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Suggested SEL Activities:
Order From Chaos
We are pleased to share a sampling of items you can use during a virtual, hybrid, or in-person class during the week ahead.
 
This week we will play a word game and discuss how to find order and calm out of chaos. Hybrid and virtual schedules have created classrooms where teachers and students may never have met each other in person, but we hope this will help to build a strong, empathetic community. This activity is estimated to take about 30 minutes of active teaching time.

Please share these emails with your colleagues. We have continued to list the focus areas from the SEL wheel next to each activity to make it easy for you to help your students grow academically and emotionally.
 
CASEL (Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning) has recently expanded the SEL wheel to identify and emphasize the importance of establishing equitable learning environments and coordinating practices across key settings of classrooms, schools, families, and communities to enhance all students’ social, emotional, and academic learning. Click on the revised SEL wheel below for more information.
Activity: Order From Chaos
(Self Awareness, Responsible Decision Making)
Suggested for: Teachers, Advisory Groups
Time allotted: 30 minutes

Objective:
In Order From Chaos, students will work through the word scrambles and discuss the meaning of each word, or list of words, leading to a final discussion.

Materials:
  • Word Scramble online tool found at Education.com or other online resource.

Procedure:
  • Prep your word list ahead of time. Create the list based on current topics from your classroom. This could be a list of Spanish words for your world language class, historical terms for world history class, or a list of emotions for your advisory group.

Princeton-Blairstown Center Example:
EEPORMW
OSCILA ESUCJIT
BSSYTUIANLIITA
NATOCOLRBIALO

Social-Emotional Check-in Example:
TMNARENIDTIEO
AHPYP
NCGHDLLEAE
ASD
GIRT
TTDRRUSFEA
EOUJLSA

  • The first example is a list of the Core Values of The Princeton-Blairstown Center: Empower, Social Justice, Sustainability, and Collaboration. The second example could be used as an check-in/temperature taking with your students: Determination, Happy, Challenged, Sad, Grit, Frustrated, Jealous.
  • Place each scrambled word into a presentation slide or share directly with the class in a list.
  • Allow students time to review the scrambled word and respond or write down their answers. This could be in the form of a race with points awarded, or simple discussion as each word is uncovered.
  • At the conclusion of your word list, ask each student to create a scrambled word of their own. They can use the online tool or simply scramble the words themselves. Share these with the class and allow time for discovery!

Tips and Tricks for Teachers:
  • Use this tool to benefit your class and your curriculum. The activity can be tailored towards any class or group of students.
  • The larger the word, the more challenging. If appropriate, use some words unrelated to any obvious themes to further challenge students.
Suggested Processing/Reflection/Journaling Questions:
  1. What does this list of words mean to you?
  2. Were you able to identify with any of the words posted?
  3. How did it feel to unscramble the word and discover the answer? Can you think of other challenges in life that you have unscrambled?
  4. At first glance, the scrambled words and letters look very chaotic, but after careful examination and some thought, a word appears. What challenges in life or school have appeared throughout the last year that you have overcome?
Looking for more help creating group norms, setting up a cohesive group dynamic, or deeper exploration of Full Value Contracts? Consider booking a virtual program with our experienced facilitators.
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