After emerging from pandemic lock-downs and district closings many public and school
librarians started reporting changes in kids’ behavior. Many adults noticed actions that
were concerning, ranging from inabilities to reengage in play and normal conversations
to actions demonstrating a lack of empathy. A call went out for remedial Social
Emotional Learning – or SEL – programming.
Many librarians and educators appreciate the positive differences these interventions
have made, and desire to expand and continue these efforts. Luckily, there are
inexpensive and effective themes and presentation strategies that can be seamlessly
integrated into existing programming.
Possibly the most beneficial program idea to consider for almost any library is yoga.
Introductory classes in simple poses, breathing techniques, and centering exercises can
be taught to just about any age group, from toddlers to teens (and accompanying
grown-ups). All that are really essential are adequate space and someone to lead the
session. Mats are nice, but not absolutely necessary, especially in carpeted settings.
And finding leaders shouldn’t be too difficult in most communities. Local studios are
often willing to donate time. Other possibilities include staff members who have been
practitioners, school counselors and coaches, hospital and public health outreach
services, and even virtual courses. There are numerous physical, mental, and emotional
benefits (strength, balance, flexibility, relaxation, focus, stress reduction), and sessions
can be tailored to last just long enough to get kids calmed down and receptive to
subsequent activities to hour-long sessions. There are also infinite ways to expand and
extend yoga-related activities: outdoor sessions, building-wide observances, guest
presenters, yoga with pets, and so on.
Teaching kids skills to self-monitor through yoga is one way of encouraging mutually
beneficial social interactions. Another method is through modeling desired behaviors.
Providing programming that sets up relatable, everyday scenarios along with potential
responses can be enlightening for children, reinforcing both desirable actions and
providing useful vocabulary. Depending on time, budget, and local talent, these
scenarios can take on just about any format: plays, puppet shows, Readers’ Theater,
even choose-your-own adventure audience participation activities. Follow-up with open-
ended discussion prompts: What might have been a better way of handling this
situation? What are some words that might have helped? Allowing kids to repeat, chant, or sing desired responses is always fun (for big kids, too). This type of real-world
problem solving can be incorporated into almost any read-aloud or group session.
There are also basic strategies that librarians can incorporate into existing presentations
and lessons to help kids practice empathy and increase communication skills. As far as
communicating, humans are programmed to be social creatures, and the simplest
strategy is to offer audiences multiple opportunities to talk. Try building in regular turn-
and-talks. At appropriate times, ask students or audience members to respond to an
open-ended question: Have you ever felt like this? Ever heard of something like this?
Can you think of a good example? Ask them to turn to the person sitting next to them
and have a quiet, 10-second conversation. Use prompts such as Turn and talk to your
grown-up or Ask your elbow partner or Talk to someone sitting in the row in front of you.
Tell them you’re giving them 10 seconds; you usually should be able to pull them back
into listening mode in about 30 seconds or so (ringing a bell or setting a timer can
help). Depending on your time and the nature of your posed question you can solicit
volunteers to share a couple mini-conversations. Doing this also provides opportunities
to emphasize important vocabulary words and concepts.
Encouraging these brief conversational check-ins can also be very effective after setting
up directions or giving a series of instructions, perhaps during crafting and maker
sessions, or before moving to tables or stations or even before logging onto computers.
Encourage empathy by asking participants to turn to someone (it helps to be precise:
the person on your left, the two people sitting nearest you) and repeat your directions to
make sure everyone’s on the same wavelength. Make it a group project to ensure that
everyone knows what they’re doing. Try asking kids to look around periodically during
group activities to see if any of their neighbors need help before moving on – and
encourage them to help out, if they can.
A few additional suggestions: to support social skills (teamwork, communication,
inclusion, empathy) integrate these SEL strategies and support mechanisms into all
programming, whether story hours, read-alouds, readers; advisory, and research and
inquiry instruction. When considering programming, concentrate on activities that
naturally bring kids together. Whenever possible, have kids work in teams to work
towards a common end project. Just about any craft, maker, or other exploration can
require (and celebrate the talents of) multiple participants and multiple skill sets
(research, planning, drawing, writing, building, presenting, etc.). Offer safe spaces for
children to explore social and emotional responses (role-playing, call-and-response,
alternate scenarios, do-overs). Consider replacing contests with limited winners and
hierarchies to all-participant celebrations. And finally, be sure to model SEL social skills
with your adult colleagues at every opportunity!
Kathleen McBroom is the School Library Media Practicum Coordinator with the School
of Information Sciences at Wayne State University in Detroit. She has worked in both
public and school libraries.
This post addresses the following ALSC Core Competencies: I. Commitment to Client Group
and III. Programming