If you are a Michigan educator trying to figure out what your school is required to do regarding social-emotional learning, the answer is both simpler and more complicated than you might expect.
The Simple Version
Michigan does not mandate a specific SEL curriculum. The MDE has developed a competency framework that outlines what students should know and be able to do across five social-emotional domains. Districts have significant latitude in how they implement it.
The Complicated Version
SEL is woven into multiple state frameworks, standards, and accountability structures. The competencies align with MICIP, crosswalk with health standards, connect to the state's strategic plan, and are increasingly referenced in school improvement plans and grant applications.
In practice, Michigan schools are not just encouraged to teach SEL. They are expected to, and the structures surrounding that expectation continue to strengthen.
Michigan's SEL Competency Framework
What It Is
In 2017, the Michigan Department of Education published the Early Childhood to Grade 12 Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Competencies and Indicators.[1] This document is the state's primary SEL guidance framework, developed in alignment with the CASEL framework and providing a developmental progression from birth through grade 12.
The document is not a curriculum. It does not prescribe specific lessons, programs, or instructional materials. It defines the competencies Michigan students should develop and provides indicators that help educators assess whether students are progressing.
The Five Competencies
Michigan's framework is organized around the same five competencies that CASEL uses. Any CASEL-aligned curriculum maps directly to Michigan's framework.
Self-Awareness
Accurately recognizing your own emotions and thoughts and their influence on behavior. Assessing strengths and limitations with confidence and optimism.
Self-Management
Regulating emotions, thoughts, and behaviors. Managing stress, controlling impulses, motivating yourself, and setting and working toward personal and academic goals.
Social Awareness
Taking the perspective of and empathizing with others, including those from diverse backgrounds. Understanding social and ethical norms.
Relationship Skills
Establishing healthy relationships. Communicating clearly, listening well, cooperating, resisting inappropriate pressure, negotiating conflict constructively.
Responsible Decision-Making
Making constructive choices based on ethical standards, safety concerns, and social norms. Evaluating consequences and considering the well-being of oneself and others.
Grade-Level Benchmarks for Elementary
The Michigan framework provides developmental benchmarks at K-2 and 3-5 grade bands.[1]
K-2 Benchmarks
- Identifying and naming basic emotions
- Recognizing when they need help
- Following classroom rules and routines
- Demonstrating basic kindness and sharing
- Beginning to understand cause and effect in social interactions
3-5 Benchmarks
- Identifying emotions in self and others with precision
- Using self-regulation strategies independently
- Demonstrating empathy across difference
- Resolving conflicts with decreasing adult support
- Making decisions that consider impact on others
What Michigan Requires vs. Recommends
What Is Required
School Improvement Planning (MICIP)
MICIP includes school climate and student wellbeing as components. Schools that include SEL in their improvement plans create an accountability structure for implementation.[2]
Health Education Standards
Michigan's K-8 Health Education Standards include social-emotional content. The MDE crosswalk demonstrates that health education is expected to address social-emotional development.[1]
Accreditation & Grants
Schools seeking grants through MDE and federal programs (including Title IV-A) increasingly need to demonstrate how they address social-emotional development.
What Is Recommended
Adopt the SEL Competencies
Use the 2017 Competencies and Indicators as the foundation, mapping your curriculum to the five competencies.
Complete the SEL Course
MDE recommends at least one administrator and 2-4 teachers per building complete the free Michigan Virtual SEL course (SCECH-bearing).[1]
Connect SEL to MTSS
Michigan's MTSS framework includes social-emotional supports as a core component. Address SEL at Tier 1 (universal) with additional support at Tiers 2 and 3.
