Young Children - May 2008 - (Page 36) not “feeling confident.” They could look at social group sizes and arrangements as ways to facilitate emotional and social learning, to help children feel competent and learn social skills. Different group sizes and arrangements Our half-day preschool, the Children’s Farm School, is located on a small, former dairy farm not far from St. Paul. Children ages 3 to 5 attend for either two or three half-days per week. They care for animals, play outdoors, and enjoy frequent nature hikes, under the guidance of experienced early childhood teachers. Because of our location, our independence (we are a private nonprofit school), and our size (just one class at a time), we have been able to think outside the box. Below are some examples, from our school and others, of activities for different size groups and different group arrangements that promote social and emotional growth. The errand—Social learning for one When a teacher asks a child to perform a task, social growth can occur. Emotionally, the child feels, “The teacher relies on me to do this task. I am important.” Socially, the child thinks, “People need me.” Here’s an example from free-play time: a teacher tunes her guitar to get ready for singing time. noticing that Ryan is at loose ends, she turns and asks him to please get her music book from the shelf. On his way, he passes a few children playing with musical instruments. He takes the book to the teacher. “Thank you, Ryan. That was helpful to me,” she says. He turns and moseys over to the children playing and joins in on the xylophone. One activity at our school involves squeezing oranges to show children where the juice they drink comes from. A teacher invites a child to a table in the center of the room. After the child has had a chance to squeeze an orange, the teacher asks her to call the next child: “Can you ask Jimmy to come and be next?” Children get to know one another this way. After children know their classmates comes a new kind of errand—teaching! To make bird feeders from the used orange peels, the teacher asks one child to tie yarn to the half-orange peel and scoop in a mixture of seeds. The teacher then asks this child to show the next one how to do it. Setting up a table to encourage child interaction is easy. Adopting the mindset that reminds us “children can help each other” is harder. When children have questions or need instructions, we encourage them to ask another child for help before coming to a teacher. Emotionally, the child feels, “The teacher relies on me to do this task. I am important.” Socially, the child thinks, “People need me.” Maybe the increased confidence Ryan gained on his errand gave him the boost of confidence he needed to join the other children. Getting to know other children 36 Young Children • May 2008
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