Character starts from the core!
After children have learned self-regulation skills, they are able to build a core of character and social-emotional learning skills that will help them to build healthy relationships and solve problems throughout their lives. Cloud9World’s Elementary Core program consists of 30 different character strengths provided for the early childhood level as well as an elementary level. Flexible cross grade level lesson plans, an online Social-Emotional Competency Indicator, and customized packaging empower schools to meet the specific social-emotional and academic needs of their students.
Research behind the Elementary Core
Social-emotional learning benefits all students. Research supports the fact that continuous, purposeful, and systematic social-emotional learning instruction provides many positive outcomes:
- Increased attendance, grades, and graduation rates
- Decreased frequency and seriousness of negative behavior incidents
- Increased positive relationships
Research also supports a link between social-emotional learning skills and character.
Cloud9World offers a plethora of online resources for schools implementing this program to create a schoolwide cultural shift. Videos, games, morning announcements, books, and curriculum all add to the schoolwide focus on a single strength throughout the month. The monthly focus provides everyone involved time to internalize, practice, and apply their new social-emotional skills with each other and at home.
School/Home Connection
Cloud9World fully supports literacy development & family engagement. As part of the program, children can take books home to share with their families, providing parents with the valuable opportunity to model literacy and improve reading skills at home. As families discuss characters, story events, and character strengths identified in the stories, everyone is exposed to character development and essential social-emotional skills. True family engagement increases student motivation and strengthens the school/home connection bond.
Home Connection
Every lesson plan includes a Home Connection for students to take home. The Home Connection is a list of monthly activities that invite parents to engage with students around the themed character strength. Teachers often provide these as weekly or monthly homework opportunities.
Professional Development Opportunities
Professional development for the Elementary Core is available on site. Contact Cloud9World to schedule on-site professional learning. As part of the training, teachers will examine each of the Elementary Core product components and how they can be implemented to increase social-emotional, and academic learning.