How to Align Your SEL Instruction With Michigan's Framework
Step 1: Map Your Curriculum to the Five Competencies
Whether you use a commercial SEL program, a homegrown set of lessons, or a combination, document how your instruction addresses each competency across the school year.
| MDE Competency | Curriculum Coverage | Weeks |
|---|---|---|
| Self-Awareness | Growth mindset, emotional vocabulary, self-reflection | 1, 9, 17, 25, 33 |
| Self-Management | Calming strategies, goal setting, perseverance | 2, 4, 6, 14, 22 |
| Social Awareness | Empathy, perspective-taking, appreciating diversity | 5, 12, 20, 28 |
| Relationship Skills | Kindness, teamwork, conflict resolution, communication | 3, 7, 15, 23, 31 |
| Responsible Decision-Making | Problem-solving, honesty, responsibility, digital citizenship | 8, 10, 18, 26, 34 |
A comprehensive scope and sequence that covers all five competencies across 40 weeks makes this alignment straightforward. Piecemeal approaches require more documentation effort.
Step 2: Check Grade-Band Appropriateness
Michigan's framework specifies different expectations for K-2 and 3-5:
K-2 Check
Basic emotion identification? Simple calming strategies? Foundational social skills like sharing, listening, turn-taking? Concrete examples of responsible behavior?
3-5 Check
Nuanced emotional vocabulary? Independent self-regulation? Perspective-taking across difference? Student-led conflict resolution? Ethical decision-making?
Step 3: Connect to Your School Improvement Plan
If your MICIP improvement plan includes goals related to school climate, student behavior, or social-emotional development, your SEL curriculum should be documented as the strategy for addressing those goals. Include:
- Which MDE competencies your instruction targets
- How frequently instruction is delivered (weekly is the research-supported frequency)
- How you assess progress (behavioral observations, vocabulary growth, climate surveys)
- How your scope and sequence ensures coverage across the full year
Step 4: Document for MTSS
Tier 1: Universal
SEL instruction delivered to all students, weekly, by classroom teachers or counselors. CASEL-aligned curriculum covering all five competencies.
Tier 2: Targeted
Small-group instruction for students not meeting SEL benchmarks. Additional practice with specific skills (e.g., social skills groups, emotion regulation groups).
Tier 3: Individualized
Intervention delivered by specialists (school psychologist, social worker, behavior analyst). IEP-aligned SEL goals for students with disabilities.
Michigan-Specific Resources and Supports
MDE's SEL Competencies Document
The full competencies and indicators document provides the complete framework with grade-band benchmarks, indicators, and suggested strategies for each competency.[1]
Michigan Virtual SEL Course
The free Introduction to SEL course provides State Continuing Education Clock Hours (SCECHs) and takes approximately two hours to complete.[1]
SEL and Children's Mental Health Network
MDE's statewide network connects educators across all 10 MASA regions for implementation support, resource sharing, and professional development coordination.[1]
MICIP Integration Guidance
MDE's guidance document, Connecting Social and Emotional Learning to Michigan's School Improvement Framework, provides specific recommendations for integrating SEL into the state's continuous improvement process.[2]
OK2SAY
Michigan's student safety program connects to the social awareness and responsible decision-making competencies. Students taught to recognize warning signs and report concerns are practicing the SEL skills that OK2SAY depends on.
What Michigan Educators Should Know About the Political Landscape
Michigan's approach has been relatively stable: the MDE positions SEL as a framework for whole-child education that supports academic achievement, and the competencies align with widely accepted developmental research.[1]
The framework uses CASEL-aligned, research-based language.
National SEL research and resources apply directly to Michigan's framework. National political debates about SEL may surface locally, even though Michigan's competencies focus on universally valued skills like self-management, empathy, and responsible decision-making.
Parent communication matters.
Most Michigan parents support SEL instruction when they understand what it includes.[3] Share your scope and sequence, invite parents to review materials, and use concrete language: “We teach students to manage frustration, resolve conflicts, and make responsible decisions” is more accessible than “We implement CASEL-aligned SEL instruction.”
The competencies are a framework, not a mandate.
Michigan provides the what (competencies and indicators) but lets districts decide the how (specific curriculum, scheduling, professional development). This flexibility means schools can choose programs that fit their community's values.
