Making the Case for Teaching Social Emotional Learning through Children’s Literature

Abstract

In this presentation I propose children’s literature as an effective tool to teach social emotional learning in the classroom. Social emotional learning has increasingly become a focus in many Canadian schools. Social emotional learning has been defined in many ways but is usually accepted to be a combination of developing children’s abilities to self-regulate their feelings, understand and display empathy and make responsible choices. These are skills that can benefit children in a variety of ways that includes increasing self-esteem, reducing conflicts with peers or family members and developing resiliency. Although social emotional skills like empathy are essential for the adequate moral development of children, there is little communication as to the ways qualities like empathy can become teachable skills. This poses a challenge to classroom teachers who are not receiving training or professional development from Social Emotional Learning organizations or research bodies but wish to incorporate elements of the theory into their existing practice and routines. Although some organizations offer scripted lessons and programming to be used in the classroom, programs alone may not be enough. Locally developed resources created for peer-to-peer sharing amongst teachers allow for greater integration and have the added benefit of being customized for each teacher’s unique learning community. This presentation will focus on the integration of social emotional learning at the classroom level using a children’s literature approach. I share some of the resources I have created for this purpose.