Social and Emotional Development Milestones
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Here are some key points about the importance of social play: - Provides opportunities for children to practice social skills needed for interacting with others. Through play, they can learn how to cooperate, share, negotiate, resolve conflicts, and understand different perspectives. - Allows children to learn cultural norms and values. As they engage in social pretend play and games with rules, they learn what behaviors are acceptable or unacceptable. - Helps children process and make sense of their experiences. Play provides a way for them to express feelings, thoughts, and master challenges. - Prepares children for future responsibilities by mimicking adult roles and relationships through pretend play. - Facilitates language development and communication skills as children interact with peers
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Social and Emotional Development Milestones
- 1. Social and Emotional Development Maria Kambouri University of Reading
- 2. Definitions Social and Emotional Development Emotions Attachment Stages of Social and Emotional Development Social-Emotional Development and children with Special Needs The importance of Social Play
- 3. Definitions Game Primary intersubjectivity Secondary intersubjectivity Person permanence Social cognition Interaction theory Co regulation Theory of Mind Self Esteem Attachmnet
- 4. Co regulation: a "continuous unfolding of individual action that is susceptible to being continuously modified by the continuously changing actions of the partner." Interaction theory: an approach to questions about social cognition, or how one understands other people, that focuses on bodily behaviors and environmental contexts rather than on mental processes. Primary intersubjectivity: psychological relation between people Secondary intersubjectivity: to pay attention to how others act and what they do with objects in everyday contexts Person permanence: When an infant understands that a person exists even when out of sight. This then creates a searching behavior which reflects importance of people, building attachments. Social cognition: “Understanding of our own mental state and other people’s mental states to gauge feelings and predict behaviours” Definitions
- 5. Comparing ourselves with others in an evaluative way Self esteem and parenting: • Positive self esteem associated with close relationships with parents • Positive self esteem associated with positive regard for parents • Low self esteem associated with authoritarian/rejecting parenting Positive self esteem associated with academic success Low self esteem associated with: • Loneliness • Depression • Learned helplessness Self esteem
- 6. The ability to attribute mental states — beliefs, intents, desires, pretending, knowledge, etc. — to oneself and others and to understand that others have beliefs, desires, and intentions that are different from one's own. Theory of Mind
- 7. Infants form relationships with people “stronger and wiser” in their environment in order to be protected Overtime, they develop mental representations of those relationships based on experiences They use those mental representations to make predictions about future interactions, as well as about the world in general Children use their caregivers as a Secure Base from which to explore (Bowlby, 1969/1982; Ainsowrth et. al, 1978) Attachment to parents is the model infants/toddlers use to understand all other relationships.
- 11. Social development – learning the values, skills, and knowledge to effectively relate to others and participate in the world around us Emotions serve a social purpose: they allow us to have insight into another’s internal state Primary emotions: anger, fear, surprise, disgust, joy, interest, sadness Secondary emotions (self-conscious emotions): embarrassed, shame, jealousy, pride, guilt Foley (1999)
- 12. Emotion: a physiological response to the environment Emotion regulation: The ability to monitor and adjust an emotional response to the environment in order to reach a goal Infants are born with a few strategies for regulating emotions Sucking, gaze aversion, crossing legs, arms to midline Strategies to self-regulate increase as we mature (Crockenberg & Leerkes, 2000; Siegel, 1999)
