In this age of common-core state standards, revised teacher evaluation tools and high stakes testing, it often seems that the field of education has forgotten the importance of supporting a child's social and emotional well-being! The kindergarten classroom used to be the place where young students learned how to get along with each other and function in a classroom setting, in addition to "reading, writing and arithmetic!" However, focusing on anything but academics has become a luxury in many kindergarten classrooms. It seems that we've forgotten that the formula for school readiness and success is not just one of academic skills. Children need to know how to form relationships with their peers, resolve conflict, tolerate frustration and persevere through trying times. Children who lack social-emotional competence have an increased risk for learning and behavioral problems and juvenile delinquency. In a 2005 study, Walter Gillian, a professor at Yale's child-study center, found that preschool expulsion rates are three times higher than K-12 expulsion rates so this is an important issue. The preschool through kindergarten years set the stage for relationships and readiness to learn! This is why I've decided to write this post on activities that promote social-emotional skills in children ages 3-6. It's my way of saying, "Hey world, let's not forget about the importance of social skills" through my virtual bullhorn! I'd like to share some resources, free and paid, and ideas that I have found useful in working with this age group in the area of pragmatics, social thinking and social language. If you have ideas to share, I'd also love to hear them.
First, let's talk about Social Thinking, (a registered trademark, www.socialthinking.com), a treatment framework and curriculum developed by Michelle Garcia Winner that targets social thinking abilities. This framework can be used with individuals with autism spectrum disorders, Asperger's, ADHD and Nonverbal Learning Disability although some children experiencing social learning challenges have no formal diagnosis! There is a product line devoted to 4-7 year olds. featuring "The Incredible Flexible You" curriculum set. Volume 1 features 5 storybooks, a music CD and lessons/curriculum ideas. I have this set on my wish list! Volume 2 is not out yet as of this date. I would buy all of the products on the social thinking website if I could, but that's not possible for me. My father always told me, "in this life, we make choices!" Currently, I own and use You are a Social Detective, by Michelle Garcia Winner and Pamela Crooke. Their website describes this book as being appropriate for ages 4 through 5th grade. I currently use it with my kindergarten students in individual therapy and in a social skills group. The book is 58 pages and it contains two lessons. The book basically explains social thinking to children. It's loosely divided into three sections: School smarts/social smarts and expected behavior, unexpected behavior and being a social detective and it gives you some ideas that you can expand upon in your therapy sessions. Get yourself this book, some props, (detective hat and a magnifying glass), some pictures of children experiencing various emotions, and start to teach your students how to be a social detective!
Are you new to the concept of "social thinking?" Check the social thinking website for courses. If you can't take one, I've found Michelle Garcia Winner's book "Thinking about you thinking about me" to be a wonderful overview of social thinking.
The content of "You are a social detective" and "Thinking about you thinking about me' is excellent but sometimes it's just a little challenging to move from theory to practice and actual activities!! I've incorporated some of MGW's great ideas with two activities that I use with my three to six year old students. The first is Bobby Chooses a Friend. This is basically a social story put into storybook form. It uses some of the vocabulary from the Social Thinking Curriculum and follows Bobby, who wants to make a new friend. He uses his eyes, ears and brain to make a smart guess about who will make a good friend for him, Sam or Ben?? It also contains a lesson at the end of the book.
The other product in my TPT store is my best-seller, Social Thinking: Perspective Taking, Listening, & Social Skills. It provides preschool-friendly visuals for the social thinking concepts, "brain in group, brain out of group, body in group, body out of group," an activity for sorting expected and unexpected behaviors and an activity to improve perspective-taking. Both of these product are bundled so you can save some money! They are great companion pieces to the social thinking (R) curriculum.In Wisconsin, (along with 10 other states), we use the "C-SEFEL," the pyramid model from the "Center on the Social-Emotional Foundations of Early Learning." It is a tiered approach for intentionally supporting the social emotional needs of early learning. According to this model, the needs of 80% of children, aged birth to five, can be met in child care settings with solid systems and policies and universal supports. The needs of 15% of children can be met with preventative techniques and teaching. A few children (3-5%) will need the top tier of intensive intervention. As an SLP working with Early Childhood programs, day-care centers, 4 year old kindergarten programs and kindergarten students, I often find myself working with those top two tiers of children. Children who have language delays may have difficulties expressing their feelings and using their language to communicate their play schemes and negotiate conflict with their peers.
If you work in the public schools and live in one of the states using the C-SEFEL model, (Wisconsin, North Carolina, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Iowa, Massachusetts, Nebraska, Tennessee, Vermont) or you want to know more about it, check out the Center for Social-Emotional Foundations of Early Learning website. I'd like to share some of my favorite (free) resources from their website that I've used with my 3-5 year old students:
1. "I can be a super friend." An 18 page book/social story in a pdf format that provides a nice overview of what it means to be a super friend at school. This is great to use if you have students obsessed with superheroes!
2. "I can use my words." A 15 page book/social story in a pdf format that invites children to use their language instead of screaming and hitting to communicate or get their needs met in the classroom.
3. "What do we do in circle?" A 10 page book/social story in a pdf format that explains how children sit and listen to the teacher during circle time-such a challenging time for the little ones to stay still and learn!
All of the above listed resources can be found by clicking on this link and scrolling down to the list of titles.
Well, I've decided that I have to much information to jam into one post so please stay tuned for more posts related to pragmatics, social language and meeting the social-emotional needs of our students!! Donna
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