Recipes for Connection: Art for Social Emotional Learning

Mental health

Pilot or new project, program, or initiative (testing or implementing a new idea)

The kids are NOT alright. Schools and educators are increasingly faced with having to help their students navigate the stress and trauma of continued oppressive systems and global stress. The Center for Disease Control (2021) states that 1 in every 6 children between the ages 2-8 years has a mental, behavioral, and/or developmental health disorder. Research posits that the classroom is sometimes the most consistent and stable place in a student’s world and therefore just the structure of this environment should be considered a therapeutic intervention (Brunzelle, Stokes & Waters, 2015). Teachers are on the frontlines and need tools and strategies for helping their students be regulated in the classroom in order to achieve both academic and social emotional developmental goals. Engagement in the arts has increasingly been found to assist social and emotional health by building protective and rehabilitative behaviors (Rodriguez, et. al, 2024).

Recipes for Connection (RFC) aims to create positive learning spaces for students, teachers, and families through simple, integrated visual art based, trauma informed, SEL activities that will enhance regulation and social skills. Our organization aspires to provide every teacher in Los Angeles County with digital access to at least 25 free effective visual art, trauma informed, SEL activities for K-8th grade classrooms including the following:
Individual and Classroom Doodling Activities Visual Art Based Emotional Regulation Activities
Visual Art Based Restorative Practices and Peer Mediation Activities
List of Emotional Regulation Art Material for Individual and Classroom Use
Our initiative is unique in that although there are a multitude of arts and healing initiatives in Los Angeles County, seldom are these programs designed and facilitated by trained and licensed art therapists. RFC understands the power of arts based clinical interventions and creates clinically appropriate prevention and intervention strategies specific to educational settings. Specifically, RFC will work with participating school districts to co-create, test, and digitally present at least 25 art therapy based, trauma informed, SEL activities that increase regulation and social connection in the classroom.

If successful every teacher in LA County will have digital access to at least 25 free evidence-based visual art, trauma informed, SEL activities for K-8th grade classrooms. Teachers will have easy access to student/educator co-created tested strategies that promote emotional regulation and social connection that are clinically appropriate for educational settings. Classrooms across LA County will experience the positive effects of integrating visual art activities that are simple, accessible and that help youth manage anxiety, stress, depression and other mental health challenges that are currently prevalent in young people. Simply put, emotionally regulated and socially aware kids become emotionally regulated and socially aware adults.

Recipes for Connection (RFC) was established in 2018 after work with the Center for Restorative Justice Works and the Federal Correctional Institution in Dublin, CA, to develop art therapy curriculum for incarcerated mothers to bond with their children. Based on positive feedback, RFC expanded to offer professional development and curriculum materials to create connections.
Impact is measured using surveys from RFC and partner organizations. Recently, RFC was contracted by LACOE's Promising Learners Project to provide workshops for 20 schools, reaching over 5000 4th-8th grade students from three LA County school districts. Surveys from +/- 30 teachers reported that RFC workshops were helpful in engaging students, i.e. improving student SEL (82.1%), communication (92.9%), and enjoyment in learning (89.2%) and teaching (82.1%).
RFC plans to replicate these workshops with a LA County school district in Fall 2024, using an emoji-based retrospective survey for student participants.