The Key to Understanding Self-Concept: Fun SEL Activity for Kindergarten

Hooray for kindergartners! They successfully reach the end of Positive Action Unit 1 and learn all about their self-concept, which lays the foundation for their self-awareness and lifelong development. As a positive reinforcement for their hard work, this lesson awards them a special key to help them throughout their social-emotional learning journey.

Through a visual aid, kindergartners receive one of the keys they need to earn throughout the curriculum to enter Castle Self-Concept. In this evidence-based SEL lesson, their beloved puppets, Picks-It and Nix-It, reward them with their purple "Self-Concept Key." This valuable item signifies that they have learned and understood what self-concept is, how it is formed, and how it influences their behavior. It also serves as their reward for practicing positive actions and for keeping themselves healthy and happy. As they earn their rewards, kindergartners prove themselves ready and prepared to venture to their next destination—the Land of Physical!

The next part of the lesson proceeds with the awarding where each student accepts their own "Keys to Gates and Castle Self-Concept." They color them purple, cut them out, and attach them to the "Keeper of the Keys" activity sheets. This simple and enjoyable activity fully immerses students in the lesson and enhances their engagement.

Positive reinforcement, creativity, and immersion are the effective ways this lesson uses to ensure effective learning. At the end of every unit, the curriculum rewards the efforts of the students with keys to collect. This concretizes their progress and increases their intrinsic motivation to keep learning and improve their behavior.

Immersing kindergartners in the adventure within the Kingdom of Positive Action is creativity that inspires their imagination. This is an important part of learning which keeps the lesson fun and relatable for the students, helping them to remember the important concepts in the process. This is also helpful in developing their cognition and enhancing their intellectual skills. With Positive Action, kindergartners are guaranteed to learn and improve!