THIS IS ME’s complementary curriculum is developed from the foundation of best practices in Social Emotional Learning (SEL). Each lesson is correlated with at least one of Washington State’s SEL standards, benchmarks, and indicators, and the curriculum is aligned with all of the six standards (OSPI, 2019). The overarching goals of the curriculum are to: 

• reinforce the practice of self-reflection

• build deeper connections amongst peers and trusted adults, and 

• utilize the power of the group setting to recognize protection and strength

In all, there are ten lessons available covering a range of SEL topics, each designed to be used flexibly by teachers/ school counselors. The lessons each include time for participants to review and share (as comfortable) their responses to a specific verbal journal prompt.  The lessons include discussion questions related to the journal prompt for students to cover in pairs, small groups, or amongst the whole class. Each lesson also includes flexibility around suggested learning activities, slides created by the THIS IS ME staff, and additional resources for use by teachers/ counselors. Example topics that are covered include: Strengths and Challenges, Reappraisal, Self-Compassion, Empathy, Supporting a Friend in Distress, and Identity & Culture.

Schools that sign-up for the program will gain access to all ten curriculum lessons. There is a bonus lesson to introduce the THIS IS ME International Film Festival.