Introduction
As a MSW intern with The Bethlehem Center, a after school program for youth age 5-14 years old, needing to foster more collaboration with busy parents in developing emotional intelligent children; this project was created. With the help of my field instructor Grace, I developed a Vlog on YouTube tilted “A Step into SEL”.
A Step into SEL is a series of videos promoting Social-Emotional learning (SEL) for school age children teaching parents how to utilize each skill at home. Each video is structured based on the 5 components: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social-Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Responsible Decision-Making. This Vlog provides parents with a convenient way to obtain the knowledge, activities and skills to implement each component in a comfortable enviorment. Each video consists of the understanding of Social-Emotional learning from different aspects such as Generational Mindful, interventions, and awareness. Check out the A Step into SEL intro video.
Social Issue
The social issue being addressed are youth mental health, emotional well-being, behavioral challenges, violence prevention, bullying, family engagement and communication barriers. This project also seeks to strengthen social networks, increase access to supportive resources, and leverage the influence of schools and communities to better support both children and families. The Vlog series is designed to address these barriers by offering accessible, flexible content that empowers parents with practical tools for engagement. Additionally, the Vlog provides valuable support to teachers, enhancing collaboration between home and school to promote the social-emotional well-being of students. With the knowledge of creating content, tech-skills, and the power of social media I created this idea with the input and support of The Bethlehem Center staff members.
Interventions
As part of my project, I developed a Vlog series designed to promote Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) for school-age children, teachers and their parents. SEL is structured around five core competencies: Self-Awareness, Self-Management, Social Awareness, Relationship Skills, and Responsible Decision-Making. Each video in the series provides families with accessible, evidence-informed interventions that can be integrated into daily routines at home.
This project is grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory, which emphasizes the importance of multiple environmental systems—such as family, school, and community—in shaping child development. The Vlog serves as a bridge between these systems, especially the microsystem (home) and mesosystem (school-community connection), by empowering parents to reinforce SEL concepts in everyday settings.
Each video incorporates:
- Interventions such as mindfulness practices, emotion recognition activities, and communication-building exercises.
- Generationally mindful approaches that respect cultural and familial values.
- Awareness-building content to support emotional intelligence and resilience.
This Vlog was created in response to the time constraints many working families face, particularly those unable to attend in-person events like family engagement nights. As a working parent myself, I understood the importance of providing flexible, self-paced learning opportunities that are easily accessible via familiar platforms. 
To further promote engagement, the program offers incentives and recognition to parents who actively participate, strengthening their involvement and reinforcing the value of the content. Ultimately, this project is designed to equip families with practical, culturally responsive tools that foster positive youth development, support mental well-being, and enhance collaboration between home, school, and community environments. In recent years, the integration of Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) into educational and community-based settings has gained increased attention for its role in fostering holistic development among youth.
Literature Review
While schools are prime environments for SEL implementation, research reveals a critical gap in parent-focused SEL resources that are culturally relevant, accessible, and flexible, especially for working families. While there may be a gap in parent- focused SEL resources, evidence-based programs such as CASEL acknowledge the critical role that parents and caregivers play in their academic, social, and emotional development (Ma, Miller, Tucker & Steele, 2023). Fostering a collaboration with parents and caregivers provides children with structure, and expectations of behaviors in society and at school. While it also suggests that programs become more successful when ingrained in a school-family partnership (Ma, Miller, Tucker & Steele, 2023). Many programs seek only to build such skills with children. Adults today have the science needed to create secure attachments with children but lack the skills (Genmindful). This research led me to create “A Step into SEL”, focused more on creating a space for parents and caregiver to build skills, engage in activities and learn about the importances of SEL alongside their students and teachers.
Planning content for this project required both research and engagement with Stakeholders. I learned of Social and emotional learning in the classroom: promoting mental health and academic success (SEL in the classroom) book by collaboration with my field instructor Grace while speaking about ways we could support teachers in the classroom. She provided me with the book to read and gather material details to create a curriculum for staff. This book offers information, activities, and resources to apply SEL to the classroom for all ages. While reading about SEL in the classroom book, I kept in mind the goal of teaching parents SEL skills and providing them with fun activities that their families will enjoy. I also looked for familiar games and activities parents may have played as children themselves. While reading SEL in the classroom I stumbled across the reference to CASEL and Genmindful. Both websites offer a more in-depth understanding of Social-Emotional learning. Although CASEL and Genmindful provide similar information, the frameworks differ from each other. CASEL, also known as Collaboration for Academic, Social and Emotional Learning, offers a framework that focuses on educators implementing SEL in the school. The CASEL framework is design for educators to assist their students in developing the five competencies. Genmindful also Known as Generation Mindful offers an online program for parents and educators to learn hands-on, a more direct technique. Their approach teaches specific SEL techniques that center the importance of the student’s inner and outer experiences.
Results
While several parents actively engaged with the Social-Emotional Learning Vlog by viewing, learning new skills and offering thoughtful feedback- not all parents were able to partake. However, those who did consistently noted positive impact of the videos. One parent shared, “I really enjoyed this video I have learned more ways to spend time with my children”. Parents also provided their feedback through a anonymous survey. Check out the flyer I created for family engagement night at The Bethlehem Center.
Although my contributions were not formally acknowledged in a public setting, many of the parents expressed kind words are I navigated graduate school while volunteering to support their children development.
While there was no formal meeting to discussed implementation of the Vlog as an ongoing project, I have observed that elements of my work integrated in my field placement outreach (Instagram). For instance, their use of Instagram now includes content that mirrors themes and strategies from the Vlog, particularly in engaging individuals and families around emotional and social development.
Conclusion
This Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) Vlog began as a conceptual idea and evolved into a practical, community-focused intervention through intentional research, planning, and collaboration. Designed to support school-age children, young adults, and parents, the Vlog offered a flexible, accessible platform for families to engage with SEL content rooted in the five core competencies: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making.
Despite facing time constraints and limited resources, the project demonstrated meaningful early impact in hopes of decreasing behaviors in children at home, school and community, increase secure base in families, intentional time spent with family, healthy coping skills, and relatability. Over five parents regularly participated by viewing the videos and providing feedback, reflecting a higher-than-expected level of engagement. Their responses emphasized the importance of culturally informed, family-centered learning tools that are convenient and relevant to daily life.
Through this experience, I gained valuable skills in program development, content creation, community engagement, and impact evaluation. While further development—particularly in video editing, curriculum depth, and implementation strategies—could enhance the project’s sustainability, this initial effort laid a strong foundation for future growth.
The SEL Vlog represents my commitment to accessible, evidence-informed practice, and highlights how innovation, empathy, and professional collaboration can bridge service gaps for working families.
References
Fundamentals of sel. CASEL. (2024, November 27). https://casel.org/fundamentals-of-sel/
Gueldner, B. A., Feuerborn, L. L., & Merrell, K. W. (2020). Social and emotional learning in the classroom : Promoting mental health and academic success. Guilford Publications.
Ma, A., Miller, A. A., Tucker, A., & Steele, L. (2023). SUPPORTING PARENT AND FAMILY ENGAGEMENT TO ENHANCE STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC, SOCIAL, AND EMOTIONAL LEARNING. https://casel.org/policy-brief-fce-2023/?view=1
Patek, A. (n.d.). Social Emotional Learning for Kids Via Child led play. Generation Mindful. https://genmindful.com/