SEL Activities for Remote Learning from Better Kids

Each year, hundreds of schools, and thousands of educators and parents across the country use the Better Kids app Wisdom: The World of Emotions to help build children’s emotion regulation, empathy, and responsible decision-making skills through interactive gameplay. 

Now, practitioners can explore a variety of social-emotional learning activities conducive to both in-person and distance learning from Better Kids on Playbook, Panorama Education’s online professional learning library that equips practitioners and school leaders with strategies for creating a positive school climate and implementing SEL in K-12 classrooms. This new set of resources from Better Kids includes digital-friendly activities to practice mindfulness and build a sense of belonging in classrooms.

Better Kids is an innovative organization developing children's social emotional skills through evidence-based play. Their unique pedagogy is based on integrated digital and hands-on games, combining adaptive learning and group activities.

The strategies from Better Kids align directly with topics from the Panorama Social-Emotional Learning Survey, including:

• Emotion Regulation
• School and Classroom Climate
• Teacher-Student Relationships
• Self-Management
• Sense of Belonging
• Sense of Safety
• Social Awareness

Download the Panorama Social-Emotional Learning Survey.

For example, an augmented reality SEL activity called “Breathing With Wisdom” guides students through breathing exercises as they explore how breathing and emotions are connected. Through the interactive video and supplementary materials, teachers can lead a discussion with their students about how certain breathing techniques can help them to feel calm in stressful situations.

For school leaders and educators thinking about how to best rebuild a sense of community in classrooms during hybrid or distance learning, Better Kids has integrated a set of 14 virtual SEL activities into Playbook that help with investing in teacher-student relationships in the beginning of the year.

Panorama’s Playbook connects teachers, counselors, and school leaders with easy-to-implement resources, activities, and research related to emotion regulation, grit, teacher-student relationships, adult SEL, and more. Teachers explore Panorama's Playbook when they are looking to take action on their Panorama student survey data on school climate and social-emotional learning.

To access 300+ SEL teaching resources and engaging digital games, download Wisdom: The World of Emotions on iOS and Android.

As schools and districts across the country continue to support students’ social, emotional, cultural and cognitive competencies, we are thrilled to share innovative strategies from expert organizations such as Better Kids! Find them at @BKidsEdu on Twitter and share how you’re implementing these activities in your school or classroom with us @PanoramaEd!