Integrating Social and Emotional Learning with Content: Using Picture Books for Differentiated Teaching in K-3 Classrooms

Integrating Social and Emotional Learning with Content builds a framework for creatively and effectively using picture books to integrate social and emotional learning (SEL) with teaching across content areas.

Thoughtful book choices in mixed-ability early elementary classrooms have the power to not only support gifted students as they develop academically, but also to provide an opportunity to address their unique social and emotional needs, such as asynchronous development and an early awareness of complex and challenging issues in their lives and the world at large. Picture books are an invaluable tool for this work because the characters, topics, and settings increasingly represent and celebrate the lived experiences of diverse student populations, supporting culturally responsive teaching.

Packed with lesson plans, book lists, and more, this book is perfect for teachers in gifted and mixed-ability classrooms as well as homeschooling parents looking to help their children make meaningful connections between their culture, languages, and lived experiences and the academic content and SEL skills they are being taught in the classroom.

Katherine Kapustka is a program leader and associate professor of elementary education at DePaul University, where she teaches a variety of classes in the elementary education program, including literacy and assessment. In her research and writing, she draws upon her prior experience as a fifth-grade teacher, her current work with pre-service teachers, and the knowledge gained as she raises her two children.

Sarah Bright is a post-doctoral research associate at Purdue University, where she works on a research project that focuses on closing opportunity gaps for students from traditionally underserved populations in gifted education in STEM domains. Her broader research interests include social and emotional learning in elementary gifted settings and the impact of instructional technology within gifted education.