The Positivity Project: A Schoolwide Approach to SEL

What is the Positivity Project?

If you read one post, I hope that it will be this one because I want to tell you about a really amazing approach to character education and social emotional learning called The Positivity Project.

They believe in an “other people mindset,” and focus on teaching strategies to help young people build positive relationships with others.

Imagine if children heard that other people matter at least once every day for the entire school year. Imagine if they continued to hear it in first grade, second grade, third grade and so on.  Imagine if it became part of the running loop that ran through their head for the rest of their lives.  Pretty powerful stuff!

But wait, there’s more!

The Positivity Project teaches 24 character strengths that children come to understand, engage with, and reflect upon with the aim of helping them identify their top strengths.  Imagine if all of your students left your class knowing what they did well.  Not just with academics.  Not just with sports.  Their own individual strengths that help them be the best version of themselves.

But wait, there’s more!

With The Positivity Project, children don’t just learn how to identify strengths within themselves, they also learn to recognize them in others.  This contributes to their ability to form and maintain good relationships.  Recognizing a strength in someone else, also helps children know what that strength looks and sounds like in case it is an area they want to improve upon.

But wait, there’s more!

School staff begin by taking a character survey at Viacharacter.org to find out their own strengths.  They begin to look at their colleagues with new eyes as they come to recognize and value each person’s contribution to their school community.

But wait, there’s more!

Positivity Project partner schools receive digital daily SEL lessons, a curated book list, and access to online training, strategy and support.

My school is beginning the Positivity Project in September and we are fired up and ready to get started!  We’ve heard the testimonials from teachers from neighboring districts and even from the children of a teacher in our building who attends a Positivity Project school.  Find out what the kids had to say here!

Want to know more about P2, as it is affectionately called (I’m sure you can guess why they didn’t double the P), click on the links above or follow them on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter.

For more ideas on building classroom culture, visit the Growing a Community page found in the Roots & Wings Resource Library.