Social and Emotional Development
"Attachments to parents and other caregivers determine how young children see and feel about themselves....Their early self-image, in turn, determines how they approach learning and human relationships throughout their school years and the rest of their lives" (Post, Hohmann, and Epstein, 35).
One of the biggest reasons parents enroll their children in daycare is to help their children gain and improve their social skills. Activities that focus on social and emotional development do just that. While daycare specialists and preschool teachers should teach infants, toddlers, and preschoolers their letters and numbers, teaching these children how to show empathy and love for others is just as essential, if not more.
Activities that focus on social and emotional development teach children to build a sense of self-identity and a sense of competence, to recognize and regulate emotions in both themselves and in others, to express empathy, to recognize and participate in communities, to build relationships with their peers and with adults, to play well with others, to develop socially acceptable morals, and to resolve conflicts on their own.
Materials for the classroom: stuffed animals, soft blankets, pillows and blankets, books on feelings, feelings boards, paper, pencils, paint (red, yellow, blue), album filled with pictures of students' families
Activities that focus on social and emotional development teach children to build a sense of self-identity and a sense of competence, to recognize and regulate emotions in both themselves and in others, to express empathy, to recognize and participate in communities, to build relationships with their peers and with adults, to play well with others, to develop socially acceptable morals, and to resolve conflicts on their own.
Materials for the classroom: stuffed animals, soft blankets, pillows and blankets, books on feelings, feelings boards, paper, pencils, paint (red, yellow, blue), album filled with pictures of students' families
Activities for Infants (0 - 18 months)
Activities for Toddlers (18 - 24 months)
Activities for Preschoolers (3 - 5 years)