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social skills in young children
Children need to be taught emotional and social skills just as they need
to be taught other skills such as counting, or the alphabet. Children
learn these skills by watching and modeling others. That is why it is so
important to limit exposure to inappropriate social skills that are often
seen on television programs, cartoons, and video games during the early
years.
Sometimes, children need help learning these skills when they do not
pick up on them on their own. Factors such as divorce, trauma, abuse, or
some disabilities (autism, pdd, adhd) may interfere with the child's
learning of social-emotional skills. Therefore, the child must be coached
in these areas. Here are some basic social emotional skills children learn
in the early years:
|
Skill |
Definition |
|
Understanding emotions &
feelings |
Recognizing, describing, and understanding the
various emotions and feelings in self and others. Feelings include:
happiness, sadness, fear, anger, surprise, liking something,
disliking something, loneliness, confusion, etc. |
|
Understanding the
relationship between feelings & emotions and behavior |
Recognizing that certain feelings cause
certain behaviors. For example, when angry, the child hits. When
sad, the child cries. When an adult yells, s/he is mad, etc. |
|
Being able to put emotions &
feelings into words |
Being able to communicate to others how
the child is feeling. "I feel sad because..." or, "I am mad
because..." instead of hitting. |
|
Being sensitive to the
emotions & feelings of others |
Being able to understand others when
they tell the child what they are feeling. This includes being able
to read social cues such as intonation of voice, body language, and
expressions. |
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The
quality of life is determined by its activities. - Aristotle
Revised:
10/19/2008.
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