Counseling Corner

SOAR lessons are based on the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) competencies. From November to March, we will highlight a different competency in our newsletter. Social Awareness is the final CASEL Competency.

To have Social Awareness means to practice perspective taking and empathy towards others. This includes acceptance and compassion towards other cultures, contexts, and those with diverse backgrounds.

These capacities could include (cited from CASEL's website

• Taking others’ perspectives
• Recognizing strengths in others
• Demonstrating empathy and compassion
• Showing concern for the feelings of others
• Understanding and expressing gratitude
• Identifying diverse social norms, including unjust ones
• Recognizing situational demands and opportunities
• Understanding the influences of organizations and systems on behavior

• Students will spend a few weeks celebrating differences of people.
• Students will learn about Fair versus Equal and how we try to give people what they need.

• We continue to review Sizes of Problems and appropriate reactions to these problems.
• Students will practice an appropriate apology to solve friendship problems.

• We will learn what it means to be an ally and an upstander when we notice others making hurtful choices.
• We will learn how to use a "Bug and a Wish" to advocate for ourselves when others are making hurtful choices.

• We will review the difference between a small, medium, and big size problem and how to respond to each.

• Students will learn about empathy and how they can practice this concept in their everyday lives
• We will then review what Diversity means and looks like in our community
• We will introduce Disability as an aspect of Diversity and how we can celebrate all kinds of people

• We will finish our identity webs/maps.
• We will also introduce the harmful effects that assumptions and stereotypes can have.

Kindergarten

• “The Colors of the Rainbow" by Jennifer Moore-Mallinos

1st grade:

• "How to apologize" by David LaRochelle

2nd grade:

• "Speak Up" by Miranda Paul
• "A Bug and a Wish" by Karen Scheuer

3rd grade:

No books or media will be used this month.

4th grade:

• “Loop" Pixar Short

5th grade:

• "The Proudest Blue" by Ibtihaj Muhammad and S.K. Ali

Mrs. Tori Dore (grades K, 1, and 4)

Email: vwintersdore@walpole.k12.ma.us

Phone: 508-660-7374, ext. 5615

Mrs. Jessica Simpson (grades 2, 3, and 5)

Email: jsimpson@walpole.k12.ma.us

Phone: 508-660-7374, ext. 5615