- 13. Mutual Regulation/ Emotional Attunement ◦ Caregiver is aware of and responds in a way that matches the child’s emotional state and demonstrates she understands the child’s internal state Social Referencing ◦ Looking toward a caregiver to determine how to respond (Crockenberg & Leerkes, 2000; Siegel, 1999)
- 14. The human brain continues to rapidly grow new cells during the first 3 years “Hardwiring” of the emotional brain takes place during the first 3 years Siegel (1999)
- 16. ◦ Explore their own bodies (suck fingers, etc.) ◦ Look at their hands ◦ Begin to social smile ◦ Prefer familiar caregivers ◦ Demonstrate pleasure in social situations ◦ Vocal turn taking begins to occur Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 17. Begin to initiate interactions with smiles and vocalizations Begin to laugh Smile spontaneously to show enjoyment Pay attention to their name Enjoy turn-taking games Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 18. Clearly express several emotions (fear, anger, joy) Clearly prefer familiar caregivers and friends Respond to language and gestures Use gestures and vocalizations to communicate Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 19. Understanding themselves as separate from others Becoming more independent (feeding themselves, perhaps becoming mobile) Assist in getting dressed Cry when separated from caregivers Show happiness upon reuniting with caregivers Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 20. Demonstrate a wider arrange of emotions, including some “social” emotions (empathy, compassion, etc.) Recognize themselves in a mirror Show affection for familiar people Play by themselves Imitate adult behavior Become assertive (“no!”) Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 21. Engage in independent and parallel play Begin to engage in social play Begin symbolic play games such as “house” Rapid mood shifts Increased fearfulness Continued assertiveness (“no”) as they explore self- identity Form a gender identity Become more independent (toilet training, dressing self) Have preferred friends and understand friendship Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 22. Become more independent and participate in self-care Follow directions Share and take turns with assistance Greater understanding of “self” and “other” Increased expression of social emotions Initiate or join play with other children More elaborate dramatic play Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 23. Have some understanding of moral reasoning (things being fair/unfair, good/bad behavior) Compares self with others Develops friendships Shows awareness of others’ feelings Enjoys dramatic play with other children Demonstrates a wide range of emotions, sometimes over-exaggerating emotions Pays attention to details in dramatic play Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 24. ◦ Explore their own bodies (suck fingers, etc.) ◦ Look at their hands ◦ Begin to social smile ◦ Prefer familiar caregivers ◦ Demonstrate pleasure in social situations ◦ Vocal turn taking begins to occur ◦ Respond promptly and sensitively to their cues (cries, vocalizations, gazes) ◦ Engage in short, frequent interactions ◦ Smile and make over- exaggerated facial expressions ◦ Talk, and read to them ◦ Massage and touch them ◦ Describe emotions to them Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 25. ◦ Begin to initiate interactions with smiles and vocalizations ◦ Begin to laugh ◦ Smile spontaneously to show enjoyment ◦ Pay attention to their name ◦ Enjoy turn-taking games ◦ Continue to do as you were for the first 3 months ◦ Play games such as peek- a-boo, pat-a-cake, and this little piggy ◦ Create routines – bedtime, naptime, other ◦ Sing and do “fingerplays” (twinkle twinkle, the itsy bitsy spider, etc.) ◦ If possible, allow them to play with other children of varying ages Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 26. ◦ Clearly express several emotions ◦ Clearly prefer familiar caregivers and friends ◦ Respond to language and gestures ◦ Use gestures and vocalizations to communicate ◦ Continue as you have been doing for months 0-6 ◦ Respond promptly and sensitively to their cues ◦ Smile, talk, and read to them ◦ Massage/touch them ◦ Play games & sing ◦ Describe emotional experiences to them ◦ Have routines ◦ Expose them to other children & extended family Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 27. ◦ Understanding themselves as separate from others ◦ Becoming more independent ◦ Assist in getting dressed ◦ Cry when separated from caregivers ◦ Show happiness upon reuniting with caregivers ◦ Offer