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Building Young Children’s Social–Emotional Competence at Home and in Early Care and Education Settings

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Innovative Approaches to Supporting Families of Young Children

Abstract

Children’s social–emotional development plays a central role in healthy growth and functioning across the life span, and is as important for school readiness and success as cognitive and academic preparedness. This chapter will describe four interrelated and essential social–emotional competencies—specifically, social cognition, self-awareness, executive function, and self-regulation. Key experiences are needed to build these competencies, including the following: nurturing and responsive relationships with caregivers; language-rich environments; opportunities for practicing skills for self-regulation and communication; and developmentally appropriate opportunities to play, explore, and learn by doing. Current practices and programs in both home and school settings can provide these critical opportunities for promoting children’s social and emotional competence.

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  1. Center for the Study of Social Policy, Washington, DC, USA

    Charlyn Harper Browne

  2. Institute for Families in Society, College of Social Work, University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC, USA

    Cheri J. Shapiro

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  1. University of South Carolina, Institute for Families in Society University of South Carolina, COLUMBIA, South Carolina, USA

    Cheri J. Shapiro

  2. Center for the Study of Social Policy , Washington, District of Columbia, USA

    Charlyn Harper Browne

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Harper Browne, C., Shapiro, C.J. (2016). Building Young Children’s Social–Emotional Competence at Home and in Early Care and Education Settings. In: Shapiro, C., Harper Browne, C. (eds) Innovative Approaches to Supporting Families of Young Children. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-39059-8_5

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