PATHS

The PATHS® program is an elementary school curriculum that has been shown to significantly improve children's social and emotional skills. Social and emotional competence is a master skill that underlies both effective behavior and academic success.

The PATHS program covers these five domains of social and emotional development:

• self-control
• emotional understanding
• positive self-esteem
• relationships
• interpersonal problem-solving skills.

The PATHS program brings students through each of these domains in stages. While some of the units from the PATHS program target one or more of the domains, aspects of all five are integrated into each unit.

Each new unit builds on the learning that preceded it. The lessons are sequenced according to increasing developmental difficulty. However, teachers may delay a specific lesson until later in the sequence to make sure that it matches their students' emotional readiness.

To ensure continual reinforcement of key skills from the PATHS program, supplemental activities and a variety of at-home activities are included for parents and children to do together.

The PATHS is an evidence-based program provides teachers and counselors with a systematic developmental approach for enhancing social and emotional understanding and academic competence in children.