them opportunities to explore their environment and come back to you when scared (“secure base”) ◦ Create separation and reunion routines ◦ Continue as you have been doing, with longer stretches of play, as their attention span increases Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 28. ◦ Demonstrate a wider arrange of emotions, including some “social” emotions ◦ Recognize themselves in a mirror ◦ Show affection for familiar people ◦ Play by themselves ◦ Imitate adult behavior ◦ Become assertive (“no!”) ◦ Respond promptly and sensitively to their cues ◦ Talk, sing, and read with your child ◦ Describe emotional experiences ◦ Create routines ◦ Offer opportunity to play with other children Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 29. ◦ Engage in independent and parallel play ◦ Begin to engage in social play ◦ Begin symbolic play games such as “house” ◦ Rapid mood shifts ◦ Increased fearfulness ◦ Continued assertiveness (“no”) as they explore self- identity ◦ Form a gender identity ◦ Become more independent (toilet training, dressing self) ◦ Have preferred friends and understand friendship Typical Milestones What you can do: ◦ Talk, sing, and read with your child ◦ Describe emotional experiences ◦ Create routines ◦ Offer opportunity to play with other children ◦ Set clear limits and boundaries ◦ Offer opportunities to practice new independent skills ◦ Offer options for child to choose from (red shirt or blue shirt, standing or sitting, etc.) ◦ Acknowledge fears
- 30. ◦ Become more independent and participate in self-care ◦ Follow directions ◦ Share and take turns with assistance ◦ Greater understanding of “self” and “other” ◦ Increased expression of social emotions ◦ Initiate or join play with other children ◦ More elaborate dramatic play ◦ Continue as you have been ◦ Engage in dramatic play with child ◦ Allow child to explore and be independent ◦ Act as a “secure base” when child is upset ◦ Provide social stimulation (via playdates, preschool, etc.) Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 31. ◦ Have some understanding of moral reasoning (things being fair/unfair, good/bad behavior) ◦ Compares self with others ◦ Develops friendships ◦ Shows awareness of others’ feelings ◦ Enjoys dramatic play with other children ◦ Demonstrates a wide range of emotions, sometimes over- exaggerating emotions ◦ Pays attention to details in dramatic play ◦ Continue as you have been ◦ Apologize when you make mistakes ◦ Explain reasons for rules and behaviors ◦ Label behavior as “good” or “bad” – do not label the child as “good” or “bad” Typical Milestones What you can do:
- 33. Special Needs complicate the development of emotion regulation and social skills Think of development as occurring along a trajectory instead of as a static set of stages Delays in other areas of development influence social-emotional development Cognitive delays Motor delays Sensory processing delays Communication A note about autism: By definition, Autistic Spectrum Disorders (ASD) are disorders of social interaction, although social delays may have roots in sensory processing and motor planning. Greenspan & Weider (1998)
- 34. What to do ◦ Use diagnosis to understand challenges ◦ Begin with “Sensory Processing” ◦ Change the environment according to the child’s sensitivities (turn on/off lights, remove noises, play “white noise,” remove toys, etc.) ◦ Engage frequently with the child ◦ Monitor your own level or emotional arousal during interactions ◦ Empathize with the child through ◦ Follow the child’s lead ◦ Give the child’s actions emotional meaning Greenspan & Weider (1998)
- 36. Bullying is behaviour by an individual or group, repeated over time, that intentionally hurts another individual or group either physically or emotionally. Bullying can take many forms (for instance, cyber-bullying via text messages or the internet), and is often motivated by prejudice against particular groups, for example on grounds of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or because a child is adopted or has caring responsibilities. It might be motivated by actual differences between children, or perceived differences. Stopping violence and ensuring immediate physical safety is obviously a school’s first priority but emotional bullying can be more damaging than physical; teachers and schools have to make their own judgements about each specific case. Bullying
