Personal & Social Development

Name and recognise basic emotions — happy, sad, angry, scared, excited, and surprised — in themselves and in others by looking at facial expressions and body language

Understand that everyone has feelings, that feelings change throughout the day, and that the same event can make different people feel different things

Understand that feelings have causes — something happens (a trigger) and that makes us feel a certain way — and begin to identify what triggers their own emotions

Express their own feelings appropriately using words rather than actions — saying 'I feel angry because...' instead of hitting, shouting, or withdrawing

Use a wider vocabulary of emotion words beyond the basics — including frustrated, worried, anxious, embarrassed, jealous, proud, disappointed, grateful, and lonely — and distinguish between similar emotions

Understand the connection between emotions and the body — recognising physical signals like butterflies in the stomach (nervous), clenched fists (angry), racing heart (scared or excited), and tight shoulders (stressed)

Understand that emotions come in different intensities — from mild to strong — and that the same emotion can feel very different depending on how intense it is (e.g., annoyed → angry → furious, or nervous → anxious → panicked)

Recognise that people sometimes hide or mask their true feelings — smiling when they're actually sad, or saying 'I'm fine' when they're not — and understand why someone might do this

Reflect on their own emotional patterns over time — noticing recurring triggers, understanding their typical responses, and recognising how their emotional awareness has grown

Understand how emotions influence thinking and decision-making — that strong feelings can cloud judgement, that we often make different choices when calm versus when upset, and that recognising this gives us more control

Understand that emotional responses are shaped by personal experiences, culture, and context — the same situation triggers different emotions in different people because of their backgrounds and past experiences

Understand that people can experience mixed or conflicting emotions at the same time — feeling excited and nervous about starting a new school, or happy for a friend who won but disappointed for yourself

Understand how the amygdala triggers emotional responses and how the prefrontal cortex (still developing in adolescence) regulates them; explain why stress hormones (cortisol, adrenaline) affect thinking and memory; understand that the adolescent brain's dopamine system makes feelings more intense; distinguish between emotion regulation (managing feelings effectively) and emotion suppression (pushing feelings down, which is counterproductive); introduce cognitive reappraisal as a research-backed technique for changing how we interpret a situation

Understand that adolescence involves active construction of identity, leading to emotional complexity around questions of 'who am I?'; explore the emotional dynamics of belonging to multiple groups simultaneously (family, peer group, cultural or religious identity); understand social comparison and its intensification through social media; recognise that identity is not fixed and that uncertainty about identity is normal, not a sign of failure; develop language for navigating emotions tied to group membership and personal values

Introduce Goleman's emotional intelligence model (self-awareness, self-regulation, motivation, empathy, social skills); develop vocabulary for complex emotional states (ambivalence, ennui, schadenfreude, awe, nostalgia, cognitive dissonance); understand the evidence linking emotional intelligence to wellbeing, relationship quality, and long-term life outcomes; reflect on personal emotional growth over the secondary school years; explore the relationship between emotional literacy and mental health, and know when to seek professional support

Know and use the key vocabulary for understanding others — empathy, perspective, kind, fair, community, similar, different, and care — and understand that these words describe real habits of thinking and feeling

Understand that other people have their own feelings and thoughts, and that these might be different from your own — a foundational awareness that not everyone sees or feels things the same way

Show kindness and care towards others in simple everyday ways — comforting a friend who is upset, helping someone who has dropped their things, sharing without being asked, and saying kind words

Notice and appreciate ways that people are similar to and different from each other — including appearance, family structures, languages spoken, foods eaten, and celebrations observed — and understand that differences make communities interesting

Practise perspective-taking by imagining how someone else might feel in a given situation — using prompts like 'How would you feel if that happened to you?' and applying this when reading stories or during real interactions

Know and use the vocabulary of social awareness — including stereotype, prejudice, discrimination, equality, equity, bias, compassion, and fairness — and understand what distinguishes these closely related concepts

Understand that people's lives and experiences can be very different from their own — that some children face challenges like disability, poverty, family difficulties, or being new to a country — and develop compassion rather than judgement

Understand what fairness means and why it matters — recognising that fair doesn't always mean equal (everyone getting the same) but can mean equitable (everyone getting what they need), and applying this understanding in group situations

Reflect on their own assumptions and biases — recognising that everyone carries unconscious assumptions about others, and that actively questioning these assumptions is an ongoing practice that leads to greater fairness and empathy

