There is substantial empirical evidence linking social-emotional learning (SEL) to improved well-being, positive teacher-child relationships, and greater academic success (Denham & Brown, 2010; Stefan et al., 2022). According to a sociocultural conception of narrative, children engage in various domains of SEL while elaborating their experiences in the form of stories (Bruner, 2004). Thus, storytelling activities provide natural opportunities for social-emotional learning in the classroom.

Recent studies have specifically explored the connection between digital storytelling and SEL. Some emphasize how collaborative digital storytelling creates a conducive environment for SEL (del Moral Pérez et al., 2016; Del-Moral-Pérez et al., 2018; Uslu & Uslu, 2021). Children exercise peer support, adapt to different situations and develop cognitive flexibility and adaptivity as fundamental social abilities (del Moral Pérez et al., 2016, p. 34).

However, there is limited research on how digitally enhanced storytelling activities can be specifically crafted to foster specific dimensions of social-emotional learning, such as self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making (Denham & Brown, 2010; Hecht & Shin, 2015; Payton et al., 2000). Here, SEL encompasses "knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions” (Weissberg, 2019).

This research investigates how a guided storytelling tool, which has been developed as part of a wider design-based research project (McKenney & Reeves, 2018), can be adapted and applied for the specific goal of advancing SEL through storytelling. In specific, the aim of the study was to develop a set of guidelines on how to prepare and scaffold collaborative storytelling activities in which children engage with social emotional learning.

Focusing on the specific research question, "How can storytelling activities enhance social-emotional learning in a primary classroom?" this study explores the utilization of a digital storytelling tool tailored to this particular case. In the observed classroom, the teacher noticed that some students faced challenges such as low self-esteem, negative social-problem solving patterns, and difficulties in emotion regulation, hindering their full participation and benefit from lessons. Consequently, in accordance with participatory research principles, the study’s aim originated from the research setting, with written permission obtained from parents and caregivers. The research was conducted in a Portuguese public primary school, involving a fourth-grade class with students aged 9-10, where 19 participants took part (11 boys, 8 girls). The study intervention followed a structured three-part format. In the initial phase, general topics related to social-emotional learning were discussed with the children. They were encouraged to design and draw story elements pertaining to different categories (characters, emotions, events, magic objects) that would later be entered into the database of the digital storytelling tool. Within the tool, children choose between three story-elements at each step, constructing a storyboard-like scaffold for their narration. After the child-made elements were digitalized, during the second part of the intervention children worked collaboratively on their stories in the school’s computer lab. The stories underwent different stages according to the functioning of the storytelling tool, beginning from an oral recount, a storyboard of selected images, and finally a written document. In the third part, children presented and exchanged their stories and reflected on the storytelling process. Thus, this specific study followed the approach of a qualitative case study (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016, p. 233). The intervention spanned over one and a half months with weekly appointments. The data collected comprised transcripts of semistructured interviews with the teacher, field notes, memos, and children’s creative products, i.e. drawings on emotions, logs of the storytelling tool (pdf exports) and written stories. The qualitative content analysis of these artifacts focused on how children elaborated SEL concepts in a narrative form, such as responsible decision-making and social awareness, starting from their interaction with the digital storytelling interface.

The analysis of the intervention is composed of three perspectives. First, the interview with the class teacher before and after the intervention was analyzed, along with the observational notes taken during the various sessions. Thanks to the long-term involvement of the researchers with the class and the teacher’s comments, some relevant behavior can be related to the learning trajectory of some children. Further, a graphical analysis of the drawings children made to generate the story element library provides valuable information on the children’s perceptions and interpretations of emotions. An additional examination of selection preferences lets us see how children relate to drawings made by peers. Third, a content analysis of the produced narratives reveals if and how children accomplished SEL through the elaboration of stories. In a meta-analysis, Durlak et al. (2011, p. 410) recommend school programs for SEL to be structured (1) as sequenced and connected activities, (2) through active forms of learning, (3) focused on a specific personal or social skill and (4) explicitly targeted towards a SEL dimension. This study enhances these guidelines by developing an evaluation rubric to assess how children’s stories relate to different domains of SEL. Considering that children express their reflections on various social-emotional issues, such as social and self-awareness, through the behavior of the protagonists in their stories, the research advocates for focused storytelling activities as a means to promote social-emotional learning.

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