This short checklist offers effective classroom instructional strategies for teaching, modeling, and reinforcing social and emotional competencies. These strategies can help establish a relationship-centered learning environment for practicing and applying SEL throughout the school day.


Setting up the classroom:
_____ Arrange seating so that students can see one another.
_____ Make sure bulletin boards and displays reflect the rich diversity of your students.
_____ Keep the room clean and well-organized, with materials prepared in advance for the day’s lesson.


Creating a safe, caring, participatory, and well-managed learning environment:
_____ Greet students as they enter your classroom, creating a welcoming environment.
_____ Establish shared ground rules/agreements with your students on how to treat each other respectfully.
_____ Model SEL behaviors of respect, caring, self-control, and fair decision-making.
_____ Focus on all students’ positive qualities and acknowledge their efforts and contributions.
____ Pay attention to student reactions, need for clarification, and need for change in activity, and address these needs immediately.


Starting a lesson:
_____ Ask open-ended questions to discover what the students already know.
_____ Employ a variety of inquiry methods to draw out authentic student responses (i.e., think-pair share).
_____ Ask “What do you think?” rather than “Why?” questions to stimulate divergent thinking.
_____ Allow “wait time” of 7 – 10 seconds before calling on students to give everyone a chance to reflect.


Introducing new skills and information:
_____ Present and connect new skills and information to the students’ responses.
_____ Provide clear and concise instructions and model tasks when appropriate.
_____ Respond respectfully to a wide variety of student responses to show respect and openness to divergent thinking, e.g.; “Okay,” “All right,” “Thank you.”
_____ Offer students the right to pass to honor different learning styles.
Preparing students for guided practice:
____ Model the guided practice before asking students to practice and apply new skills and knowledge.
____ Always play the role with negative behavior in a role-play; students always act out the appropriate behavior as skill-building practice and reinforcement.
____ Give timely, supportive, and clear feedback immediately after guided practice.
____ Use closure questions to help students reflect on their learning and imagine ways they will apply the new learning to their own lives.


Managing discipline in a safe and respectful way:
_____ Enforce the ground rules/agreements consistently.
_____ Handle problems quickly and discreetly, treating students with respect and fairness.
_____ Encourage students to discuss solutions rather than blame others.
_____ Share your reactions to inappropriate behaviors and explain why the behaviors are unacceptable.
*Adapted from Tool 33, CASEL Sustainable Schoolwide SEL Implementation Guide and Toolkit

Reference: http://www.casel.org/downloads/InstructionalStrategies.pdf