Choosing a Curriculum That Aligns With Michigan's Framework
When selecting SEL curriculum for your Michigan school, verify that the program:
Covers all five MDE competencies. A program addressing only some competencies is incomplete under Michigan's framework.
Provides K-2 and 3-5 differentiation. Michigan's benchmarks are grade-band specific. Your curriculum should be too.
Offers a full-year scope and sequence. A monthly theme or short unit is not sufficient for the developmental progression the competencies describe.
Addresses school safety connections. Michigan's OK2SAY program connects directly to SEL competencies.
Supports bilingual learners. Michigan serves a significant multilingual student population. English and Spanish support enables equitable access.
Works within realistic scheduling constraints. Programs requiring minimal prep and integrating into existing routines are more likely to be implemented consistently.
What to Avoid
Treating the Competencies as a Checklist
Michigan's SEL competencies describe a developmental progression, not a set of boxes to check. Students develop these skills over years of sustained instruction and practice, not by completing a worksheet on each indicator.
Waiting for a Mandate
The framework is already embedded in school improvement planning, health education standards, MTSS, and grant requirements. Schools that wait for a formal mandate will be implementing later than schools that align now.
Selecting a Program Without Checking Alignment
Not every program marketed as “SEL” aligns with Michigan's five-competency framework. Some focus only on mindfulness, only on behavior management, or only on character education without addressing the full scope. Verify alignment before purchasing.
Implementing Without Documenting
If your school teaches SEL but does not document it, you cannot demonstrate compliance during school improvement reviews, grant applications, or accreditation processes. Document what you teach, when you teach it, and how it aligns with MDE's framework.
Final Thoughts
Michigan has positioned SEL as a core component of whole-child education, not an optional add-on. The state provides the framework, the professional development, the implementation guidance, and the support network. What it does not provide is the curriculum itself. That choice belongs to districts and schools.
For Michigan elementary schools, the path forward is practical: choose a CASEL-aligned curriculum that covers all five competencies with grade-appropriate content, deliver it consistently across the school year through weekly lessons, connect it to your school improvement plan and MTSS framework, and document the alignment so you can demonstrate it when asked.
The framework exists. The research supports it. The state expects it. The students need it. The remaining question is implementation, and that starts with choosing the right curriculum and committing to delivering it.
References
- [1]
Michigan Department of Education. (2017). Early childhood to grade 12 social and emotional learning (SEL) competencies and indicators.
https://www.michigan.gov/mde/services/health-safety/social-emotional-learning-sel - [2]
Michigan Department of Education. (n.d.). Connecting social and emotional learning to Michigan's school improvement framework: Guidance and resources for K-12 and early childhood settings.
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED588813.pdf - [3]
CASEL. (2025). SEL policy at the state level: Michigan.
https://casel.org/systemic-implementation/sel-policy-at-the-state-level/ - [4]
Gogebic-Ontonagon ISD. (n.d.). MI social emotional learning competencies.
https://www.goisd.org/page/mi-social-emotional-learning-competencies - [5]
Durlak, J. A., Weissberg, R. P., Dymnicki, A. B., Taylor, R. D., & Schellinger, K. B. (2011). The impact of enhancing students' social and emotional learning: A meta-analysis of school-based universal interventions. Child Development, 82(1), 405-432.
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2010.01564.x - [6]
Cipriano, C., Strambler, M. J., Naples, L. H., et al. (2023). The state of evidence for social and emotional learning: A contemporary meta-analysis of universal school-based SEL interventions. Child Development, 94(5), 1181-1204.
https://doi.org/10.1111/cdev.13968
CASEL-Aligned SEL Curriculum for Michigan Schools
Be The Buffalo provides 40 weeks of SEL curriculum aligned with all five MDE competencies. Each lesson identifies its CASEL competency alignment for easy documentation and school improvement planning. Interactive projector activities, original songs, stories, printable worksheets, and teacher guides. Bilingual English and Spanish. No student accounts. No devices. No prep.
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