Understand the impact of prejudice and discrimination on individuals and communities — that treating people unfairly because of their identity causes real harm — and recognise their own responsibility to stand against it

Recognise stereotypes — oversimplified beliefs about groups of people based on gender, race, age, or other characteristics — and understand that stereotypes are unfair because they ignore individual differences

Understand that the world contains many cultures, traditions, and belief systems, and that learning about others' perspectives enriches our own understanding — developing genuine curiosity about and respect for cultural diversity

Move beyond 'treating everyone the same' to understand that structural advantages and disadvantages exist regardless of individual effort or intention; explore concrete examples of systemic inequality (educational attainment gaps, gender pay gap, representation in leadership); distinguish between individual prejudice and structural discrimination; understand intersectionality — how multiple aspects of identity interact; develop informed compassion rooted in evidence rather than pity; explore what being a genuine ally means in practice

Distinguish sympathy ('I feel sorry for you') from empathy ('I understand what you're experiencing'); develop active listening skills: reflecting, paraphrasing, asking open questions, resisting the urge to problem-solve too quickly; understand empathic curiosity as genuine interest in another person's inner world; practise being present for someone in distress without trying to fix or minimise their experience; understand vicarious trauma and compassion fatigue, and how empathetic people can protect their own wellbeing while staying present for others

Understand what it means to be a citizen in an interconnected world where decisions in one place affect people elsewhere; explore global issues (climate justice, forced migration, global health, poverty) through an empathy lens, distinguishing facts from value judgements; engage with the ethical tension between obligations to those close to us and obligations to distant strangers; introduce evidence-based giving and effective altruism as one framework for thinking about global responsibility; develop a personal, reasoned stance on global citizenship that acknowledges complexity

Know and use the vocabulary of working with others — cooperate, share, take turns, team, listen, agree, disagree respectfully, and include — and understand that these words describe habits that friendships and group work depend on

Listen to others when they are speaking — looking at the speaker, waiting until they finish, and showing they have heard by responding to what was said rather than just talking about their own ideas

Understand what makes someone a good friend — being kind, honest, reliable, and including others — and recognise behaviours that are not friendly, such as being bossy, leaving people out, or saying mean things

Take turns, share materials, and play cooperatively with others — understanding that group activities work better when everyone gets a fair go and that waiting for your turn is part of being a good friend

Ask for help when they need it — from a friend, teacher, or family member — and understand that asking for help is a sign of strength, not weakness

Resolve simple disagreements with peers by talking it through — explaining how they feel, listening to the other person's side, and finding a compromise or solution that both can accept

Understand that friendships change over time — that it's normal for friends to drift apart or for new friendships to form — and develop strategies for making new friends and handling friendship changes without feeling like something is wrong with them

Work effectively as part of a small group — contributing their own ideas, listening to others' ideas, taking on a fair share of the work, and supporting the group to reach a shared goal

Know and use the vocabulary of healthy communication and conflict — assertive, passive, aggressive, compromise, conflict, resolution, mediate, bystander, upstander, and peer pressure — and understand the difference between these contrasting approaches

Understand different roles people play in groups — leader, supporter, mediator, idea-generator — and recognise that effective groups need a mix of roles, not everyone trying to be the leader

Reflect on their own role and behaviour in relationships — recognising patterns in how they interact with others, understanding what they contribute to friendships, and identifying areas where they could improve as a friend or team member

Give and receive constructive feedback — telling someone what they did well and what could be improved in a way that is helpful rather than hurtful, and receiving feedback about their own work without becoming defensive

Use assertive communication — expressing needs, opinions, and boundaries clearly and respectfully without being aggressive (pushy/demanding) or passive (giving in/staying silent) — including saying no when something doesn't feel right

Mediate conflicts between others — helping two friends who are arguing by listening to both sides, helping them see each other's perspective, and guiding them toward a fair resolution

Understand subtext, indirect communication, and social cues in adolescent peer groups; analyse the psychology of in-group and out-group dynamics and why belonging can come at the cost of exclusion; understand gossip as a social bonding and status mechanism, and its costs; develop strategies for navigating social hierarchies without compromising values; distinguish between assertiveness and aggression in peer settings; understand how to respond to exclusion — whether experiencing it or witnessing it

