Social Emotional Learning
Self-regulation is one of those skills we talk about all the time in preschool. In fact, it pops up during circle time, tricky transitions, playground disagreements, and those big feelings that seem to arrive out of nowhere. Because of this, it impacts everything from behaviour and learning to friendships and confidence. Put simply, self-regulation is the ability to understand, manage, […]
Last week I noticed one of my preschoolers named Jack backing away from one of the other children. He was frowning, his mouth was turned down and he clearly appeared uneasy. I walked up to them both and noticed the other child laughing and waving a toy at Jack, not seeming to grasp how Jack was feeling. I stopped them […]
Looking for meaningful classroom mottos to use with your preschoolers?Even though it’s mid-year here in Australia, I’ve been reflecting on ways to strengthen the sense of community in my classroom, and that led me to explore the power of classroom mottos. Classroom mottos are simple, powerful phrases that help set the tone for the year. They guide behavior, support social-emotional […]
Did you know that in surveys done by Breńe Brown and her team, they found that people on average can only identify 3 emotions when they are actually feeling them? I’m not kidding. The 3 emotions are happiness, sadness and anger (Atlas of the Heart by Breńe Brown). That is absolutely stagering if you think about it. I am just […]
Let’s be real, when we ask preschoolers to “listen,” what are we actually asking them to do? Are we saying:👂 Can you hear my voice over all the noise?👀 Can you look at me while I’m talking?🧠 Can you block out everything else and focus?💬 Can you understand what I’m saying and what I mean? Listening in early childhood isn’t […]
Mindful Exercises for Kids Mindfulness has been a word thrown around a lot lately, but you might be wondering what exactly is mindfulness, especially when it comes to children? Mindfulness is a practice, and it helps you focus on being aware of your feelings at different moments in time. There are many different ways to practice mindfulness, such as practicing […]
I am not gonna lie; 6 weeks into the school year, I still had students crying in my doorway and not wanting to leave their parents during drop-off. These students had never been away from their parents for an extended period of time (thanks Covid), and I had to quickly find a way to help my students to settle, calm […]
I know, you’ve got your hands full with tiny humans who are still figuring out how to take turns, use their words, and NOT lick their friends (seriously, why is that a thing?). But among the ABCs and 123s, there’s something just as important to teach—empathy. And these activities on empathy are exactly what you need to get started! Yep, […]
11 Books on Friendship for Preschool Children You’ll Absolutely Love Teaching friendship in the preschool setting is so important and adding books on friendship into your lessons is a must! With preschool friendship books, you can discuss so many different ideas, like kindness, boundaries, empathy, social skills, what makes a good friend and so much more! It is always a […]
I am going to be bold and say, friendship skills are the MOST important skills our preschoolers will develop the year they are in your classroom! Not numbers. Not reading or phonics but friendship skills! Learning to be a good friend requires so much from our young learners. It requires the ability to know how to be a good friend, […]