Introduction

The skill of being helpful is an essential component of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL). It teaches students the importance of kindness, respect, and empathy towards others. By practicing helpfulness, students learn to build positive relationships and support their peers. This blog post will discuss an easy-to-implement activity, thought-provoking discussion questions, and related skills for teaching students how to be helpful.

No-Prep Activity: Helping Hands

This no-prep activity encourages students to recognize everyday opportunities to be helpful and to take action. The activity can be easily incorporated into your classroom routine.

1. At the beginning of the day, explain to your students that they will be focusing on being helpful throughout the day.
2. Throughout the day, observe your students and make a mental note of instances where they show helpfulness.
3. At the end of the day, gather your students and ask them to share examples of when they were helpful or saw others being helpful.
4. Encourage students to reflect on the impact of their actions and discuss how being helpful makes them and others feel.

The Helping Hands activity requires no additional materials and can be easily adapted to any classroom setting. It promotes a positive classroom environment and fosters a sense of community among students.

Discussion Questions

Stimulate further discussions on being helpful with these questions:

1. Why is it important to be helpful to others?
2. How does being helpful benefit both the helper and the person being helped?
3. What are some ways students can be helpful at school and at home?
4. How does being helpful contribute to building strong relationships with others?
5. Can you think of a time when someone was helpful to you? How did it make you feel?

Related Skills

Along with being helpful, there are several other related skills that contribute to a student’s social-emotional development. These skills include:

• Empathy: Understanding and sharing the feelings of others, which enables students to be compassionate and helpful.
• Active listening: Paying full attention to the speaker, which helps students identify ways to be helpful and supportive.
• Cooperation: Working together with others to achieve a common goal, often involving acts of helpfulness.
• Problem-solving: Identifying issues and finding solutions, which can involve offering help to others.

Next Steps

Ready to explore more activities and resources to teach the skill of being helpful and other essential social-emotional learning skills? Sign up for free sample materials at Everyday Speech, where you’ll find a comprehensive collection of SEL resources for educators.