Rock Solid Foundations: Promoting the Social & Emotional Competence of Young Children & Preventing Challenging Behaviors: Friendship and Play Skills

Introductions

1. Your name, program.

2. What is your role?

INSERT PICTURE OF

will learn today?

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CYTTAP

Allison Silberber, 2007

Promote Children’s Success

• Create an environment where EVERY child feels good about coming to school • Design an environment that promotes child engagement • Focus on teaching children what To Do! •Teach expectations and routines •Teach skills that children can use in place of challenging behaviors 4

CSEFEL Pyramid Model

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Definitions, Research and Rationale

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CSEFEL Definition of Social Emotional Development

The term social emotional development refers to the developing capacity of the child from birth through five years of age to form close and secure adult and peer relationships; experience, regulate, and express emotions in socially and culturally appropriate ways; and explore the environment and learn - all in the context of family, community, and culture. Caregivers promote healthy development by working to support social emotional wellness in all young children, and make every effort to prevent the occurrence or escalation of social emotional problems in children at-risk, identifying and working to remediate problems that surface, and, when necessary, referring children and their families t o appropriate services.

Adapted from ZERO TO THREE, 2001 HANDOUT: IT 1.2

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What is Social-Emotional Development?

The

developmentally

and

culturally

appropriate ability to: Manage Emotions Relate to Adults Relate to Peers Feel Good About Self 8

Friendship Skills Part 1

“Who would choose to live, even if possessed with all other things, without friends.” Aristotle

QuickT ime™ and a TI FF (Uncompressed) decompressor are needed t o see this picture.

Think about children who are well liked and friendly… What do you notice about their behavior that makes it easier for them to make friends?

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When Do We Teach These Skills?

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TEACH ME WHAT TO DO!!

“ If a child doesn ’t know how to read,

we teach

.

If a child doesn ’t know how to swim,

we teach

.

If a child doesn ’t know how to multiply,

we teach

.

If a child doesn ’t know how to drive,

we teach.

If a child doesn ’t know how to behave,

we……..... …….teach? ……punish?

Why can ’t we finish the last sentence as automatically as we do the others?

”

Tom Herner (NASDE President ) Counterpoint 1998, p.2)

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Development of Play Skills for Infants and Toddlers

Age

Birth to 3 Months • • • •

Play

Responds to caregivers Coos and smiles Responds to familiar voices Focuses on objects 4 to 7 Months 8 to 12 Months • • • • • • Enjoys social games with caregiver Likes exploratory play supported by caregiver Plays some games with caregiver like peek-a-boo and patty cake Begins to imitate play actions or behavior of 13 others, especially caregivers Play hiding games, songs and rhymes with caregivers Play alone with caregivers for a short time

Age

13 to 24 Months

Development of Play Skills for Infants and Toddlers

Play

• • Enjoys play with objects Increased interest in watching other • children play (onlooker) • • Primarily plays alone (solitary) May offer toys to caregiver or other children May choose independent play close to other children (parallel) but not interact with them 25-36 Months • • • • • • May play with other children but in an occasional or limited way (associative) children May take leader/follower roles in play Some pretend play Still plays alone frequently Interactive level moving toward cooperative play

Progression of Play to Friendship Skills in Infants & Toddlers 1. Positive interactions with adults 2. Showing awareness of other children by: - Smiling and cooing - Watching children playing - Reaching out to other children - Copying what other children are doing 3. Playing briefly with other children 4. Wanting what others have 5. Practicing turn-taking and sharing 15

Setting Up the Environment for Developing Play & Friendship Skills

1. Examine the physical space to ensure that there is enough space for infants and adults to engage in social activities 2. Examine physical environment for spaces for two or more children to enjoy side by side activity and for adults to be close for supervision 16

Setting Up the Environment for Developing Play & Friendship Skills

3. Examine schedule for opportunities to develop play skills each day 4. Look at equipment choices that encourage two children to interact 5. Ensure that there are enough materials for two or more children to use at a time 17

Promoting the Development of Friendship Skills - Toddlers 1. Set up activities for only two children.

2. Encourage children to help each other and do routines together 3. Provide positive verbal support for play between children 4. Read books about friends, playing together, helping each other, etc.

5. Practice turn-taking & sharing 18

I/T

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Friendship Skills Part 2

PS

What helped the children be successful or unsuccessful playing together as friends?

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Friendship Skills

1. Gives suggestions (play organizers) 2. Shares toys and other materials 3. Takes turns (reciprocity) 4. Is helpful 5. Gives compliments 6. Understands how and when to give an apology 7. Begins to empathize Tremblay et al., 1981 22

PS

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Setting the Stage for Friendship  Inclusive setting  Cooperative use toys (balls, puppets, wagons, telephones, rocking boat, board games)  Embed opportunities throughout the day  Social interaction goals and objectives (IFSP/IEP)  Atmosphere of friendship (adults and children)

Strategies for Teaching Friendship Skills 1. Modeling 2. Modeling with video 3. Modeling with puppets 4. Preparing peer partners 5. Buddy system 6. Priming 7. Direct modeling 8. Reinforcement (Webster-Stratton & Hammond, 1997) 25

Activities to Support the Development of Friendship Skills

a) Friendship Can – draw out a child’s name b) Planting Seeds of Friendship – grass seed in a decorated cup c) Friendship Tree/Compliment Tree – add leaves with observed skills d) Books about Friendships – Fox Makes Friends, The Rainbow Fish, Big Al, Making Friends, OUR Class Book of Friendship 26

Activities to Support the Development of Friendship Skills

e) Friendship Quilt - pictures of children on construction paper squares, pictures of children demonstrating skills f) Friendship Journal - skills and pictures of each skill g) Music/Songs – class-made or commercial CD’ s 27

PS

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Embedding Friendship Opportunities into Daily Routines and Activities Arrival Circle Time Center Time Lunch Naptime Outside Snack Story Time Departure 29

Article: Social Emotional Teaching Strategies

You’ve Got to Have Friends

Gail E. Joseph, Ph.D. & Phillip S. Strain, Ph.D.

Handout PS 2.3

Pulling it all Together!

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Major Messages to Take Home

• It is important for caregivers to set up an environment where play and friendship skills are developed and supported • It is important to be intentional about teaching children friendship skills • Embed friendship building opportunities in daily routine is essential to supporting children’s social and emotional development 32

If there is anything that we wish to change in the child, we should first examine it and see whether it is not something that could better be changed in ourselves.

Carl Jung – psychiatrist 33

Be the change you wish to see in the world. Mahatma Ghandi

Review your Personal Action Plan

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Resources

• Childcare and Youth Training and Technical Assistance project: http://www.extension.unl.edu/web/child/cyttap • Better Kid Care: http://betterkidcare.psu.edu/ • CSEFEL : http://csefel.vanderbilt.edu/ 35

Evaluation

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