Social and Emotional Learning
Teachers, principals, and support staff are all working to support our student with their social, emotional, safety and wellness learning needs. The links below include a range of resources to support safety, wellness and social and emotional learning.
Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) provides a foundation for safe and positive learning and enhances students' ability to succeed in school, careers, and life. This section provides resources for the development of social and emotional skills. Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) involves helping children learn the following:
- Self-awareness
- Self Management
- Social Awareness
- Relationship Skills
- Responsible Decision-Making
What is SEL?
What is SEL? Spanish Videos
Supporting Teen Mental Health
Looking for some information on ways to support your teen with their mental health? Here is an article shared by one of our WSD eductors from the Making Caring Common Project from the Harvard Graduate School of Education: How Can I Support You? A teen mental health primer.
Collaborative for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning (CASEL)
DESSA (Social Emotional Learning Screener and Tool)
In our schools we have systems in place to determine additional supports students may need for both social emotional learning and academics. One way we determine what social emotional supports a student may need is with the Devereux Student Strengths Assessment (DESSA) which is based on the CASEL emotional competencies. The DESSA provides an in-depth view of students' social and emotional skills. DESSA supports K-12 students and teachers by providing a universal screener (DESSA Mini), as well as a more thorough tool (DESSA full) that breaks down student skills in each of the Aperture 8 competencies. Students in grades 9-12 also complete a self-report survey that provides teachers and counselors with important information about students' needs.
To help schools determine the academic needs students have, we use the MAP Growth assessment for math and reading. MAP Growth provides teachers with accurate, actionable evidence to help inform instructional strategies. Reliable insights make it simple for teachers to find common areas of need among their students, identify students who could benefit from intervention, and determine which instructional strategies are generating the most academic growth. Higher-level reports provide administrators with the context to drive improvement across entire schools and educational systems.eliable insights make it simple for teachers to find common areas of need among their students, identify students who could benefit from intervention, and determine which instructional strategies are generating the most academic growth. Higher-level reports provide administrators with the context to drive improvement across entire schools and educational systems.
These tools are used 3 times a year across the district to assist teachers, counselors, and administrators with identifying the unique needs our students have so they can create a plan to best support each student.