Social Awareness Teaching Resources
Help your students build social awareness skills with activities and printables, social skills worksheets and more SEL teaching resources created by teachers specifically for elementary and middle school students.
This collection is full of digital and printable activities created by the expert teachers of the Teach Starter team to help teachers as they work with students on being more socially aware, recognize social cues, understand social dynamics and treat the people around them with kindness and courtesy.
Each teaching resource in this social awareness teaching resource collection has undergone rigorous review by the Teach Starter team to ensure it's ready for the classroom ... and your students!
Curious about teaching social awareness and wondering how to build students' social skills? Read on for some tips from our expert teachers!
What Is Social Awareness? A Kid-Friendly Definition
Being socially aware is not something that comes naturally to every child, and explaining what social awareness means can be tough. Our teacher team has created this kid-friendly definition to help!
Social awareness is understanding how other people feel and what they need. When we are socially aware, we notice how others are doing, and we make an effort to be kind and helpful to them.
Social awareness also means paying attention to the rules and ways people behave in different situations.
Being socially aware means we are more sensitive to the feelings of people around us, and we can then use our social skills — such as the ability to be kind, to listen and to cooperate – to work with others. It means we can empathize with others, understand diverse perspectives and navigate social interactions effectively.
Social Awareness Examples for Kids
Now that you've explained the social awareness meaning, it helps to explore what it actually looks like when you put it into practice. Many of your students may have at least some skills already at hand — depending on the individual student and grade level.
A kindergartner, for example, may show empathy by giving a crying friend a hug or sharing a toy, but they're typically not yet able to understand that people have different perspectives.
So how can your students show they're socially aware? Let's look at some kid-friendly social awareness examples!
- Taking turns on the playground or at the water fountain.
- Sharing crayons or gluesticks with classmates.
- Making eye contact with friends when they're speaking.
- Paying attention when a teacher is speaking and not interrupting.
- Collaborating with classmates to complete a group assignment.
- Using conflict resolution skills to address issues with a friend.
- Offering to help the gym teacher put away the basketballs or helping the school librarian shelve the books that have been left out by other students.
What Is the Difference Between Self Awareness and Social Awareness?
We teach students both self awareness and social awareness in elementary and middle school, and the two relate to one another as important aspects of emotional intelligence.
But where social awareness is focused outward on the emotions, perspectives and needs of others, self awareness focuses inward on recognizing those concepts in oneself.
Social Awareness and Emotional Intelligence
Emotional intelligence is an umbrella term that involves a number of the core components of a social emotional learning curriculum — including self awareness, self management and relationship management, as well as social awareness.
So how does social awareness specifically tie back to emotional intelligence? Being emotionally intelligent involves not just recognizing emotions in one's self but in others — the basic component of social awareness for our students.
Take social dynamics, for example. Understanding the social dynamics at play in a particular situation is a big part of being socially aware. Recognizing group norms, cultural differences and power dynamics all help our students to avoid causing offense or discomfort in others. It's a great example of having the emotional intelligence required to navigate a situation!
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For These, I'm Grateful! - Worksheet
Practice gratitude with this one-page worksheet.
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Social Stories - Getting Ready for School
A social story to develop strategies and skills for getting ready for school.
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Coping With Change - Social Story Mini Book
A social story to develop coping skills for when there is a change in the routine.
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Time To Eat – Lunch Procedures Mini Book
Teach your students appropriate cafeteria rules and procedures with a printable Time to Eat Social Stories booklet.
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Winter Paralympic Games – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students investigate the requirements of being a Paralympic Winter Games host city with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Paralympic Games Historical Timeline – Inquiry-Based Project
Introduce your students to the rich history of the Paralympic Games with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Let's Be Grateful! - Gratitude Game for Kids
Roll, write, and share what you're thankful for this year with a printable Thanksgiving Gratitude game for kids.
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Emotions Bingo
Play Emotions Bingo to help your little learners practice recognizing emotions.
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International Women's Day Gender Roles Task Cards
A set of 8 social strategy scenario task cards that explore issues and ideas related to International Women’s Day.
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Having a Conversation Social Story
Build confidence in your students by using this Conversation Skills Social Story printable booklet.
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My Two Homes Activity
Use this “My Two Homes" activity to explore diverse family structures and encourage students to explore all the places they can call “home.”
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Printable Bracelets – Celebrate Diversity!
Celebrate diversity with your students by creating and coloring printable bracelets that feature meaningful diversity words and promote inclusivity and friendship.
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How to Make Friends Social Story
Learn the different ways you can make friends with this how to make friends social story.
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Oral Language Activities
Share these oral language activities with your students to help them practice listening to others, expressing opinions, receiving instructions, and more!
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Whole Body Listening – Poster and Worksheet
Use this poster and accompanying worksheet to teach your students about whole body listening.
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Paralympic Sports – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students investigate the different types of Paralympic sports with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Paralympic World Records – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students investigate the world records set by Paralympic athletes with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Assistive Devices in the Paralympic Games – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students investigate the assistive devices used by Paralympians with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Biography of a Paralympian – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students investigate the life and achievements of a famous Paralympic athlete with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Introduction to the Paralympic Games – Inquiry-Based Project
Introduce your students to the key components of the Paralympic Games with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Design a Paralympic Mascot – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students design a new mascot for the national Paralympic Team with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Design a Paralympic Logo – Inquiry-Based Project
Have your students design a new logo for their country’s Paralympic Team with this inquiry-based learning project.
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Good Listener Anchor Charts
Use these anchor charts to teach your students how to be good listeners.
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Social Story Cards and Templates
Create individualized social stories for students in your classroom with this versatile set of social story cards and templates.
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50 Gratitude Journal Prompts for Kids - Slide Deck
Project and inspire reflective writing with 50 gratitude journal writing prompts in one handy slide deck.
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Kindness Poster Set
Display this set of kindness posters in your classroom to help your students understand the power of being kind.
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Keeping My Hands and Feet to Myself Mini-Book
Teach your students about the importance of keeping their hands and feet to themselves with this printable mini-book.
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Afternoon Classroom Routine Mini-Book
Review expectations with your students regarding your afternoon routines with this printable mini-book.
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Kindness Teaching Slides—The Magic of Kindness
Guide students through understanding the importance of kindness with this set of teaching slides.
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Staying on Task Mini-Book
Review different strategies for on-task behavior with this printable mini-book.
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Why Be Kind Classroom Posters
Display this gorgeous set of kindness posters to teach students why kindness matters.
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Kindness Flipbook Template
Learn about the different ways to be kind in a variety of places such as school, home and the community with this flipbook.
- Social Awareness Templates
- Social Awareness Posters
- Social Awareness Worksheets
- Social Awareness Games
- Social Awareness for Pre-K
- Social Awareness for Kindergarten
- Social Awareness for 1st Grade
- Social Awareness for 2nd Grade
- Social Awareness for 3rd Grade
- Social Awareness for 4th Grade
- Social Awareness for 5th Grade
- Social Awareness for 6th Grade