- 38. Provides children with an opportunity to: Practice social skills Make sense of cultural norms and values Process experiences Prepare for future responsibilities Practice communication skills Practice negotiation with peers Socialize each other (teach each other what is acceptable/unacceptable behavior) (Brown & Prescot, 1999; Crockenberg & Leerkes, 2000)
- 39. Opportunity to actively interact with the environment Play with objects leads to abstract symbolic thoughts Serves as a vehicle for: ◦ Practising communication skills ◦ Understanding the perspective of another through role play Vygotsky: importance of social group Play is a zone of proximal development (Brown & Prescot, 1999; Crockenberg & Leerkes, 2000)
- 40. Unoccupied behaviour (sitting and thinking) Onlooker behaviour (child attends to something interesting the other children are doing but does not join in) Solitary play (play that is different from that of others around them – 2 – 2 ½ year olds) Parallel play (alongside but not with another child – little or no verbal interaction but imitation often an effective way of showing interest (2 ½ - 3 ½ year olds) Associative play (children share materials but little or no adoption of roles or collaborative working – 3 ½ - 4 ½ year olds) Cooperative play (playing games etc together, becomes more frequent after age of 5) (Parten, 1932) Categories of social participation play:
- 41. Dramatic Play: Learn to appreciate each other's feelings as they share space and work together to create the play scenarios Games: Co-habitate the play space, decide on what rules to follow, earn to accept with lose, demonstrate emotional self-regulation. Art Projects: Emotional and creative outlet for any age, cooperation, sharing space and materials, common aim. What Else You Can Do: Model appropriate behaviour, set a positive example, let them know how valued they are, engage them in conversations. All of these activities will help strengthen their self-image and allow them to develop a healthy view of the world. Examples of Activities
- 42. Standard 5.2: •demonstrate an awareness of the physical, social and intellectual development of children, and know how to adapt teaching to support pupils’ education at different stages of development. Standard 2.2 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of how babes learn and develop Standard 2.6 Develop children’s confidence, social and communication skills through groups learning. Standard 4.1 • Observe and assess each child’s development and learning, using this to plan next steps.
- 43. Standard 5.2: Demonstrate an awareness of the physical, social and intellectual development of children, and know how to adapt teaching to support pupils’ education at different stages of development. Standard 2.2 Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of how babes learn and develop Standard 2.6 Develop children’s confidence, social and communication skills through groups learning. Standard 4.1 Observe and assess each child’s development and learning, using this to plan next steps. In the context of the EYTS
- 44. Learning outcomes: You should know: • That all children are individuals • The links between social development and other domains of development You should understand: • The implications for learning and teaching of an understanding of the importance and processes of social development You should be able to: • Apply your knowledge of child development within the classroom/setting in order to adapt your practice accordingly • Assume a holistic view of the children within your care • Question your own assumptions with regard to the knowledge you bring to your practice
- 45. Ainsworth, M. D. S., Blehar, M. C., Waters, E., & Wall, S. (1978). Patterns of Attachment: A Psychological Study of the Strange Situation. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss. Vol. I: Attachment. London: Penguin Books Bowlby, J. (1980). Attachment and loss. Vol. III. Loss, sadness and depression. London: The Hogarth Press and the Institute of Psycho-Analysis. Bowlby, J. (1988). A secure base: clinical applications of attachment theory. London: Routledge Brown, P. M., & Prescott, S. J.(1999). Communication about pretend play: A comparison of the utterances of 4-year old normally hearing and deaf or hard of-hearing children in an integrated kindergarten. Volta Review, 99(1), 5-18. Crockenberg, S., & Leerkes, E. (2000). Infant social and emotional development in family context. In Zeanah,C. H. (Ed.), Handbook of infant mental health (2nd ed., pp. 60-90). New York: Guilford.
