Morning Circles were common in my general education classroom. I used morning or after lunch circles quite often. Each day or time we would discuss different topics. Participation was voluntary and we learned a lot about each other.

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Adjusting my expectations! Over Spring Break I really wanted to fill it with travel and getting my house in order. Unfortunately, I was under the weather and had to rest more than I wanted to. SO I adjusted my expectations and made sure that myself and other sick family members got the rest we needed. April Raguindin

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An activity that I would do was a circle sharing. This seemed like the one that my students could do with some prompting to keep them on task. Empathy was hard for many of my students to grasp but we practiced in our circle sharing. Alyce Nichols

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I love the idea of circle sharing.  I always have my student in my small groups share something and then the other students have to listen to what the student shared and ask a question using a complete sentence.  This helps my students speak in complete sentences as well as letting student share.  It helps my students with communication and how important it is to listen to others.

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I love the idea of circle sharing.  I always have my student in my small groups share something and then the other students have to listen to what the student shared and ask a question using a complete sentence.  This helps my students speak in complete sentences as well as letting student share.  It helps my students with communication and how important it is to listen to others.

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I decluttered my garage. It's not on the Self Care Bingo but this is something I have been wanting to do for a while now. I was able to organize my teaching supplies and throw things away that I really didn't need. I was also able to get a few rest days in. My daughter was not there and I didn't have to worry about anything other than myself. What a good feeling. Alyce Nichols

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This past week I tried out a new gym. I put my membership on hold because I was recovering from a broken tailbone and honestly didn't have time. Going back felt so good and I think it is time to restart my membership. I feel good all around when I have that time to myself consistently.

This week, I would like to focus on home when I am home. I often take work home and am finishing things at home. I also plan on going to bed earlier so that I feel better rested.

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I took a Peloton cycling class (only 15 minutes but that's all I could squeeze into my morning prior to school). My morning grumpiness faded, and I was able to be a nicer person towards students and staff once I was at school. Moving forward with the week, I can try to squeeze in moments of exercise in my day so that I am a happier (and nicer) person. :) MRamzan

MRamzan

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I incorporate Circles daily. I start every class asking, "who needs a circle?" In Advisory, we have a student who has many personal struggles (hard home life & the student does not make good social choices). She walks into class daily asking, "Mrs. Ramzan, I need a Sophie's Circle, I'm standing on business!" This is the first year out of my 20 years of teaching, that every class feels open to sharing their concerns and problems with each other in class.

-MRamzan

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Last week I spent a lot of time reading a book of my choice out in the sun. It was so rejuvenating. I also watched more TV than I normally do, but I allowed myself the time to relax and it was wonderful. Going forward, I need to allow myself more time like this instead of feeling like I always have to be doing something productive.

The SEL activity I would like to try in my classroom is Write down, rip up and throw away your stress. This seems like a good way to start the day because everyone can have a positive start if they have a chance to "throw away their troubles." I also see this as something that could be used anytime a student is stressed or angry about something. If they are given the chance to write about it and then throw it away, I believe this could be very effective to help them forget about their troubles.

Jennifer McDonnell

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This past week, I read two books and gained a lot of new knowledge. I really enjoy expanding my horizons through reading during my free time. Specifically, I'm drawn to dystopian novels. Recently, I read a book about the science of reading and it completely blew my mind. I loved the feeling of learning new information and feeding my brain.

During my time as a teacher, I used to do mindfulness exercises with my students. We would participate in circle time and they really enjoyed it. This was a great opportunity for them to express their emotions and share how they were feeling.

-Veronica Salcedo

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Cathy Shaffer

Self-care: This week I sat outside after dinner and read for about half an hour (while my husband weeded)😁. It was very peaceful. Usually after work it's - run errands, make dinner, start laundry, clean dishes, work on homework, etc... I RARELY take time to do something enjoyable. Moving forward, I am going to try to sit outside in the evenings and read at least a couple of times a week.

SEL activity: Growth mindset vs. fixed mindset. Students are so quick to say "I can't do this". (Aren't we all?) I present the idea of "I can't do this...yet". This turns a fixed mindset into a growth mindset. I will continue to use this strategy as long as I'm in the classroom to help my students develop a positive outlook of their abilities.

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This week I took time to do nothing but rest. I watched a lot of my favorite movies while laying in bed hydrating in peace and quiet. I was also sick and quaritinted so I did not really have a choice. lol I feel better now and ready to go back to my busy schedule after two whole weeks off!

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I connected virtually with my 19 year old daughter who lives in Ecuador as a missionary for our church. We were able to video chat and talk for over an hour. I am thankful for technology that allows me to not only speak to her but to see her as well. Moving forward I want to implement some boundaries. This is something I am already working on and will continue to work on. I am terrible at setting boundaries for myself and end up exhausted, overwhelmed and frustrated.

SEL Activity-

Being a 6th grade self-contained teacher, I try to implement SEL throughout the day. We start the day off with a check in and come back to it before lunch. I do several things on the list but would like to try a Quote of the Day as this can open up discussions about topics or events that are relevant to them and help them to understand different perspectives and hopefully gain some empathy and compassion by doing so.

-Jane Delgado