Complete Health-Fitness-and-Wellness WGU Materials

Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) skills include abilities like self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making. A key characteristic of SEL skills is that they arelearned and strengthened over time—not fixed traits—and they can continue to developthroughout adulthood. People refine SEL through life experiences, feedback, coaching, education, and intentional practice. For example, adults often improve communication, emotional regulation, empathy, and conflict resolution as they take on new roles such as employee, manager, partner, caregiver, or community member.

Option A fits this lifelong-development perspective. SEL skills build through repeated practice in real situations—handling stress, collaborating with others, managing frustration, and making thoughtful choices. This is why SEL is described as a set of competencies that can be taught, practiced, and improved at any stage of life.

The other options are inaccurate. SEL skills donottypically take a short time to develop; while small improvements can happen quickly, strong skills usually require ongoing practice. SEL skills are also not limited to the workplace; they apply at school, home, sports teams, friendships, and community settings. Finally, SEL skillscanbe measured in meaningful ways, such as through self-reflection checklists, observed behaviors, goal tracking, and growth over time in areas like cooperation, emotional regulation, and problem-solving.

In wellness education, understanding SEL as lifelong skills encourages a growth mindset: even if someone struggles with stress, confidence, or social connection now, they can improve with practice and support.

Stage 1 sleep(often called N1) is the lightest sleep stage and is best described as the transition between being awake and being asleep. During this stage, people commonly drift in and out of sleep and may still be aware of their surroundings. That “in-between” quality is why Stage 1 is associated withfluctuations between light sleep and wakefulness.

In Stage 1, the body begins to relax: muscle activity decreases, eye movements slow, and brain activity starts shifting away from fully awake patterns. Because this stage is very light, it’s easy to wake up from it, and many people who are awakened during Stage 1 may even insist they were not asleep. Brief muscle twitches or the sensation of falling can occur as the nervous system transitions into sleep.

The other stages don’t match this description.Stage 2(N2) is also light sleep, but it is more stable than Stage 1 and represents a deeper “settled” sleep state where the body further relaxes and the brain shows specific patterns associated with maintaining sleep.Stage 3(N3) is deep sleep, where awakening is difficult and restorative processes are emphasized, including physical recovery and immune support.REMis a distinct stage typically associated with vivid dreaming and active brain patterns, but it is not described as drifting back and forth between wakefulness and sleep. Instead, REM is a recognizable sleep phase that cycles throughout the night.

Understanding Stage 1 matters for wellness because frequent awakenings can keep someone stuck in lighter stages, leaving them feeling unrefreshed. Improving sleep habits (consistent schedule, reduced caffeine late in the day, and a calmer wind-down routine) can help the body move smoothly beyond Stage 1 into more restorative sleep.

This scenario best matches social awareness (A). Social awareness involves understanding others’ feelings, perspectives, and needs, and responding with empathy and respect. In a face-to-face employee review, the reviewer can observe nonverbal cues (tone, facial expression, posture), ask clarifying questions, and listen actively. This helps the manager accurately understand the employee’s experience, concerns, and motivations—key components of social awareness.

Social awareness supports fair and supportive workplace interactions. Rather than focusing only on performance metrics, a socially aware approach considers the human factors that affect performance: workload stress, unclear expectations, confidence, interpersonal conflict, or barriers outside work. By understanding the employee’s perspective, the manager can respond more effectively—adjusting goals, offering training, clarifying expectations, or providing resources. This strengthens trust and can improve both well-being and productivity.

The other competencies do not fit as precisely. Executive function focuses on planning, organization, and impulse control—important for running a review but not the key skill described. Self-awareness involves recognizing one’s own emotions and biases, which can be helpful during reviews, but the question emphasizes understanding the employee’s feelings and perspective. Communication and leadership are certainly involved in conducting reviews, but the specific focus here is empathy and perspective-taking, which is the hallmark of social awareness.

In SEL, social awareness helps people build healthier relationships, reduce conflict, and create supportive environments—exactly what a thoughtful face-to-face review is meant to accomplish.

This is an example ofsocial awareness (D)because it involves empathy and perspective-taking toward others—specifically, understanding the challenges faced byEnglish Language Learner (ELL)students. Social awareness includes recognizing differences in experiences, appreciating diversity, and seeking to understand how social, cultural, and language factors can affect participation, confidence, and learning.

ELL students may face struggles such as translating academic language, processing instructions quickly, participating in discussions, and worrying about making mistakes in front of peers. They may also experience cultural adjustment and reduced confidence when expressing complex ideas in a non-native language. Trying to understand these struggles shows empathy and respect, which are central to social awareness. It can lead to supportive behaviors such as speaking clearly, avoiding unnecessary jargon, offering written summaries, being patient during discussions, and encouraging inclusive participation.

The other competencies are not the best match.Self-managementfocuses on controlling one’s own emotions and behaviors.Executive functioninvolves planning, organization, and problem-solving.Communication and leadershipcan be used to support ELL students (for example, facilitating inclusive group work), but the core skill described—trying to understand others’ experiences—is most directly social awareness.

In SEL, social awareness helps build a welcoming learning environment where all students can succeed. When peers develop understanding of ELL challenges, it reduces stigma, improves cooperation, and strengthens a sense of belonging—important factors for emotional wellness, academic engagement, and positive group dynamics.