- 46. Foley, G. (1999). Learning in social action: a contribution to understanding informal education, New York: Zed Books Greenspan, S.I. & Weider S. (1998). The Child with Special Needs: Intellectual and Emotional Growth. Reading, MA: Addison Wesley Longman. Siegel, D. J. (1999). The Developing Mind: How Relationships and the Brain Interact to Shape who We are. New York: Guilford Caplan, F., & Caplan, T. (1973). The power of play. New York: Doubleday. Parten, M. B. (1932). Social participation among pre-school children. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, Vol. 27(3), p: 243-269. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/h0074524
- 47. Bowlby, J. (1969). Attachment and loss. Vol. I: Attachment. London: Penguin Books, 1978. Bowlby, J. (1973). Attachment and loss. Vol. II. Separation: anxiety and anger. London: Penguin Books, 1978. Bowlby, J. (1979). The making & breaking of affectional bonds. London: Tavistock/Routledge, 1992. Ainsworth, M. D. S., & Bell, S. M. (1970). Attachment, exploration, and separation: Illustrated by the behavior of one-year-olds in a strange situation. Child Development, 41, 49-67. Ainsworth, M. D., Bell, S. M., & Stayton, D. J. (1971). Individual differences in strange-situation behaviour of one-year-olds.
Editor's Notes
- Coregulation (or co-regulation) is a term described by psychologist Alan Fogel, as a "continuous unfolding of individual action that is susceptible to being continuously modified by the continuously changing actions of the partner." Colwyn Trevarthen coined the term ‘primary intersubjectivity to refer to early developing sensory-motor processes of interaction between infants and caregivers. Important cues for understanding others are provided by their facial expressions, bodily posture and movements, gestures, actions, and in processes of neonate imitation, proto-conversations, gaze following and affective attunement. "In most intersubjective situations, that is, in situations of social interaction, we have a direct perceptual understanding of another person’s intentions because their intentions are explicitly expressed in their embodied actions and their expressive behaviours. This understanding does not require us to postulate or infer a belief or a desire hidden away in the other person’s mind. What we might reflectively or abstractly call their belief or desire is expressed directly in their actions and behaviours." Sometime during the first year of life infants also start to enter into joint attention situations and begin to pay attention to how others act and what they do with objects in everyday contexts, and this also provides a way to understand their intentions and contextualized actions. This is referred to as ‘secondary intersubjectivity’, which highlights the fact that interactions often take place in cooperative contexts. During most interactions, intentions are apparent based upon the pragmatic context of the situation in which they are occurring. We can instantly see what the other “intends” or “wants” based upon their actions and the current context; we do not need to infer their intentions as if they are hidden away. There is a “shared world” that we live in where we intuitively and instinctively perceive others as minded beings like ourselves. 24 months: self as Value (me, mine) 3 years: moral self-awareness Social cognition: “Understanding of our own mental state and other people’s mental states to gauge feelings and predict behaviours”
- “how our mental state – our desires, beliefs, intentions – explains our behaviour” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TJkB6nrk1CA Theatre on Mind (next stage): perhaps the most impressive achievement of human mind is its ability to run social scenarios in imagination with a cast of actors who behave as though they have minds, beliefs, desires, knowledge and intentions of their own. 5-8 embarrassed 6-11 consensual morality – games with rules 8-12 Hypnotic ability (imaginative friend) 11-13 Social self-consiousness increases towards puberty, ‘stage fright’, idealism, principled morality
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6bul1meciGE Attachment to parents is the model infants/toddlers use to understand all other relationships. Attunement is being aware of, and responsive to, another. Attunement has a lot to do with our abilities in non-verbal communication. In fact, most of our communication with our children and others is non-verbal and a large percentage of what our brains perceive in communication with others is non-verbal signals. Attunement and attachment are related. Attachment is an emotional bond to another person. According to psychologist John Bowlby, the earliest bonds formed by children with their parents (caregivers) have an important impact that continues throughout their life. Attunement and attachment are related in that, mothers/fathers (caregivers) who are available and attuned to their child, in other words, responsive to their child’s needs beginning in infancy, establish a sense of security within that child. The infant/child learns that their parent (caregiver) is dependable. This attunement creates a strong foundation for which that child can explore the world. How can we be better at Attunement, in other words, at tuning into our infants and children? At first infants and children just need their basic needs met: The needs of their body, and their needs to feel safe and secure, and their needs for affection and love. We express this in the way that we hold and touch them, the way that we feed; bathe, diaper and toilet train them. We express this with the tone of our voice that we use with them. We express this by the way we tolerate