SEL Skill Development During Recess and PE
Focus, emotion regulation, and goal setting are social and emotional learning skills that teachers can address during recess and PE.
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I鈥檇 like to offer up four social and emotional聽learning (SEL) skills that can be built up during physical education class or recess. Outdoor physical activities are an ideal time to develop SEL. Some of this is done in the moment,聽while at other times it聽involves instruction and preparation. For example, you may call students鈥� attention to certain actions during their participation and observations during play, and follow this up by facilitating a class discussion around their observations.
1.听贵辞肠耻蝉
Sometimes students are concerned only about what they will do when it鈥檚 their turn鈥攆or example, when the ball will next come to them. In a group game that has a ball, you can assist students with attending to the small things involved. This builds their appreciation of all the moving pieces that are critical to team鈥攁nd individual鈥攕uccess.
Give them an assignment: 鈥淲hen you are involved in the activity, notice the many details of what is happening.聽Who is doing what, and why?鈥� You can also ask, 鈥淲hat is being said? How does that make the game or activity better or harder?鈥�
You can then lead a class discussion about what students observed.
2. Emotion Regulation
What do athletes do at the most important moments in a game or match?聽Let鈥檚 think about what pitchers do, soccer goalies do, baseball batters do, or tennis players do. They take a deep breath, and they have rituals that help them calm down.聽Different athletes do things in slightly different ways, and it鈥檚 worth noticing these variations and discussing them with students (or watching video clips聽of these rituals of various athletes).
You can then assist students in identifying what they can do to regulate their emotions in stressful situations during outdoor physical activities. Also explore with them ways they can remind themselves to use their strategy in 鈥渂ig game鈥� situations.
3.聽Goal Setting
Every student should have an explicit long- and short-term goal for recess activities or PE: 鈥淲hat is something I want to get better at, and what am I going to do today, or this week, to get better at it?鈥� These are important conversations, helping students continue to聽develop goal-setting skills and also putting time to best use. (Coaches also will find that students are more engaged when they consciously have goals in mind.)
Goal setting is no less important when students are in the process of playing, whether at PE or in recess.聽Ask students to consider, for example, what soccer players or basketball players do when they don鈥檛 have the ball.聽They are not just standing around鈥攐r at least聽they shouldn鈥檛 be!聽What could they be thinking about? How are they getting themselves ready for what might happen next?聽When they鈥檙e out in the field, they have a goal聽to be prepared and ready to help their teammates.
4.聽Preparation and Practice
Another aspect of physical activity and sports play that students may not understand adequately is what happens before the action begins. Consider showing brief video clips of preparation routines from athletes like tennis star Serena Williams or basketball pro LeBron James.聽You can ask your students, 鈥淲hy do they do this?鈥�
A discussion can ensue: They don鈥檛 just begin playing鈥攅ven though these are professionals, they still have to prepare. You can share with students that whether it鈥檚 PE, recess, or any of their subject areas in school, they will be more likely to reach their goals if they prepare.
Sometimes the preparation conversation will be about interpersonal matters and not the activity itself.聽For example, with a student who is having trouble joining activities or games in recess or PE, a conversation about the goal (鈥淲hich are you planning to join?鈥�) and how to prepare (鈥淲hat are you going to do to help you get in the game? What will you do if your first idea does not work?鈥�) can be valuable, as can a check-in afterwards.
When activities in PE will not involve all students playing, or students having to wait a while before they get their chance, have a conversation with students to help them prepare for what will happen, and to focus on different aspects of the activity while they are not directly playing or participating.
Additional SEL Skills
Whether you鈥檙e a coach, a physical education teacher, or a recess monitor, consider other SEL skills鈥攑roblem-solving and planning, teamwork/cooperation, resilience and overcoming obstacles, using feedback effectively, recognizing success鈥攁nd the various ways you can bolster them in your students.