Kikori
A one-stop shop for SEL content
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Kikori
Pros: Large database of activities; easy to use filters; strong lesson plans.
Cons: Not all filters work as expected. Many services are available only with a paid account.
Bottom Line: A great place to find resources for integrating SEL into just about any classroom.
Kikori's large database of SEL activities provides teachers with a plethora of materials they can use to integrate SEL into their classrooms and across a wide variety of curriculum topics and lessons.
The activities have sections for introducing and engaging students with the lesson, implementing it, encouraging participation, assessing it, and encouraging engagement with the topic after the lesson is over. The activities give teachers all the info they need to simply click an activity and directly implement it in their classroom. Alternatively, teachers can use the provided materials as inspiration to link SEL with other areas of their curriculum.
Teachers could also use activities meant for other grades or levels as inspiration and adapt them to their needs. For example, a body scan activity written for a second grade classroom could be easily adapted for use with high school or even adult learners.
Kikori is a large database of curated content submitted both by Kikori staff and through user-generated content (UGC). Kikori vets the UGC before putting it into the database, and you have the opportunity to filter by only Kikori-generated content if you wish.
Significant filters allow you to parse the activities. There are also curated lists of activities like Outdoor Adventures, Ice Breakers, Energizers, Team Builders, Mindfulness, and more. However, there were glitches when using the filters that showed activities not appropriate to what was being searched for (this was especially noticeable with grade-level filters). The focus of the activities really is on SEL, though, and should be seen as such.
Kikori activities can be accessed through the website or through an iPhone or Android app -- though the app might be more useful for quick lookups than more in-depth planning, and you'll need the website for printing and uploading to your learning management system (LMS) of choice.
Teachers should know that a subscription is needed to access some of the features. With the paid version, you can have access to the organizational administration panel, data tracking, weekly progress monitoring, custom playlists, an account manager, and more. However, the free version is quite powerful as well.
One of Kikori's strengths is that it is focused on SEL concepts and activities and doesn't try too hard to link it to other curriculum areas, leaving that up to the teacher. This means that Kikori provides detailed activities that are still flexible enough to suit teachers' needs and to allow them to build skills across the curriculum with their students. Teachers can contribute their own lessons, and the activities are well laid out and simple to follow.
There are detailed sections that include a step-by-step walkthrough for each activity, necessary prep, reflection questions, variations, standards, skills, time per activity, and sustainable development goals. Kikori also tells you who created each activity. All of this information is clearly laid out, which means you can jump in and get started pretty quickly.
Overall, it's a great collection of activities that can be interspersed throughout classroom instruction to improve student engagement and well-being.