Social-emotional learning (or SEL) encourages children to develop necessary social skills for school. Research suggests social-emotional development leads to greater adulthood success, so effectively wiring these skills is essential for infants, toddlers, and preschoolers as part of their learning and development process. Gryphon House has a variety of activities to ensure parents and educators alike take the necessary steps in promoting social-emotional development in children.
Small Group
The word responsible can be a “big” word for children to understand. However, when adults help children to see what responsible behaviors look like, they soon learn to understand what the word means and, more important, how to carry out such behaviors themselves. By providing children with a visual, this activity from Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure helps children to see how their responsible behaviors can create growth in themselves, friends, family, and even a tree!
Social EmotionalThis activity will help children develop a sense of his or her family unit—who the members are and how your child is related to them. Children will also use sorting skills as he or she organizes the album, and will learn vocabulary for the relations, word names, family names, and nicknames.
This activity, as well as all the activities in Kick-Start Kindergarten Readiness, is designed to help early childhood teachers involve families in supporting the rich learning that takes place in your preschool classroom. Many parents want to help their little ones in preparing for and getting the most out of kindergarten, and this book provides teachers with the resources to help them do just that.
Literacy Social EmotionalLearning centers are a great way to "set the stage" for dramatic play with the setting, props, and even costumes. In this dramatic play learning center, children can pretend to be vets by helping their stuffed animals. Through dramatic play, children gain social-emotional skills, language and oral skills, motor skills, confidence, and more. Get the book The GIANT Encyclopedia Of Learning Center Activities For Children 3 to 6 for fresh new learning center ideas from teachers who have used them in their own classrooms!
printable Movement and Play Literacy Language Social Emotional Large GroupThis hands-on relaxation activity helps children begin to develop skills for self-regulation and learn how to move from an excited state to a more calm state. These important social-emotional skills of initiative and self-control will be useful through children's lives as they learn and grow! Get the book Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure: 50 Activities to Promote Resilience in Young Children for more strategies and activities to help children become socially and emotionally healthy for life.
Social EmotionalDramatic play experiences contribute to infant's and toddler's vocabulary development, and to their comprehension of the real world. In this hand puppets activity from Making Toys for Infants and Toddlers, young children will gain social-emotional skills as they act out dramatic scenarios with the puppets, or as you narrate the puppets for them! The beauty of hand-made toys is that they are novel and interesting to young children without costing much money, and can be discarded when they get worn out. Get the book for tons of ideas for creating unique, exciting toys and props to help young children learn in appropriate ways!
Mindfulness and early childhood expert, Dr. Elizabeth Erwin, shares easy and approachable ways children and adults can practice mindfulness together with these stress relieving breathing exercises.
Program Administration Social EmotionalFeatured in The Possibilities of Play: Imaginative Learning Centers for Children Ages 3-6, by Dr. Jean Feldman and Carolyn Kisloski, this learning center activity is a perfect way to motivate children to read and develop social skills.
Program Administration Literacy Summer Learning Language Social EmotionalFeatured in The Possibilities of Play: Imaginative Learning Centers for Children Ages 3-6, by Dr. Jean Feldman and Carolyn Kisloski, this learning center activity is a perfect opportunity to develop oral language and social skills.
Program Administration Movement and Play Summer Learning Social EmotionalDid you know chores can actually bring your child pleasure and fulfillment? Judith Costello and Jurgen Haver, co-authors of Zen Parenting, believes that children should have "chores" to do on a regular basis.
Social EmotionalGryphon House activities are well-researched and informative, so teachers can effectively build a foundational curriculum for their students. Books from our award-winning authors, such as Getting to the Heart of Learning by Ellen Booth Church, explore building social-emotional skills by integrating social-emotional activities into lesson plans for science, math, language, literacy and motor skills.
Parents can also use social-emotional activities to encourage their children’s social interactions with pro-social games. These games guide parents in instructing toddlers and infants to be comfortable in group situations.
For social-emotional development in early childhood education, our techniques and activities build the base for skills that will pay off through adulthood. Particularly in the early stages of development, social-emotional skills encourage children to work collaboratively, a key social skill with long-term benefits.
Scan our available tools and resources for emotional and social skills training. To learn more about the importance of strengthening social skills and deepening children’s emotional development, follow Gryphon House on Facebook. We continually follow the latest news and studies to find useful activities for parents and teachers.
Browse through lists, author interviews, excerpts, and articles that connect theory and best practice in early childhood education.
Browse All Resources
