Chapter15 allen7e

©2012 Cengage Learning.All Rights Reserved.

Chapter 15Facilitating Social Development


Social Development

• The Four How’s– How to Approach– How to Interact– How to Deal with Difference– How to Manage Conflict


Social Skills and Overall Development

• Social skills cannot be separated from overall development.

• While engaged in a social conversation, language, physical skills, and cognitive skills are intertwined.

• Therefore social skills need to be taught and reinforced to all children.


Defining Appropriate Social Skills

• Appropriate social skills are rules and expectations prescribed by particular groups as to how group members will conduct themselves in private and in public.


Defining Appropriate Social Skills (continued)

• The major social skills learned in early childhood relate to getting along with others.

• Children need to be provided opportunities to interact with peers, adults, and family members.


Acquiring Social Skills

• Temperament and emotions– Three main types:

• Easy• Difficult• Slow to warm up

– Emotions are felt, but reactions to the emotions are learned.

– Appropriate responses to an emotion need to be taught.


Acquiring Social Skills (continued)

• Social reinforcement– Adult responsiveness

• This refers to how an adult responds to a young child’s needs.

• If the response is immediate and appropriate, then the child and the adult are satisfied.

• If the response is delayed or inappropriate, then the child becomes mistrustful and wary of the environment.



• Impact of developmental problems– Infants who do not respond in the typical

sense with smiles, coos, or eye gazing often are not stimulated by the caregivers to express emotion.

– Overstimulated children tend to withdraw and turn away from caregivers’ show of emotion.

– Over responding children cannot control their responses and often turn a caregiver off emotionally.



• Social skills in sequence– Attachment– Joint attention– Separation protest– Fear of strangers– Stranger anxiety– Theory of mind– Pretend and role-playing



– Role of early learning programs• Initially it begins as one-on-one time.• It progresses to small group activities.• Then we introduce circle time.• Children are given opportunities to share ideas.• Children learn not to interrupt each other.• Older children become aware of turn-taking and

waiting for a turn.



• Play– Other children are seen as obstacles and not

playmates– The “Mine” stage– Independent interacting toward a common

purpose– Cooperative stage– Friendships



• Teaching children to play– Arrange for children to be near each other.– Physically guide them into the play.– Give them materials to stimulate play.– Place objects in their hands.– Verbalize actions.– Rejoice.– Help others join in.



– Provide social reinforcement.– Move the child toward a group.– Teacher slowly removes herself from the play

experience.

• Gentle insistence– Teacher gently prods a child into participating

in an activity.



• Incidental social learning– Explain the differences in a positive light.– Answer questions honestly and openly.– Use simple words the child can understand.– Assure the child that the disability is not

“catchy” and it is okay to touch and ask.



– To encourage incidental social learning:• Move closer to the children playing.• Smile and encourage play with all children.• Bring new materials to the interaction.• Make encouraging comments, keeping the play

going.



• Sharing and turn-taking– A difficult concept for children because they

have to give up what is theirs to meet the needs of someone else

– Self-assertion• Teach children to stand up for what is theirs and

not let others just take from them.



• Materials and equipment– Provide multiple materials in areas where

more than one child can play at a time.– Encourage imitation by providing two of some

toys.



• Imitation and modeling– Arrange the environment to ensure that

interactions take place.– Reinforce the children for playing together.– Reinforce imitation of appropriate behaviors.


Teacher-Structured Peer Interactions

• Create activities in which all children must participate for the game to work.

• Discovery play sets up the activity for the children to engage in and work together.


Teacher-Structured Peer Interactions (continued)

• Peer tutoring and peer mediating– Children who are typically developing are

given a chance to explain a new idea to a peer.

– Mediation is done to keep children engaged.– Children with disabilities get the chance to

play with others.– Teachers provide support and

encouragement.



• Peer tutoring– The child with the disability learns from the

peer.– The peer is given a chance to refine and

master a skill.



• Additional ways teachers can structure and facilitate learning:– Choose stories that focus on character

development.– Practice manners.– Seat children close to appropriate models at

circle time and large group activities.– Provide group projects.– Initiate a buddy center.



• Fair play– Rules in the classroom are for everyone.– No one child should be allowed to break rules

because of his or her disability.– Encourage rule-following and reward

appropriate behaviors



• Sometimes more intervention is needed– If a child is hesitant or overwhelmed by the

classroom:• Provide a quiet small group area for the child to

practice social interaction.• Give the child time to practice with the teacher

before engaging another child.• Offer suggestions and play materials that the child

can use independently to encourage others to play with him or her.

Chapter15 allen7e

Education

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