The shift to recognize and implement Social Emotional Learning (SEL) in education has been accelerated, highlighting its crucial role in student development. While the increased attention to SEL is a positive step, many resources appear to be quickly produced and lack depth. However, for educators with experience in SEL, like myself, integrating these practices is not new but a continued passion. For over 15 years, I’ve focused on empowering students from underrepresented backgrounds by fostering a growth mindset and demonstrating their potential for higher education. Through this work, I’ve curated and developed numerous SEL activities that resonate with middle schoolers. Today, I’m excited to share one of my most effective and recently updated activities for digital learning environments.
Utilizing “Inside Out” for Social Emotional Learning in Middle School
Disney/Pixar’s “Inside Out” is an exceptional tool for teaching emotional intelligence. I consistently incorporate this movie into my college preparation elective class as part of a brain unit, inspired by resources from the former Thrive Foundation. This unit aims to demonstrate to 7th graders the power of their brains, enhance their emotional control, and provide insight into their emotional responses. While I had successfully taught this unit for years, “Inside Out” became a pivotal element upon its release.
The film personifies emotions as characters within the mind of an 11-year-old named Riley, navigating her through life changes. Riley’s experience with trauma, moving to a new city, profoundly impacts her emotional state. The movie cleverly uses allegory to represent the complex workings of the brain, offering a wealth of neuroscience concepts in an engaging and accessible way. “Inside Out” beautifully illustrates the significance of empathy, a skill that is still developing in many middle school students due to their still-maturing brain regions responsible for decision-making and empathy. The movie is both humorous and deeply moving, making it a perfect medium to connect with this age group. If you haven’t watched it, I highly recommend doing so to fully appreciate the activities I’m about to share.
Many of these activities are inspired and adapted from ideas shared by other educators. I am grateful for this collaborative spirit within the educational community.
Social Emotional Learning Activities for Middle School Slides
Here are two engaging SEL activities utilizing slides, perfect for middle school students:
Activity 0: Spot the Emotion – Emotion Recognition Slides
Google Slides (PearDeck Ready!)
This activity, adaptable to fit anywhere within an SEL unit, works wonderfully as a fun, engaging exercise, particularly on a Friday. “Spot the Emotion” uses a series of images depicting various facial expressions and scenarios. Students are tasked with identifying the emotion being portrayed in each image. Middle schoolers, especially boys, often benefit from focused practice in recognizing emotions in others. This activity effectively demonstrates that with careful observation and attention to cues, understanding emotions becomes achievable.
Activity 1: My Memory Bank – Emotional Memory Worksheet & Digital Slides
PowerPoint Printable Worksheet I Google Slides Digital Edition
“My Memory Bank” is a personal favorite and a cornerstone activity within this SEL unit. Students create their own “memory bank” or “memory wall,” inspired by Riley’s in “Inside Out.” Each orb in their memory bank represents a significant memory, idea, or event, such as “camping,” “math,” or “friends.” Students then color each orb to reflect the emotion they primarily associate with that memory. To enhance engagement and model vulnerability, I actively participate in this activity alongside my students, sharing my own memory bank. Comparing my emotional associations (e.g., “yes, earbuds do make me angry!”) with theirs sparks enjoyable discussions and reveals interesting insights. This activity also serves as a valuable precursor to further self-reflection, helping students recognize their dominant emotions by simply observing the color patterns in their completed memory banks.
Conclusion: Enhancing SEL with Engaging Activities
Integrating social emotional learning activities into the middle school curriculum is essential for fostering well-rounded development. Activities like “Spot the Emotion” and “My Memory Bank,” especially when used with engaging slides and visual aids, provide accessible and impactful methods for students to explore and understand their emotions and the emotions of others. By leveraging resources like “Inside Out” and adapting activities for digital platforms, educators can effectively promote SEL skills and create a more emotionally intelligent learning environment.