their feelings, letting them feel comfortable with their emotions and with their bodies. Listen well to them tell you how they feel. Try to figure out what are they really saying and what feelings they are experiencing. Understand their point of view. Accept them unconditionally. Sincerely care. Be genuine. Help your children identify how they feel. Attuning to them will help them know themselves. This will teach them to attune to others, helping them to establish nice relationships in their lives. This will help them to make and keep friends. Please notice your child and the good stuff they do. And pay less attention to their mistakes. This will promote more good behaviors and more nice feelings in them. Notice if they are tired, hungry, wet, cold, hot, feeling well or not feeling well. Notice if they are sad or if they are happy. Notice if they need a friend to play with. Help them invite a friend over. Give them rules to keep them safe and limits and boundaries to ‘hold” them, which in turn will help them to understand other people’s limits and boundaries. Support them in every way you can. Things you can say to them to show understanding: Help your children tune into their feelings. This will teach them to tune into others feelings. You can say… You are feeling pretty.... Sounds like you feel, felt.... So if I hear you right you are saying... So what you are saying is... Let me see if I understand you... Everyone feels like that sometimes. It's okay. Everything will work out. That happened to me once. So and so had the same problem once. You always manage to work things out. I know how you feel. Just listen and let them tell you how they feel.
- Relationships provide the context necessary to comfort, protect, encourage, and offer opportunities to learn. Research highlights that responsive, sensitive parent-child interactions are essential to promoting healthy social emotional development in infants and toddlers.
- We develop within the context of relationships Infants and toddlers learn about themselves and their world during interactions and relationships with others. Within the context of early primary relationships with families and caregivers social and emotional development of young children begins to develop from the first day of life.
- A social and emotional development starts as soon as the child is born and continues to develop for years after. According to The American Academy of Pediatrics, early social-emotional development “is a fundamental part of a child’s overall health and well-being.”
- Emotion regulation strategies developed in the first year underly the attachment relationship and the achievement of trust, autonomy, and mastery during the preschool years.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEziPGohFqI social referencing–looking for emotional clues about a situation in the faces of other people. For example, if a child sees a fearful expression on his mother's face as he reaches to touch something, he will be less likely to touch it. If the child sees an approving or excited look, he will be more likely to go ahead and touch the object.
- Bike path analogy Brain areas of emotion are closely linked to those for cognition and communication
- This is a discussion of “typical” development Note that almost no child fits this “typical” child mode and that the range of what is “normal” varies widely Didn’t even want to include ages for each stage, instead wanted to call them stage 1, 2, 3, 4 Note that cognitive development underlies all of the skills described – overlap in all areas of development Inner representation of themselves and inner representation of themselves in relationship to others
- 2-3 month shift in brain organization and myelination What you can do: Respond promptly and sensitively to their cues (cries, vocalizations, gazes) Engage in short, frequent interactions Smile and make over-exaggerated facial expressions Talk, and read to them Massage and touch them Describe emotions to them (for example:…)
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwmfJZTn7jA What you can do: Continue to do as you were for the first 3 months Play games such as peek-a-boo, pat-a-cake, and this little piggy Create routines – bedtime, naptime, other Sing and do “fingerplays” (twinkle twinkle, the itsy bitsy spider, etc.) If possible, allow them to play with other children of varying ages
- What you can do: Continue as you have been doing for months 0-6, especially: Respond promptly and sensitively to their cues Smile, talk, and read to them Massage/touch them Play games & sing Describe emotional experiences to them Have routines Expose them to other children & extended family
- What you can do: Offer them opportunities to explore their environment and come back to you when scared (“secure base”) Create separation and reunion routines Continue as you have been doing, with longer stretches of play, as their attention span increases
- What you can do: Respond promptly and sensitively to their cues Talk, sing, and read with your child Describe emotional experiences Create routines Offer opportunity to play with other children
- What you can do: Talk, sing, and read with your child Describe emotional experiences Create routines Offer opportunity to play with other children Set clear limits and boundaries Offer opportunities to practice new independent skills Offer options for child to choose from (red shirt or blue shirt, standing or sitting, etc.) Acknowledge fears
- What you can do: Continue as you have been Engage in dramatic play with child Allow child to explore and be independent Act as a “secure base” when child is upset Provide social stimulation (via playdates, preschool, etc.)
