Social Emotional Development in Kindergarten

Kindergarten is a pivotal year for children’s social and emotional development! There are so many concepts and skills that really grow at this age and together we can see tremendous growth!

Below are a few of the important skills and concepts we need your help to work on fostering this year!

1. Having a growth mindset - Knowing that accomplishing skills and learning new things requires persistence, patience and practice! Kids need to exhibit persistence and creativity in seeking solutions to problems and learning new things. Instead of thinking “I can’t do this right now”, we’re encouraging students to think “I will learn this when I work hard and practice”. https://www.mindsetkit.org/growth-mindset-parents
2. Being Independent -
   1. Students should learn to manage all of their belongings by themselves. This includes remembering to keep track of their water bottles, lunch boxes, coats, gloves and hats.
   2. Being able to go to the bathroom, tie shoes, fasten buttons, zip zippers and open packages independently.
   3. Being able to pack and unpack their belongings in their backpacks.
   4. Being able to sit by themselves and play (read or write) without constant supervision for at least 10 minutes.
3. Being part of a large group or team - Kindergarten is the age when kids start to be able to more fully understand the perspective of others and put themselves in other people's shoes. Kids need to be able to regulate themselves and cope with others’ perspectives and actions in order to be part of the group. This includes learning how to:
   1. Recognize acceptable methods to gain attention or assistance
   2. Wait for a turn to talk and listen
   3. Pay attention when someone else is speaking about non-preferred topics
   4. Recognize that others may feel differently about the same situation
   5. Cope with not getting a turn or waiting for a turn
   6. Cope with “boring moments”
   7. Use “please,” “thank you,” “I’m sorry” and “Are you okay?” appropriately

Board Game Fun!

Playing board games help kindergarteners to develop many important life skills. Here are some links to traditional and unique board games:

• https://www.scholastic.com/parents/kids-activities-and-printables/activities-for-kids/arts-and-craft-ideas/benefits-board-games.html
• https://rhythmsofplay.com/unique-popular-board-games-for-kids-and-families/

Don't forget about classic games like Chutes and Ladders, The Game of Life, Operation, Sorry, Monopoly, and Candyland and Uno!