One Year of SPARK at Wildcat Achievers Academy

What positive changes might a school see when it makes time to teach social and emotional skills?

At the 2026 Kids First Leadership Summit, Wildcat Achievers Academy in the Little Rock School District shared encouraging results following one year of SPARK implementation:

These school-reported results offer an encouraging example of progress during SPARK implementation and a starting point for discussing how social and emotional learning can support a school’s academic priorities.

Supporting the Skills Students Use to Learn

Managing frustration, asking for help, and working through disagreements are skills students use throughout the school day. Social and emotional learning, or SEL, gives educators opportunities to teach those skills intentionally and help students practice them in everyday situations.

The Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) identifies five connected competencies: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. These competencies help students understand themselves and navigate their interactions with others. [1]

What Current Research Tells Us

Research supports including SEL in a comprehensive approach to student learning.

A meta-analysis by Ha and colleagues, published online in 2025 and included in the October 2026 issue of Review of Educational Research, examined 40 studies involving 33,737 students. Students who participated in school-based SEL programs demonstrated a small but statistically significant improvement in academic achievement compared with students who did not participate. [2]

A 2026 meta-analysis by Hu and colleagues reviewed 65 studies involving students ages 6–10 and found positive effects on social and emotional development. Implementation fidelity, or how closely educators followed the program as intended, was associated with differences in outcomes. For school leaders, this reinforces the importance of planning for consistent implementation. [3]

These studies examine SEL broadly rather than Kids First SPARK specifically. Wildcat Achievers Academy’s results describe the progress the school reported during its first year of implementation.

Making SEL Practical for Educators

SPARK, which stands for Social Emotional Prompts And Resources for Kids, provides structured resources to help educators incorporate SEL into the school day. Aligned with CASEL’s five competencies, SPARK includes:

• 48 bellringer lessons across 24 weeks.
• Teacher agendas and a scope and sequence to guide planning.
• Presentation slides to support instruction.
• Monthly family newsletters to extend conversations at home.
• Aligned professional learning community topics to support staff learning.

These resources give educators a practical starting point for teaching social and emotional skills consistently. For leaders, implementation planning also means deciding how to monitor progress and use the findings to guide support. [4]

Explore SPARK for Your School

Wildcat Achievers Academy’s experience gives school leaders a concrete example to consider as they examine their own priorities for student wellness, academic growth, and behavior.

To request sample lessons or discuss how SPARK could fit your school’s needs, contact Kids First Education today.

Sources

1. CASEL. What Is SEL? Definition and five core competencies. View Source
2. Ha, C., McCarthy, M. F., Strambler, M. J., & Cipriano, C. (2026; first published online 2025). Disentangling the effects of social and emotional learning programs on student academic achievement across grades 1–12: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Review of Educational Research, 96(5), 1839–1880. View Source
3. Hu, Y., Godor, B. P., Nederhand, M., Smeets, G., & van der Hallen, R. (2026). Programs and practices influencing socio-emotional learning in primary schools: A meta-analysis. Journal of Applied School Psychology, 42(4), 346–369. View Source
4. Kids First Education. SPARK product description. View Source