Social and Emotional Development
In the Catbird classroom, we foster social and emotional development in innumerable ways. For many friends, it is a growing independence in their ability to take care of themselves - from tasks such as toileting and hand washing, dressing themselves and fastening zippers and buttons, to being confident and clear in requesting help for the skills they are still developing. In all of these things, the Catbirds are encouraged to do as much as they can, and a little bit more. We also encourage friends in a growing awareness of their own feelings and those of others. We make a game of making faces to express different feelings, but, in this, we are asking friends to recognize what those faces look like on others. We point out the different facial expressions and body language in the books we read, in the games we play and in the very real interactions we have with one another. When friends in our classroom are in conflict with one another, we rarely ask who did what, or why (any of you who have tried this approach will understand the futility of these questions). Instead, we ask each child to look at their friend and decipher how they are feeling. Then, the problem becomes finding a solution that helps all parties feel better. In this way, we build a growing sense of empathy and a responsibility for our classroom community. These skills are as important as learning letters and numbers, to our ability to succeed, thrive and grow as students, as employees and as members of the larger community. In this arena also, we ask our friends to do as much as they can, and a little bit more.
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