- What you can do: Continue as you have been Apologize when you make mistakes Explain reasons for rules and behaviors Label behavior as “good” or “bad” – do not label the child as “good” or “bad”
- Play time: Reading books in a rocking chair or bean-bag chair may be beneficial. You can help your child make up obstacle courses in the house or yard using crawling, jumping, hopping, skipping, rolling, etc. Listen to soft music. Play the sandwich game (child lies in between two pillows and pretends to be the sandwich, while you provide pressure to the top pillow to the child’s desired amount). Ask them "harder or softer?" as you push on the pillow. Some children will like much more pressure than you would expect. You can also go for a neighborhood walk with a wagon and have your child pull it (make it semi-heavy by loading it with something the child would like to pull around). You can do the same with a baby-doll carriage. Swimming in a pool is a wonderful activity if you have that available, as are horseback riding and bowling. Mini or full-size trampolines are excellent for providing sensory input as well. Make sure the child is using them safely. Sandboxes, or big containers of beans or popcorn kernels can be fun play-boxes. too, if you add small cars, shovels, cups, etc.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=39fiuigmL-w
- Piaget and Vygotsky both considered play to be important. Play offers and opportunity to actively interact with the environment. Play with objects leads to abstract symbolic thoughts Serves as a vehicle for practising communication skills. Serves as a vehicle for understanding the perspective of another through role play. Provides an opportunity to interact actively with the environment. Pretend play is an example of assimilation. Imitative play is an example of accommodation. Vygotsky emphasises the importance of the social group: social interaction is internalised and becomes thought. Play is a zone of proximal development
- Dramatic Play: When children are involved in dramatic play, several components of social-emotional development occur. They use verbal and nonverbal communication as they play. Vocabulary and language skills are strengthened as they interact. The children learn to appreciate each other's feelings as they share space and work together to create the play scenarios. Since it is an open-ended type of play, the children can try on different roles and be anyone they choose. A bin of dress up clothes, puppets, dolls and flannel boards all fit into this dramatic play category. Games: Children’s games are not just for entertainment -- they can be educational, too. Games that require kids to take turns and share help develop their social development. They must co-habitate the play space and decide on what rules to follow. When a child loses or accidentally gets his feelings hurt, he must learn how to accept the loss or demonstrate emotional self-regulation. Age-appropriate board games, puzzles, field games, races or tag are all examples of games that can help your child mature socially and emotionally. Art Projects: Art is an excellent means of providing an emotional and creative outlet for a child of any age. If you pair two or more children together to do a cooperative art project, you also tie in the social aspect. When the children have to work together, they must determine how to distribute the supplies evenly and share the art space to complete the task. Creating a large painting, gluing together an ice pop stick birdhouse or mixing up a batch of homemade modeling clay all require the kids to collaborate and brainstorm how to complete the task, as well as learn the valuable lesson of give and take. What Else You Can Do: There are simple activities or actions that you can do to make a major difference in his life and development. One of the best things you can do for your child is to model appropriate behavior. He learns a lot from just watching you -- so set a positive example. Make sure to hug, kiss and praise your child often to let him know how valued and special he is. Spend quality time with him every day, even if it is only an assigned 15-minute block per day. Engage him in conversations, read to him and cuddle. All of these activities will help strengthen his self-image and allow him to develop a healthy view of the world.