Understand how to have honest, direct conversations that address problems without attacking the person; apply the principles of non-violent communication (observation, feeling, need, request); understand the repair process after significant conflicts: taking responsibility without defensiveness, offering a genuine apology (without blame-shifting), and rebuilding trust through consistent behaviour over time; distinguish between a real apology and a face-saving 'sorry'; understand how friendships survive and deepen through navigated conflict rather than avoidance

Distinguish different leadership styles (directive, democratic, servant, transformational) and understand when each is appropriate; understand that influence in a group comes with responsibility, and explore the difference between leading through inspiration versus coercion; practise inclusive leadership: actively creating space for quieter voices and diverse perspectives; understand the ethics of influence and the boundary between persuasion and manipulation; explore concepts of consent and coercion in peer relationships; reflect on what kind of influence they want to have in their communities

Know and use the vocabulary of making decisions and keeping safe — choice, consequence, rule, safe, fair, honest, trusted adult, and right and wrong — and understand that naming these ideas clearly helps make better choices

Understand that actions have consequences — that what you choose to do affects both yourself and other people — and begin to think about what might happen before they act

Know the difference between right and wrong in familiar everyday situations — understanding basic rules about honesty, not hurting others, respecting others' property, and being fair — and choose to do the right thing even when it's harder

Understand why rules and agreements exist — that they help keep people safe, make things fair, and help groups work well together — and follow agreed rules willingly rather than only when being watched

Keep themselves safe in everyday situations — knowing basic safety rules about roads, strangers, water, and the internet — and understanding who their trusted adults are and when to tell them something

Use a simple decision-making process when faced with a choice — stopping to think, identifying the options, considering the consequences of each option, and then choosing — rather than acting impulsively

Know and use the vocabulary of ethics and citizenship — bullying, cyberbullying, bystander, upstander, peer pressure, digital citizenship, rights, responsibility, and ethical — and understand the distinctions between these closely related terms

Understand the bystander role — that when someone witnesses unkind or unfair behaviour, they have a choice: they can be a passive bystander (doing nothing), join in, or be an upstander (speaking up or getting help) — and develop the confidence to be an upstander

Understand what bullying is — repeated behaviour intended to hurt someone, including physical, verbal, social (exclusion, spreading rumours), and cyberbullying — and know that it is always wrong and what to do if they experience or witness it

Understand basic digital citizenship — being kind online, protecting personal information, recognising that people behind screens are real people with real feelings, and knowing what to do if something online makes them uncomfortable

Evaluate the ethical dimensions of real-world issues they encounter — such as environmental responsibility, fairness in sport, digital ethics, or social justice — considering multiple perspectives and forming a reasoned personal position

Understand that ethical decisions are not always black and white — that sometimes there is no perfect answer and reasonable people can disagree — and practise weighing up competing values when making difficult choices

Understand peer pressure — the influence friends and peers can have on your choices and behaviour — and develop strategies for resisting pressure to do something they know is wrong or that makes them uncomfortable

Understand their rights and responsibilities as a member of a community — that everyone has a right to be treated with respect and to feel safe, and that with rights come responsibilities to treat others the same way

Distinguish between risk (decisions with known probabilities) and uncertainty (decisions with unknown outcomes); identify cognitive biases that distort risk assessment: availability heuristic (judging likelihood by how easily examples come to mind), present bias (overvaluing the immediate over the future), optimism bias (underestimating personal risk), and groupthink; understand why adolescent brains are biologically calibrated toward higher risk tolerance; apply a structured decision-making framework to real choices; understand the role of personal values in decisions where facts alone cannot determine the answer

Understand the ethics of online identity and the importance of consistency between who you are online and offline; explain how recommendation algorithms and filter bubbles narrow information exposure; evaluate the psychology of misinformation: why it spreads, why smart people believe it, and how to apply source evaluation (lateral reading, checking evidence, recognising emotional manipulation); understand digital consent around sharing images or personal information; explore the ethics of AI, surveillance, and data privacy as they affect everyday life; reflect on responsible content creation and online influence

Introduce the three main ethical frameworks: consequentialism (judge actions by outcomes and overall welfare), deontology (judge actions by adherence to rules and duties regardless of consequences), and virtue ethics (judge actions by the character they reflect); apply each framework to real-world moral dilemmas: climate responsibility, AI ethics, civil disobedience, wealth inequality, healthcare rationing; understand the strengths and limitations of each framework; develop the capacity for careful moral reasoning — the ability to think through ethical questions systematically rather than relying only on intuition or group opinion

