Social Emotional Learning

Social Emotional Development

British Primary Section

Social and emotional learning is a key part of our curriculum and goes hand in hand with our students academic learning. Social and Emotional skills, such as being able to manage our own emotions, overcoming anxiety and getting on with others are important life skills. In order to support these skills we use a range of tools including: Personal, Social, Health and Economic education (PSHE) lessons, circle time, role play, guided meditation, breathing and core practice. In addition, our learner profile attributes are key drivers for developing these skills and these are evident in all areas of learning. 

When students reach Year 3 they take a deeper dive into mindfulness and develop personal skills that form a solid foundation on which to build through later years. All of our Year 3 teachers are trained through the Mindfulness in Schools Project (MISP) to deliver the Paws b. (Pause, Breathe and Be) curriculum to their students. Paws b. develops the life skill of mindfulness in students and equips them with a toolbox of skills from an early age that they can take with them and use as they develop through their lives. It supports, in a highly practical way, the child's emotional development; learning to recognise and regulate one's emotions - vital to learning and personal wellbeing.

British Secondary and High School Section

Core lessons are our equivalent to PSHE (Personal, Social, and Health Education). All year groups have an 80-minute Core lesson once a week. These lessons are an essential part of our holistic approach to education. Core lessons are well-planned by the Pastoral Leadership Team and the Head of Positive Education, drawing on best practice from other countries to make sure the topics covered meet the needs of our students. In relation to a variety of social issues, we endeavour to equip our students with a sound understanding of risk and with the knowledge and skills necessary to make safe and informed decisions. Topics are age-appropriate, and include drug education, gender equity and human sexuality, sex and relationship education (SRE), and the importance of physical activity and diet for a healthy lifestyle. In these areas, we draw on statutory guidance from the UK, as well as working with local organisations in Taiwan and inviting expert guest speakers from around the world.

German Section

Social-emotional learning is a regular component of our curriculum. It particularly comes into focus in specific projects like the safeguarding project 'Mein Körper gehört mir!' ('My body belongs to me!') or in social-emotional units held in collaboration with the counselling department. Regular mindfulness training has been introduced in the section's preschool class.

French Section

The civic and citizenship skills of the French programme support social-emotional learning (SEL) in the French Section. The set of objectives in this area of learning provides teachers with a framework on which to base their teaching. Students are provided with a range of activities to encourage their compassion, arouse their curiosity and develop their self-awareness. These activities take the form of philosophical inquiries, social role-playing, case studies and mindfulness exercises that increase our students' awareness of learning social-emotional skills. These activities are continually encouraged throughout the French curriculum so that, on a typical school day, the socio-emotional training of our students is regularly reinforced and integrated with other learning so that they can learn and flourish in all aspects of their development.