The Bellevue School District will launch a new social and emotional learning curriculum in grades three through five to help children work well together.
Called the RULER approach – an acronym for Recognizing, Understanding, Labeling, Expressing and Regulating emotion – the curriculum teaches skills to promote effective personal, social and workplace success. The idea is based on decades of research from Yale University,
Research shows that emotional literacy skills support academic success and promote school engagement. school officials say. Data also shows that students who recognize and regulate their emotions are more focused on instruction and invested in their learning. Those social and emotional skills create a foundation for taking academic risks
Over the school year, students and staff will learn four “anchor tools” to develop skills:
- Emotional Literacy Charter: Students create and sign charters to describe how they want to feel in class, what needs to happen to support those feelings and guidelines for handling uncomfortable conflict.
- Mood Meter: Students learn to use a tool for recognizing and labeling their feelings.
- Meta-Moments: Students learn strategies for expanding the “space in time” between an emotional trigger and a response.
- Blueprint: Used to problem-solve conflicts and disagreements, with students and adults considering each other’s feelings and perspectives to identify healthy solutions.
The RULER approach will be built into lessons throughout the school year.While the RULER approach will be introduced to students in grades three through five this year, school staff and administrators across the district also have been trained to use the tools.
