The world of K-12 public education is filled with an alphabet soup of acronyms, and one that Marshalltown community members have heard us use often is “SEL,” which stands for social-emotional learning.

Those three letters carry an incredible amount of meaning for our staff and students. Social-emotional learning helps children learn and understand how to manage their emotions, set and achieve positive goals in socially appropriate ways, learn about empathy, learn how to develop positive healthy relationships with adults and children, and learn to make responsible decisions.

I am excited about the work underway right now around SEL programming for Bobcat students. One example is the District SEL Steering Committee, a group of education professionals from MCSD and Central Rivers Area Education Agency working to continue growing in five key areas: Adult SEL, Core SEL, Collaborative Problem Solving, Data & Assessment, and Communications.

Also exciting is the important SEL work being done in school buildings and classrooms by our exceptional school staff. At a recent school board meeting, Anson Elementary School staff recently presented on the great programming being offered to foster students’ knowledge and abilities around SEL.

Anson’s Responsive Classroom program focuses on building healthy relationships at school, and includes activities like morning meeting, quiet time, closing circle, asking parents and guardians about their hopes and dreams for their student, and displaying students’ work in classrooms and hallways. Anson’s CARES expectations – Cooperation, Assertion, Responsibility, Empathy, and Self Control – are also key to the Responsive Classroom program.

These are just a few of the examples of how the Marshalltown CSD is proactively supporting the social, emotional, behavioral, and mental health needs of our students as part of their daily learning routines. If you would like to learn more about the District’s SEL efforts, please visit www.marshalltown.k12.ia.us/parents/social-emotional-learning/

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Matt Cretsinger is the Director of Special Services for the Marshalltown Community School District