{"id":746,"date":"2021-10-21T09:55:00","date_gmt":"2021-10-21T09:55:00","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2022-02-13T05:02:10","modified_gmt":"2022-02-13T05:02:10","slug":"helping-students-develop-social-skills","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rempub.com\/blog\/helping-students-develop-social-skills\/","title":{"rendered":"Helping Students Develop Social Skills"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n
Improve Social Behavior<\/b><\/div>\n

One of the most important things students learn at school is how to interact with each other. It isn\u2019t taught as a subject like English, History, and Math, but perhaps it should be. And so, the subject falls on every teacher to teach social skills to every student, everyday.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

Having possibly experienced isolation, financial hardships, and even loss of loved ones, students are yearning for a \u201creturn to normal.\u201d\u00a0 After being cooped up for over a year, many students will need a bit of a refresher when it comes to their social skills. Come to think of it, we all could!<\/span><\/p>\n

Add the complication of having to wear masks, then social skills become even more important. With facial recognition not fully kicking in until the age of 14, younger children wearing masks can have a hard time recognizing their friends, let alone be able to communicate with them. There<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>are<\/i>\u00a0<\/span>ways to help them socially so we can all stay well physically.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"communication\"<\/a><\/div>\n

Improve Communication Skills<\/b><\/p>\n

Students need to speak clearly and make eye contact while speaking. Listeners need to put all distractions aside and give their full attention. Educators can make a game of it. For example, have students read instructions that guide other students through a series of tasks.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Expression<\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Remind them that even if they are wearing a mask they can still communicate with expressions. A smile can be seen in the eyes as well as the mouth. Expressive hand gestures and body language help with communication. Words, of course, can also express feelings.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\n

<\/a><\/b><\/div>\n


\nEncourage Optimism<\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Model optimism by showing the students how to find the positive in what is originally seen as negative. A field trip being canceled for bad weather can feel like a real loss. Getting to watch a movie or play a game, and rescheduling the field trip can feel like a win. Encourage them to use positive words. \u201cNo worries,\u201d uses two negative sounding words. \u201cYou\u2019re welcome,\u201d is a positive statement.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Being Easy-Going<\/b><\/p>\n

\n

After spending so much time with their families, students will have to relearn how to navigate social situations with their peers. Giving in doesn\u2019t mean giving up. Remind students that when working in a group situation everyone can\u2019t always have their way. When everyone makes compromises, common goals are more easily met.<\/p>\n

\n

\n

<\/a><\/b><\/div>\n

Catch Them in the Act<\/b><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Students interact with each other all day long. Acknowledge their acts of generosity and kindness. Make a game out of doing random acts of kindness in and out of the classroom. Have students share their personal favorite from that week.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Honesty<\/b><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Talk about how practicing honesty isn\u2019t a free pass to say cruel things. The goal and intention behind the truth are what matters. The old adage, \u201cIf you don\u2019t have anything nice to say, don\u2019t say anything at all,\u201d still holds true.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

\"Social<\/a><\/div>\n

For social skills lessons, check out the Real-World Skills Series<\/b><\/i> for lessons on honesty, generosity and kindness; Real-World Skills: Social Skill – Improving Behavior (book 1)<\/a> at\u00a0<\/span>remedia.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Or get this book from our Digital website\u00a0RemediaDigital.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Real-World Skills: Social Skills – Improving Behavior – Book 1<\/a><\/p>\n

\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Improve Social Behavior One of the most important things students learn at school is how to interact with each other. It isn\u2019t taught as a subject like English, History, and Math, but perhaps it should be. And so, the subject falls on every teacher to teach social skills to every student, everyday. Having possibly experienced […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":986,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[123,106,137,138,134,135,131,107,136],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-746","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-behavior","8":"category-education","9":"category-generosity","10":"category-honesty","11":"category-kindness","12":"category-lessons","13":"category-social-skills","14":"category-teaching","15":"category-workbooks"},"yoast_head":"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n