Understand social and emotional learning (SEL)
Suggestion for implementing the strategy ‘Supporting and strengthening peer relationships’
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SEL Framework
SEL Framework
Social and emotional learning (SEL) enhances students’ capacity to integrate skills, attitudes, and behaviours so they can deal effectively with daily tasks and challenges.
Create a positive environment
Create a positive environment
Students learn best in positive classroom environments that nurture their social, emotional, and cognitive skills.
Integrate SEL into the classroom
Integrate SEL into the classroom
SEL is most effective when it is part of daily classroom life.
Closed Captions
Support social and emotional development
Support social and emotional development
- Use modeling and coaching to help students recognise how they feel or how someone else might be feeling.
- Teach students to use conflict-resolution skills and use dialogue to them through the steps to help them apply a skill in a new situation.
- Practice group decision making and setting classroom rules in class meetings.
- Teach cooperative skills and plan to practice these through participation in team sports and games.
- Support the development of problem solving skills by analysing an event (this can be in any curriculum area) through a set of questions based on a problem-solving model.
- Take a tuakana-teina approach, in which a younger student is paired with an older one to teach, to build self-confidence, a sense of belonging, and enhance academic skills.
- Teach reflective listening with students working with a partner to describe a situation and having the partner repeat what he or she heard.
SEL and key competencies
SEL and key competencies
Aspects of SEL are evident in the key competencies
Understand the Links between SEL and the key competencies
Useful resources
Useful resources
What is SEL?
The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) is the world’s leading organisation advancing the practice of promoting integrated academic, social, and emotional learning (SEL) for all children from preschool to high school. Their website provides information about SEL competencies, whole school approaches for introducing and teaching SEL, and resources.
Publisher: Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional
Big ideas | Social and emotional learning
A series of videos and student activities to support social and emotional learning for primary school students. Growth mindset, perseverance, empathy, and gratitude are the topics covered. These are part of ClassDojo. They can be accessed without having a ClassDojo account.
Publisher: Class Twist

Teaching the whole child: Instructional practices that support social-emotional learning in three teacher evaluation frameworks
Read time: 76 min
This research-to-practice publication, developed by the American Institute for Research, supports educators to identify teaching practices that promote student social-emotional learning. It showcases how three professional teaching frameworks embed practices that influence student academic learning and student social and emotional competencies.
Publisher: American Institutes for Research
Next steps
More suggestions for implementing the strategy “Support and strengthen peer relationships”:
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Current page Understand social and emotional learning
Return to the guide “Supporting positive peer relationships”
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How to use this site
Guide to Index of the guide: Positive peer relationships
Strategies for action:
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Support and strengthen peer relationshipsShow suggestions for Support and strengthen peer relationships
- Teach social skills
- Understand social and emotional learning
- Facilitate positive peer relationships
- Support friendships
- Support students in the playground
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Facilitate collaborative learningShow suggestions for Facilitate collaborative learning