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Social-Emotional Learning

In addition to a rich and diverse academic curriculum, Seven Arrows focuses on fulfilling the social and emotional needs of every student. Our Seven Core Values make clear our expectations for behavior and accountability. We are committed to developing motivated, self-aware members of the global community. Our conflict resolution and discipline policy is rooted in the belief that all members of our community will strive to be active, accountable members of society who can reflect on their errors and grow from their mistakes. Through positive reinforcement and natural consequences, Seven Arrows helps students become respectful and responsible young citizens.

Council

Critical to the wellbeing of our students, Council is at the core of the Seven Arrows social-emotional and conflict resolution curriculum. The program is derived from the Ojai Foundation’s circle way trainings, comprised of contemporary circle practices inspired by and on the shoulders of indigenous cultures. Council, allows students to further develop their own voices and their ability to express their feelings in a powerful, profound, and confident way.

 

Each week, each grade level holds a 30-minute Council to help students gain confidence and take risks by talking about important topics. Council often provides an opportunity for students to work out among themselves feelings related to social pressures and conflicts.

 

 

Council is based on the idea of creating a sacred space where all involved feel safe enough to express their innermost thoughts and feelings. Participants sit on the floor in a circle and speak only when holding a “talking piece,” which is passed from person to person. The Council is directed by a leader, and a topic or question is posed for reflection. Participants may choose to respond to the question at hand, share something personal, or pass. What is shared in Council stays in Council to maintain the integrity and safety of the space.

 

Council has been a tremendous asset to our program; it allows teachers to learn more about students and vice versa. Council topics have included:

 

  • Do you feel you are part of a group or not part of a group?

  • What is a clique?

  • Why does it feel like to be different than your friends?

  • How can I overcome my nerves when I have to present a project?

 

Students’ responses are poignant, deep, and often surprising. Most importantly, students experience a deeper connection with themselves and their peers as a result of this practice. Council is also practiced by staff and faculty.

Mindfulness

 

Seven Arrows offers a structured, developmentally appropriate mindfulness curriculum led by a trained mindfulness practitioner. Non-denominational and grounded in the research-based methodology of Susan Kaiser Greenland, a pioneer in mindfulness education for children, the program builds students’ capacity to recognize and manage their thoughts, emotions, and physical responses to stress. Rather than simply teaching students to conceptualize stress, the curriculum gives them practical, evidence-based tools to regulate their nervous systems in real time — skills that support focus, resilience, and wellbeing across all areas of learning.

 

At the core of the curriculum are eight universal values, called the Eight Golden Threads, which are integrated across every grade level and revisited each year with increasing depth. This approach reflects the well-established educational model of spiral learning, in which foundational concepts are reintroduced at progressively more sophisticated levels as students develop. Each time students return to these values, they bring greater cognitive and emotional capacity to the material, allowing for deeper understanding and more meaningful application.

 

The Eight Golden Threads are not standalone lessons. They are woven into the fabric of daily classroom life, connecting curriculum, community, and character development into a coherent whole. Teachers are trained to identify and reinforce these values across disciplines, asking: what new understanding can this age group bring to this value? How have students grown in this area? Where are these skills becoming visible in how students think, speak, and treat one another?

 

The result is a curriculum that builds incrementally and intentionally, giving every student a strong, well-practiced foundation in the skills that research consistently links to academic success, healthy relationships, and long-term flourishing.

Listen to the Seven Arrows Mindfulness Album, Aquí y Ahora:

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