- Federal Way Public Schools
- Social Emotional Learning(SEL) for In-Person Transition
Supporting Your Child’s Transition to In-Person Learning
Tips for Families:
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- Partner with your child’s teacher to communicate how your child feels about coming back to school, so everyone knows how to better support your child during the transition to in-person learning.
- Before your child comes to school each day, please make sure they have had breakfast and/or lunch to support their transition to learning at school. For the 2021-22 school year, breakfast and lunch will be provided to FWPS scholars at no cost regardless of free and reduced eligibility status. More details can be found on the FWPS Nutrition Services webpage.
Communicating with your Child:
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Your child may experience a range of feelings in returning to in-person learning, or remaining in remote instruction. Here are some ways to talk to, share, and support your child during the transition:
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Normalize How Your Child is Feeling:
- You are not the only one experiencing what you’re feeling (ex: some children may be happy or excited, about this, some may be mad, frustrated, let down, etc.)
- You are not the only one feeling __________. Lots of young people are also feeling ________.
- All feelings matter, and it’s okay if you feel _________________.
- When I have felt, ___________ some of the things that were helpful for me were……
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Identify Your Child’s Strengths:
When listening to your child share their feelings, listen for areas of strength that are underlying their emotions.
- You sound worried about going back to in-person learning. This tells me that you may have questions or need more information about how you can stay safe and supported this school year. We will take it one day at a time.
- You sound excited to go to school and learn in person. This tells me that you feel ready to meet your teacher(s) and classmates this school year.
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Validate and Restate without Judgement:
This helps children label and express their feelings, encourages emotional expression, and builds a strong emotional vocabulary.
- It sounds like you’re feeling ______________. Can you tell me more about that?
- Ask: How are you feeling? Why are you feeling this way?
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Focus on what you can control:
When difficult things happen that are out of our control, it is helpful to identify elements of our situation that we CAN control, and to focus our energy on these.
- Sometimes when hard things happen, we can feel powerless. Let’s identify a few things that we can control… what are you excited to continue doing that’s working?
- Is there a way that you’d like to express your feelings about this to someone? Can I help you write some things down, create something, or get your feelings out?
- When I have felt trapped, stuck, or limited in my choices, I chose to focus on _________________ and this helped me regain a sense of control over my options.
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Reinforce Supports:
- You are going to be okay; we will get through this together.
- Lots of adults and students in our family, community, and schools care about you and are here to support you.
School & Community Resources:
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- School Counselors: Each school has a counselor who is available to all students throughout the school year to support social and emotional wellness. If you or your child would like to connect with your school counselor, please visit the School Counselor webpage to locate the name and contact information of your school’s counselor. School counselors can also be a resource for families as children transition to in-person learning and can support additional connections to mental health resources in the local community.
- Family liaisons serve as a bridge between school staff and parents at each elementary and K-8 school in FWPS. To connect with your school family liaison by email, please visit the Family Liaison webpage and click on the name next to your child’s school. Family liaisons can be a resource for families as children transition to in-person learning, supporting communication and connection to additional school and community resources, as needed.
- Please visit the Community Resources webpage, for additional resources in the local community, including Food Assistance/Meals, Internet Assistance, Childcare Assistance, Shelter & Housing, Rental & Utilities, Financial Assistance, Health & Wellness Assistance, and Immigrant Resources.
