Social Emotional Learning
Building positive relationships with your students is not only essential for creating a warm and inclusive classroom environment but also lays the foundation for their academic and personal growth. As teachers, we can make a lasting impact on our students’ lives by nurturing these relationships and building a supportive classroom community. I’m all about building connections, so today I’m gonna […]
Welcome, PreK teachers, to the exciting first week of the school year! You are about to embark on another fun-filled journey of learning and discovery with your little learners. During this special week, you have the opportunity to lay the foundation for an amazing year ahead, connect with your students and help them begin to build that sense of belonging. […]
“Fair is fair” is something we hear often in preschools, but let’s be honest—fairness is a tricky concept to grasp when you’re only 4 or 5 years old. Another favorite phrase? “That’s not fair!” And as we all know, explaining fairness to little ones often takes more than a quick five-minute chat. From my experience, teaching fairness isn’t easy, but […]
I have been on the hunt lately for growth mindset picture books for my preschoolers. There are so many great options, but finding the right options for my young learners was a bit of a challenge and so I thought if I have found it challenging, you must too. Haven’t you found the language in them can sometimes be challenging […]
“I can’t do it!” or “I can’t do it…yet!”Which one sounds more familiar in your preschool classroom? That tiny word—yet—can make a world of difference in how children view themselves and their abilities. It’s the beginning of teaching something powerful: the difference between a growth mindset versus a fixed mindset. When we help preschoolers understand that struggling is part of […]
Size of the problem is a valuable social skills concept that helps children identify the severity of a problem and decide how to respond appropriately. It teaches that not all problems are the same—think of a broken pencil versus falling from monkey bars and breaking an arm. Both are problems, but their consequences, and the appropriate reactions, differ vastly.If you’re […]
I bet you’re thinking, “Mindfulness for preschool, how is that even possible?” It’s hard enough for us grown-ups to bring mindfulness into our daily lives so how can we expect children to be mindful and how can we help them develop that practice? What if I told you mindfulness is already happening in your classroom? What if I told you […]
Social-emotional development is everything in the early years, right?! It’s the foundation for how our little learners understand themselves, build friendships, manage big feelings, and so much more. And as early childhood educators, we know just how important it is to weave this into our day-to-day teaching. One of my absolute favourite (and easiest!) ways to build those skills? Books. […]
As a busy preschool teacher, I’m always looking for simple, meaningful ways to weave social-emotional learning into our daily routines—without adding one more thing to an already overflowing plate (Can I get a hand up if you’re with me?). That’s why I love incorporating kindness holidays into the preschool classroom. These special days make it so easy to create a […]
In preschool, developing and teaching social-emotional skills is EVERYTHING ! Many of our young learners are stepping away from their families for the first time, and it can be challenging to figure out how to act in different classroom settings, especially since most (if not all) our students have grown up in this Covid pandemic. It’s needed now, more so […]