Early childhood is when a child’s social and emotional development is at its peak. Kids must learn more about their own emotions as well as those of others as they experience temper tantrums, mood swings, and a widening social world.
Social-Emotional Experiences of Early Childhood
Temper tantrums are extremely prevalent during the toddler years. There’s a reason why this stage is often known as the “terrible twos”!
Toddlers have a lot of mood swings. While their emotions might be tremendous, they also have a tendency to be fleeting. You might be surprised at how quickly your youngster can go from crying wildly for a toy to sitting calmly in front of the television enjoying a favourite show.
At this age, children can be highly possessive and have a hard time sharing. However, learning to get along with other kids is a necessary ability. In just a few years, your child will progress from spending the majority of their time with family and close friends to interacting, learning, and playing with other children at school.
School preparedness requires emotional development and social skills. Paying attention to adults, shifting smoothly from one activity to the next, and working with other children are examples of such qualities.
Help Children Develop Social and Emotional Skills
So, how can you assist your child in learning to play harmoniously with others? Social competence encompasses not just the capacity to work cooperatively with others, but also the ability to demonstrate empathy, articulate feelings, and freely contribute. Fortunately, there are many things you can do to assist your children in developing these critical social and emotional abilities.
Model Appropriate Behaviors
In order for young children to learn new things, they must observe them. If your child sees you sharing, showing thanks, being helpful, and sharing sentiments, he or she will have a firm grasp on how to deal with people outside the home.
You can practise these replies with your child and other family members in your own home. When you say “please” or “thank you,” you are modelling the behaviour you want your children to have.
Reinforce Good Behavior
Most importantly, remember to compliment your children when they exhibit positive social actions. Assisting your children in feeling good about themselves is essential for the development of empathy and emotional competence. Children will naturally grow more generous and thoughtful if a favourable environment is created in which they are allowed to express their feelings.
Teach Empathy
Encourage your children to consider how other people feel to help them develop empathy and emotional intelligence. Begin by asking about your child’s own feelings and recent occurrences in his or her life. “How did you feel when your toy went missing?” “How did you react to the story?”
Begin asking inquiries about how other people might feel once youngsters have mastered articulating their own emotional emotions. “Can you imagine how Nadia felt when you took away her favourite toy?”
Teach Cooperation
Cooperation is one skill that greatly improves from first-hand experience. One of the best methods to teach your child how to relate to others is to allow them to engage and play with other children. While your toddler may find playing with peers challenging at times due to their lack of tolerance and ability to share, with age and experience, things will gradually improve.
Children begin to build social problem-solving skills as they play and interact. Early attempts may result in numerous fights and conflicts with siblings and peers, but youngsters gradually learn to negotiate and compromise with one another.
Development and early learning are continually supported as the child develops, and early knowledge and skills inform and influence future learning. Adults will experience new experiences when they understand how their minds develop, how their children make cognitive advances, and how their children are naturally vulnerable to active quest and learning. By encouraging active involvement in, we can promote cognitive growth and provide developmentally appropriate stimuli for new learning through responsiveness. Safe and lasting mentoring relationship.
By,
Anusha bhandari
