Teaching Social Skills

Learning social skills is an essential part of the primary classroom. Honestly, they have a direct impact on learning and classroom management. Additionally, they are something students will use throughout their entire lives. For instance, this involves asking for help and being flexible when plans change. However, teaching social skills is tough! It takes just the right resources and tools to ensure students truly understand the importance of each social skill. Thankfully, the resources below will be a game-changer! Students will be so thankful to understand the expectations and procedures they will always use. 

Social Skills Character Education Bundle 

There are so many social skills to teach our young learners. Thankfully, this bundle includes 33 different social skills topics! Examples include how to act during fire drills, calm down strategies, including others, and behaving in the hallway. Honestly, there are resources for just about every aspect students will experience throughout their busy school days. 

Each topic has over 20 activities to ensure students understand the importance of social skills. The activities within every story follow the same format. This means students can focus on the skill without being distracted by changing directions. To help students understand the specific skill, there is a 6-page storybook in first person and third person narrative. Additionally, there are discussion cards for conversation starters or journal prompts. Furthermore. there is a 3-person play with paper characters to act out the story and a sorting choices activity to reinforce concepts. Students will even make a comic to share their connections to the topic and play a board game to review discussion questions with friends. There are so many incredible, hands-on activities to ensure students understand the importance of each social skill.

Implementation 

This special bundle even includes BONUS materials! There are pages to reinforce each skill based on the level of students. This includes tracing, printing, and journal responses. Additionally, there are fun reward coupons and social story desk strips for student reference. While these strips provide great reminders for students struggling with social skills and self-management, everyone will benefit! 

Every social story includes a teacher guide. There are even discussion questions to build engagement and connections each day. On top of this, each story has a one-week suggested day plan to introduce and reinforce concepts. This allows teachers to select the activities they think students will benefit from the most. 

For more guidance, check out Stories to Teach Social Skills. This provides excellent advice on ensuring students learn these skills while maintaining a peaceful classroom. 

Individual Social Skills 

Depending on the classroom, teachers may not want the entire bundle. Or, they want to see how students react to one social story before committing to all of them. That’s perfectly fine! That is why the bundle breaks down into single social stories. 

The Calm Down Strategies is the perfect way to teach students how to react appropriately in challenging situations. Whether it is after making a mistake or dropping a delicious cookie, this social skill will help students breathe before acting. Honestly, this skill is essential to learn during preschool, kindergarten, and first grade.

 One of the hardest parts of school is cleaning up when necessary. Students just have so much fun and have trouble stopping. Thankfully, there is a social skill story on Cleaning Up Quickly! Teaching this social skill is a game-changer for smooth transitions. 

Our young learners often have germ-filled hands. Whether touching everything on the playground or not washing hands thoroughly, it is easy for sickness to spread in elementary school. Thankfully, there is a social skill story for I Will Not Spread Germs. Students will learn how to wash their hands, blow their noses, and the right way to sneeze. This is a great way to ensure you have a classroom full of healthy students! 

Effects of Teaching Social Skills

Ultimately, teaching social skills allows the classroom to have a positive, peaceful environment. They allow students to learn how to manage themselves during everyday classroom situations. Honestly, every minute spent teaching social skills is absolutely worth it! Students will love learning and practicing routines and procedures that help them be kind, caring classmates.

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