Social-emotional development is the core of success for an
individual. Starting with expectations and
relationships of adults in the culture of my program is important. We cannot teach and expect children to
develop social-emotional skills if we as adults have not developed them
ourselves. A strong foundation of authentic
relationships and expectations will nurture relationships among adults and
children. Providing a high- quality learning
environment built on these strong relationships promotes positive outcomes and
provides opportunities for profound learning experiences.
Children are capable of big things! All children benefit from targeted
social skills. Teaching social skills and assessing the needs of all children
provides the opportunity to develop individualized behavior support for
children and families. I will set
expectations for behavior and model kindness and respect. Children will learn how to respond to
situations and treat others.
Expectations will be explained to the children in developmentally
appropriate language and children will be taught to be great problem solvers. Expectations,
rules and limits will be consistent and shared with families and the
community.
Time outs and physical punishments are ineffective and do not
provide opportunities for children to learn and develop problem solving strategies. Punishment is subjecting someone to a bad
experience in response to their behavior.
Subjecting bad experiences on someone is harmful to their emotional
health. Discipline is training someone
to understand expected behaviors. Through discipline children are taught their
expectations and reasons why they should act a certain way.
Children will be taught techniques to self-regulate and build
strong social and emotional skills through providing clear expectations and
positive reinforcement for appropriate behaviors while in my care. Social and emotional skills that I will focus
on include: self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationships
skills, and responsible decision making.
The children will learn what each of these skills are, expectations of
each skill, and techniques to build these skills into their daily lives. I will also share this information with
families and the community to work towards a universal understanding of social
and emotional competency for everyone.
Supporting each other in building these skills will promote a productive
and successful society.
Every individual is unique and has valuable gifts. As I grow in
experiences, my guidance philosophy will also evolve. When we know better, we
do better. I will continually seek to better serve the children and families in
my care.
Self-awareness is the ability to
recognize our own emotions and thoughts and how they influence our
behavior. Through self-awareness, one
can accurately assess their strengths and weaknesses and form a well-grounded
sense of confidence and optimism. I will
provide various experiences and opportunities for children to develop strong self-awareness
skills such as:
·
Provide opportunities to identify and express feelings and expand emotional
vocabulary.
·
Provide opportunities for children to practice identifying
potential situations or experiences that lead to feeling overwhelmed and
struggling to manage emotions.
·
Help children accurately assess their own capabilities and
qualities.
·
Regularly acknowledge children’s strengths and work to build
self-confidence.
·
Provide opportunities for children to feel successful.
Self-management is the ability to
regulate one’s emotions, thoughts, and behaviors effectively in different
situations. I will guide children in
stress management, controlling impulses, and motivating themselves. Some of the
techniques I will use and teach to children to strengthen self-management
skills are:
·
Provide opportunities for children to practice managing their
thoughts and behaviors.
·
Offer positive support when children are having difficulties with
self-regulation.
·
Teach children emotional and behavioral regulation techniques that
help them practice ways of coping with stressful experiences. (Breathing
exercises and nonverbal means of expression such as music, art, dance, and
yoga)
·
Provide strategies to help children independently meet
expectations such as visual schedules and prompts in the learning environment.
·
Strengthen and model my own actions and behaviors using techniques
such as mindfulness strategies, breathing, and self-talk.
Social awareness is the ability to take
the perspective of and empathize with others from diverse backgrounds and
cultures; to understand social and ethical norms for behavior; and to recognize
family, school, and community resources and supports. I will guide children in acknowledging and
celebrating different ideas and diversities and teach empathy for differences
in others. Techniques that I will use to
strengthen social awareness include:
·
Provide opportunities for children to identify how others may be
feeling.
·
Provide opportunities for students to listen to their peers’
opinions and express disagreements in constructive ways.
·
Recognize commonalities and differences amongst others.
·
Demonstrate respect for diversity among others and find ways to
share diverse cultural backgrounds and experiences.
·
Provide and enforce clear expectations regarding students’
behaviors toward others (e.g., anti-bullying, harassment, and violence
policies).
Relationship skills are the ability to
establish and maintain healthy and rewarding relationships with diverse individuals
and groups. This includes communicating clearly, listening actively,
cooperating, resisting inappropriate social pressure, negotiating conflict
constructively, and seeking and offering help when needed. Frequent Opportunities
will be presented to learn techniques for children to practice relationship
skills. These opportunities will
include:
·
Provide opportunities for children to practice communication
skills. (Speaking and listening)
·
Provide opportunities for children to work together in groups or
with partners.
·
Support children in resolving conflicts with each other.
·
Provide opportunities for children to reflect on positive and
negative choices in relationships and consequences of each choice.
·
Model positive and respectful relationships with children,
families, and colleagues.
Responsible decision making is the ability to make constructive and respectful choices about
personal behavior and social interactions based the well-being of self and
others. I will guide children in responsible decision-making skill building
with techniques such as:
·
Allow children to have a decision-making role related to classroom
activities and rules.
·
Offer children choices about ways they can present their ideas.
·
Work to create an environment in which students believe that their
thoughts and opinions are valued.
·
Work with children to solve problems.
·
Provide opportunities for students to evaluate various real-world
scenarios and make decisions based on the information at hand.
BE KIND ~ BE SAFE ~ BE HELPFUL
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