Socioemotional Education: preparing our students for life

When a family chooses a school, they usually think about curriculum, results, and good grades. All of that matters. But there's a question that hasgained ground among parents and educators: beyond teaching math, language arts, and science, is the school preparing children for life? For handling frustration, speaking respectfully, working in groups, making decisions, and getting to know themselves better?

It's this question that socioemotional education answers. And it's because we believe it that we have adopted a structured socioemotional development program across all stages of Basic Education: LIV – Life Intelligence Laboratory.

What is socioemotional education?

Socioemotional education is the intentional work, within the school routine, of skills such as empathy, self-awareness, emotional self-regulation, communication, collaboration, creativity, proactivity, critical thinking, and perseverance. These are competencies we use our whole lives — at home, in friendships, in our studies, and later, at work.

School is one of the first places where a child experiences what it means to live in society. Emotions are part of everyday life all the time, even when no one talks about them. Our goal is precisely not to leave this learning to chance, but to create a safe space for speaking and listening, where each student can deepen their understanding of themselves, others, and the world.

An important clarification for families: working with emotions at school doesn't mean giving up content. Quite the opposite. When a child feels welcomed, is able to name what they feel, and can concentrate, they learn everything else better too. The two dimensions go hand in hand.

Why this matters — and what the research says

The value placed on socioemotional skills is not a trend. Interestingly, it began gaining traction from studies in the field of economics. Economist James Heckman, a Nobel Prize winner, followed children who took part in high-quality early childhood education programs over the course of decades and found something remarkable: the development of these competencies had a positive impact on lifelong achievements, from educational attainment to financial stability.

Other fields arrive at the same conclusion through different paths. Neuroscience shows that the brain is shaped by experience, and that childhood and adolescence are especially fertile periods for this kind of development. Psychology indicates that these skills can continue to be learned throughout life. And the job market points in the same direction: the fastest-growing professions increasingly demand the ability to solve problems, communicate, and cooperate — skills that no spreadsheet or content-based test can teach on its own.

In a world of such rapid change, many of the jobs our children will hold don't even exist yet. We cannot predict what technologies they'll use twenty years from now. But we do know that a person capable of regulating their emotions, setting priorities, and communicating clearly will be better prepared to adapt to any scenario.

How it unfolds at each stage of school

One of families' biggest concerns is whether the approach makes sense for their child's age. That's why the program follows the development of children and young people, changing its language at each stage.

In Early Childhood Education, the work is entirely playful and sensory: storytelling, songs, puppets, and characters that help young children begin to recognize and name emotions like joy, fear, sadness, and anger.

In the early years of Elementary School, children move through the pillars of emotional intelligence — self-awareness, empathy, and relationships — following beloved stories and characters, supported by plush toys and other resources that make everything concrete and heartfelt.

In the later years of Elementary School, skills such as communication, collaboration, creativity, proactivity, perseverance, and critical thinking come into play, worked on through projects, video series, debates, and discussion circles about real issues in teenagers' lives — friendship, identity, online relationships, and frustrations.

A shared responsibility

We believe the school plays an essential role in this process, but it can’t do it alone. Family, community, and school make a network, and the best results emerge when everyone moves in the same direction. That's why we maintain open channels of communication with families, along with initiatives that bring parents and children closer to the work being done in the classroom.

We don't claim to have all the answers to this generation's challenges — no one does. What we do have is a commitment: to offer, in a structured and thoughtful way, an environment where every student is heard with empathy and feels safe to grow.

After all, as we often remind children: we can't change what we feel, but we can learn what to do with our feelings. And that's exactly what we want for your children.

Karin Sanches is the Director of Cultura Inglesa Bilingual School Mooca. An educator with 27 years of experience, she holds a degree in Pedagogy and a postgraduate qualification in Bilingual Education, is pursuing an MBA in School Management at USP/Esalq, and has completed training in educational leadership at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. Throughout her career, she has led teams, implemented international curricula, and developed pedagogical practices focused on meaningful learning, critical thinking, and the holistic development of students. Her work is guided by the building of collaborative, inclusive, and academically challenging educational environments, aligned with the principles of global education.