2018 – The Responsive Classroom SEL Year in Review
It’s been another great year at Center for Responsive Schools! We are grateful for the opportunity to continue sharing the Responsive Classroom approach to Social-Emotional Learning with educators around the world. Here are some fun facts that sum up how we did just that in 2018.
Responsive Classroom Around the Globe
We worked with teachers in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., and several US territories—as well as 32 countries around the world!
The farthest someone traveled to attend an RC workshop was from Punjab, Pakistan to San Francisco, CA (7,582.65 miles).
The farthest an RC book has traveled this year: Yardsticks traveled from our warehouse in Fitchburg, MA to Berrimah in Australia’s Northern Territory (9,959.79 miles).
Kaleidoscope
Our consultants visited almost 3,000 elementary and middle school classrooms around the globe as a part of the Kaleidoscope observation and feedback process! Being there as classrooms—and whole schools—transform into safe, joyful, and engaging learning communities continues to be an honor.
Did You Know…?
The kaleidoscope was invented by Scottish scientist David Brewster in 1816. He named it “kaleidoscope” from the Greek words:
- kalos = beautiful
- eidos = form
- scopos = watcher
Therefore, kaleidoscope means “beautiful form watcher”.
SEL in the Media
In an article posted on Forbes.com in January, Stacey Childress, CEO of the NewSchools Venture Fund, asked whether the “innovation window” opened by social-emotional learning had already closed. The answer, of course, is no!
After 35 years of creating books, resources and professional development programs for educators, we’re entering the next phase of social-emotional learning, and we couldn’t be more excited about the future.
Just this year we…
- Launched Avenue A Books, our new publishing imprint that addresses SEL through engaging, fun and relatable stories that speak directly to kids
- Introduced five brand-new RC workshops, addressing SEL both in the classroom and in the larger school community
- Published 3 new books including the Responsive Advisory Meeting Book, Teaching Self-Discipline, and Building an Academic Community
- Released the 4th edition of Yardsticks. This comprehensive guide helps educators better understand students’ social and academic behavior through a developmental lens, and it’s one of the most trusted resources for RC teachers.
- Launched our first Quick Coaching Guides—hands-on, structured guides to key Responsive Classroom topics:
- Classroom Organization
- Replacing Direct Teaching with Active Teaching
- Developing Effective Listeners
- The Power of Envisioning Language
- The Teacher’s Role in Responsive Advisory Meeting
- Using Visual Cues to Support Learning
And there’s even more to come in 2019!
As well as continuing to provide innovative new books and professional development programs, we’re currently finalizing a set of comprehensive SEL Standards for grades K-8! We’re designing these standards to help you teach students developmentally appropriate skills that will enable them to acquire five SEL competencies: Cooperation, Assertiveness, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self-Control.