It's important now more than ever to ensure we teach civics, not politics, in our classrooms. We can begin by teaching students of all ages the skills and strategies necessary to participate in civil discourse, learn about the election process and who actually has power in the government. Students can become active and engaged citizens while learning the basic principles that support United States democracy. Together, let's discover and discuss the practical strategies and the inspiration to transform your social studies instruction. The nation agrees, and statistics support, that civic education is a critical part of democratic life.

This group is for people who have been designated by their district to take a leadership role in social-emotional learning (SEL). It is recommended that districts send a team to the SEL Leadership Meetings that may include building and district leaders. This group serves to support the development of district and regional capacity related to the voluntary implementation of the New York State Social Emotional Learning Benchmarks. This includes sharing and discussing up-to-date information related to the Benchmarks from the State Education Department. Additionally, the goal of this group is to develop collaboration between districts in the region to support high-quality K-12 SEL instruction and position the region to successfully implement the new Benchmarks. The expectation for participating in this group is: 1. Attending all three meetings during the year to maintain consistency in implementation. 2. Being prepared for the meeting by completing any personal learning required by the facilitator of this group. 3. Being responsible for working with your team to bring the learning from the meeting back to your district. 4. Being designated or gaining approval by your district to participate in this group. The formal meeting will occur in the morning; however, your district may ask your team to use the afternoon to develop a plan for implementing the learning from the meeting in your district. If your district asks this of you the meeting space will be available in the afternoon for use by those who wish to stay and work.