Nutrition

Information for Social Emotional Learning

We define social and emotional learning (SEL) as an integral part of education and human development. SEL is the process through which all young people and adults acquire and apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes to develop healthy identities, manage emotions and achieve personal and collective goals, feel, and show empathy for others, establish, and maintain supportive relationships, and make responsible and caring decisions.

SEL advances educational equity and excellence through authentic school-family-community partnerships to establish learning environments and experiences that feature trusting and collaborative relationships, rigorous and meaningful curriculum and instruction, and ongoing evaluation. SEL can help address various forms of inequity and empower young people and adults to co-create thriving schools and contribute to safe, healthy, and just communities (Learn more at https://casel.org/).

Entering its second year

with a full-time District Social Emotional Learning (SEL) Coordinator, the Taos Municipal Schools will continue to pursue fulfilling the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning’s (CASEL) substantial definition of what SEL means (sidebar right).

During the 2021 – 2022 schoolyear, all employees participated in two wellness and enrichment professional development mornings facilitated by ten community partners. Three community partners followed up by offering evening enrichment activities to employees. Read about it here: https://hechingerreport.

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All elementary schools in the district had at least two faculty SEL professional development afternoons last year, with additional support provided to site based SEL teams at each school. Taos Middle School participated in a pilot project on educator well-being developed by the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. The data from that project will help steer a highly motivated core group from Taos Middle School in expanding SEL throughout the school for all students and adults. Taos High School held it’s twelfth annual EQ Retreat this past April. There are plans to weave components of the upcoming EQ Retreat in late August into year-long activities that build on foundational skills introduced during the retreat.

A group of eight Taos educators visited schools in Dallas in April to observe “SEL in Action.” Our SEL colleagues in Dallas hosted visits to schools that incorporate SEL into their daily routines, with focus on CASEL’s Three Signature Practices, authentic student voice and leadership, school calming and resetting areas, and administrative participation and support with SEL. The Taos educators returned with concrete ideas for SEL implementation at their own schools.

Administrators and teachers at all Taos schools are in the process of incorporating CASEL’s Three Signature Practices into all adult and student group interactions. New this year, each school will have a paid SEL Champion to promote and assist in developing SEL capacity at each school and with each school’s SEL site team. The elementary schools and middle school are reviewing potential curriculum to build into daily and weekly schedules. Community partners at UNM-Taos /The Harwood Museum are building an SEL program for fifth grade, sixth grade, and art teachers to help our students navigate the transition from elementary to middle school. The district was also awarded an “SEL in Action” grant from the Rockefeller Philanthropy Advisors and Education First to create a four-part student leadership summit that will culminate with sixth through twelfth grade students sharing with administrators and the school board what they need to feel safer and more engaged at school.

For more information or to share ideas about building SEL in our schools, please contact Mark Richert, District SEL Coordinator, at mark.richert@taosschools.org