Notice what you are feeling and put a name to it — being able to label an emotion is the first step to understanding and managing it

Know and use the vocabulary of self-reflection — self-awareness, reflect, pattern, trigger, assumption, impact, perspective, and notice — and understand that having precise words for these inner experiences makes them easier to understand and talk about

Understand that feelings and actions are separate — you can feel something strongly without having to act on it straight away

Notice patterns in your own reactions — 'I tend to respond like this when I'm tired, left out, or put on the spot'

Reflect on how your behaviour lands on others — consider not just what you intended but what the actual impact was on the other person

Notice when your first reading of a social situation might be wrong — your assumptions about why someone acted a certain way are not always facts

Reflect on your own growth over time — the things that challenge you now are not fixed, and noticing how you have already changed builds genuine self-knowledge

Know and use the key words for managing big feelings — calm, strategy, cope, settle, patience, overwhelmed, and breathe — and understand that having words for these ideas is the first step to using them

Use simple calming strategies when feeling upset or overwhelmed — such as taking deep breaths, counting to ten, or going to a quiet space — and understand that these help the body and mind settle down

Understand that making mistakes is a normal part of learning and that everyone — including adults — makes mistakes, and begin to see mistakes as opportunities to learn rather than reasons to give up

Understand that change is a normal part of life — such as starting school, getting a new teacher, a new baby arriving, or moving house — and identify simple strategies that help them cope with changes

Wait for things they want without becoming very distressed — practising patience and delayed gratification in everyday situations like waiting their turn, waiting for a treat, or waiting for help

Break a challenging task into smaller, manageable steps rather than feeling overwhelmed by the whole thing — and celebrate progress along the way

Understand the concept of a growth mindset — that abilities and intelligence can grow with effort, practice, and good strategies — as opposed to a fixed mindset where you believe you're either good at something or you're not

Know and use the vocabulary of resilience and self-management — including regulate, resilience, growth mindset, fixed mindset, self-talk, trigger, setback, persevere, and distress — and understand what each word means in practice

Use positive self-talk to manage difficult situations — replacing unhelpful thoughts like 'I'm stupid' or 'I'll never be able to do this' with encouraging ones like 'This is hard but I can keep trying' or 'I've done hard things before'

Understand that different situations require different coping strategies — what works for anger might not work for sadness, and what helps at school might be different from what helps at home

Reflect on which self-regulation and coping strategies work best for them personally, building a 'toolkit' of approaches they can draw on in different situations and sharing what works with others

Understand resilience as the ability to recover from setbacks, adapt to difficult circumstances, and keep going — recognising that resilience is a skill that develops through experience, not a trait you either have or don't

Set realistic personal goals, create a simple plan to achieve them, monitor their own progress, and adjust their approach when things aren't working

Manage their own time and attention effectively — prioritising tasks, minimising distractions, and maintaining focus on important work even when it's not the most exciting option

Distinguish between eustress (the productive, motivating kind of stress) and distress (harmful, overwhelming stress); explain the physiological stress response (fight-flight-freeze, HPA axis) and how chronic stress affects the body and mind; identify common adolescent stressors (academic pressure, social comparison, physical change, uncertainty about the future); evaluate evidence-based coping strategies (exercise, sleep, mindfulness, social support, expressive writing); recognise warning signs that stress has crossed into anxiety or depression and know where to get help

Understand habit formation through the cue-routine-reward loop and how to design new habits intentionally; distinguish intrinsic motivation (doing something for its own value) from extrinsic motivation (rewards/punishments) and understand when each is more effective; understand procrastination as primarily an emotion regulation problem (avoiding discomfort) rather than a time management failure; apply self-determination theory (autonomy, competence, relatedness) to boost intrinsic motivation; design environments that reduce friction for desired behaviours

Understand that facing serious challenges can lead to genuine growth in three domains: new perspectives on life, improved relationships, and a strengthened sense of personal capability (post-traumatic growth); distinguish genuine growth from toxic positivity ('everything happens for a reason') and from denial; understand that resilience does not mean being unaffected by adversity but recovering and growing through it; develop a personal philosophy for handling setbacks based on meaning-making; explore how to support others going through serious difficulty without minimising their experience