There are so many skills children begin learning from infancy. Good modeling at home will help children develop positive social/emotional skills for life. Below is a list of some of my favorites when teaching about emotional control, social skills, impulsive tendencies, cooperative play, family, and God’s love.
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What Should Danny Do? is a great interactive, fun book for children to read and think about consequences to actions. Danny encounters different situations that keep him thinking and discovering his Power to Choose. This is a great read for children who struggle with problem solving, impulsivity, emotional control, and social skills.
Hello Brain? teaches children to talk to their brain in difficult situations. Watch several children encounter various everyday situations that might otherwise leave emotional distress or outbursts. Teaching children to talk to their brain helps them manage emotions in stressful situations.
Rex struggles with knocking his friends’ block structures down without considering how his friends might feel. After problem solving Rex and his friends come up with a plan together that makes everyone happy. This is a great book to help children learn to problem solve, recognize feelings in others, and manage their behaviors.
Understanding and putting words to feelings is a difficult concept for young children. Teaching children to recognize and express feelings is important for social/emotional growth. Without this skill children struggle to play cooperatively, show empathy, or seek help from trusted adults. The book The Way I Feel is a fun and simple way to teach appropriate feeling words.
In My Heart is a great book to help children relate text to feelings. Sometimes we don’t know why we are feeling a certain way, but now children can learn to put words to feelings by building a well-rounded vocabulary base.
A wonderful book written by the founder of Positive Discipline, Jane Nelson, Jared’s Cool-Out Space teaches positive ways to manage emotions. When nothing seems to go Jared’s way, he and his mom come up with the idea of a cool-out space where Jared can go when he feels himself getting angry or upset. Jared practices soothing breathes and eventually is able to revisit the activity he was engaged in with clarity and joy.
In order to accomplish goals sometimes it take a village. It takes unity in the family, working cooperatively with others, and kindness. It Takes a Village is a great, simple picture book (few words) to teach children cooperation, kindness, and that play is good (and needed).
This is the ultimate love story. The God Gave Us series is a great way to remember how God is at the forefront of all things. God Gave Us You reminds parents and children how God’s undying love for us all is unwavering. He had great plans for each of us before we were even born.
Llama Llama and his friends encounter a friend who is being less than nice. They work together to remind their friend how using kind words is best when playing with friends. Llama Llama and the Bully Goat is a great story with bright and fun illustrations to help children build friendships, build assertiveness, explain feelings, and play cooperatively.
Sometimes children have so much to say and don’t know quite when or how to wait. My Words Roar! is a great illustrative book of how interrupting affects those around us and might lead to feelings of frustration. Teaching patience when others are talking is a great skill to share with children through our actions and teachings.