With a new school year approaching, there is no doubt teachers will be navigating through another year with uncertainties and an increased need to focus on social emotional learning (SEL). While there are many SEL books and read-aloud programs to help students focus on these skills, teachers can also benefit from learning, reading, and discussing with colleagues on how to best support their students in addition to taking care of their own personal and professional growth.
While starting a book club during the school year may seem like one more thing to add to your already busy schedule, the benefits are rewarding. Whether your book club meets every other week, once a month, or once every three months there is so much you will find that you can learn from each other through conversation with like-minded educators.
An SEL book club especially is a great space to share ideas on activities, programs you’ve used and challenges you’ve faced while implementing social emotional learning in the classroom. Here are 5 tips on how to start your own SEL book club:
1. Create a community
Whether you are looking to start a book club at your school, district, or you are looking to reach others across the states, you’ll be creating a unique opportunity to connect with educators who are also passionate about SEL.Here are some tips to help you decide who your book club community might include:
Grade level- Do you want to work with a variety of educators within your level or across an age range?
Diversity- Including other districts in your area who’d be able to attend in person sessions can be a great opportunity to meet more educators with various backgrounds and who work with students whose backgrounds may look different from your own students.
In-person or virtual- While more interpersonal relationships may be established with in-person meetings, virtual sessions may be more feasible with busy schedules. Virtual book clubs can also be opened up to other educators across the state, country or world!
Communicate- Decide how you will gain interest from your book club (such as through social media or your school newsletter) and you will be communicating with your book club members about upcoming discussions. For example, the Better Kids summer SEL book club communicated through email to share Zoom links and the recorded versions of the discussions for those who might not have been able to attend.
2. Choose your books
An SEL focused book club can include a wide variety of books from SEL specifics to related topics to developments in education and child development. Depending on how long your book club will run, you can decide on weekly or monthly themes. Explore New York Times bestsellers to recently published works. Here is a list of the books our summer SEL book club read:
Social Emotional Learning and the Brain: Strategies to Help your Students Thrive by Marlee Sprenger
I Wish My Teacher Knew: How one Question can Change Everything for our Kids by Kyle Schwartz
Mindfulness in the Classroom: An Evidence-Based Program to Reduce Disruptive Behavior and Increase Academic Engagement by Joshua C. Felber and Nirbhay N. Singh
The Whole-Brain Child: 12 Revolutionary Strategies to Nurture Your Child's Developing Mind by Daniel J. Siegel and Tina Payne Bryson
Creating Innovators: The Making of Young People Who Will Change the World by Tony Wagner
3. Decide how often you’ll meet
Making time for meeting as a group in addition to finishing the book on time may be difficult with the busyness of the school year. However, remember this is to enhance your own growth and understanding and to incorporate new ideas in your classroom and help your students be successful. If you are creating a book club at your school or district, consider discussing with your administrators how this could contribute to professional development so they can support your efforts which could include purchasing the books for you and your colleagues or seeking out grants to purchase books.
4. Establish goals and expectations
An objective for your book club will be important as you begin to recruit others to join. Here are a few ideas that may help you build a helpful foundation:
Learn more about social emotional skills and development
Discover new SEL activities to use in the classroom
Stay up to date on new research on child development and trends in education
Creating expectations for your group will be important as well because you don’t want anyone to feel like you are assigning them homework! Here are a few helpful tips:
It’s okay if you don’t finish the book
Feel free to ask questions
Sharing your favorite related activities is welcomed and encouraged
Attend when you can- life happens, we’re happy to have you join when you’re available
5. Have fun!
Most importantly, starting a book club should be a fun and exciting opportunity for you to learn with and from other educators! Sharing stories is an important part of understanding our growth and how we can use our experiences to help our students develop their own social emotional skills. The feedback we’ve received from participants of our summer book club has been encouraging as educators shared their appreciation for having the space to share and learn insights from others.
As you prepare for the school year ahead we hope you consider starting an SEL book club to help you and your colleagues grow. Remember, you don’t have to do it alone, talk to a colleague or administrator about supporting you, and you’ll be amazed by the response as everyone learns new activities they can’t wait to try in the classroom!
