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 Social-Emotional Development
 “The child moves from no realization of a difference between self and others, through a primary concern for self, to a level of concern for others. The scope of social interactions moves from early bonding with a significant adult, through experiencing self as a part of family, to friendships and participation in the larger world. In relationships with others, the child grows in abilities to cooperate, to serve as a resource, to negotiate, to lead and follow, and to be a friend.”
(Minnesota Department of Education, 1991, p. 23)
Social-emotional development refers to the child's development of social relationships, social skills, and sense of self as a social and emotional person. Although social development and emotional development are usually included under one domain, they are different. The child's emotional development concerns the feelings that he or she has about self and about other people. Social development refers to the child's ability to form relationships with other people.
Emotional Development
Throughout the stages of infancy, toddlerhood, and early childhood, children are thought to have a series of emotional "tasks" they must accomplish on their way to being a competent person with healthy self-esteem. For infants, the task can be described as "building trust." During this time, the baby needs to learn that the world is a safe place and that caregivers can be trusted. A sense of security develops in the young child when caregivers continually respond to the baby's signals that he or she needs to be fed, sleep, or have a clean diaper. As caregivers comfort, hold, and love children, infants begin to develop a sense of self-worth. The emotionally healthy baby is one who can accept comfort.
Toddlers’ emotional task is to develop autonomy—being able to do things alone. Security is still important, but now that a child can walk, and sometimes talk, his or her horizons expand. A child likes to explore, but is most comfortable doing this when he or she knows that a caregiver is close by. The toddler begins to learn that words can have a powerful effect on people and will sometimes use them just to see what will happen. The toddler is famous for saying "no" to everything. At the same time, the child can become clingy and not want to leave the caregiver. This is all a normal part of development.
The task of the preschool child is to develop initiative and curiosity. The child will imitate much of what is seen and heard and will try new behaviors to see how they feel and how people react. At this time children are more willing to be part of a group, but still want to be independent. They will explore their environment by playing actively and asking questions. The emotionally healthy preschooler likes to be with his or her parents, but has just as much fun playing with other children or adults. Preschool children exercise more self-control as they learn to share and take turns.
Social Development
Humans are social beings beginning at birth. This is necessary because infants are helpless and unable to provide for themselves. The establishment of relationships with others is necessary to get needs met. Infants accomplish this partly by being small (highly dependent), fascinating to watch, and by developing a set of "social skills"—behaviors that help develop positive relationships with other people.
For an infant, social skills include making eye contact, smiling, and relaxing the body when held. Older infants become very interested in people. However, they develop preferences for familiar people and may not want to be held by strangers. They become affectionate and give hugs and kisses to the favorite people in their lives. From very early on, infants can engage in social games such as peek-a-boo and pat-a-cake. A child's first playmate is usually his or her parent.
Toddlers begin to take an interest in being around other children, but they still aren't very good at sharing toys or taking turns. Toddlers can become bossy or possessive— everything is "mine." Toddlers are, however, increasingly aware of other people's feelings. Instead of crying when another child cries, toddlers may reach out to touch, rub, or cuddle the upset child.
As children enter the preschool years, they develop relationships with adults and children that are similar to the relationships they'll have throughout childhood. Preschoolers will identify other children as "friends" and usually prefer to play with others rather than play alone. They like to talk with other children or adults, and they recognize the value of language in forming relationships. They may approach unfamiliar people and ask social questions such as "What's your name?" or "Whose daddy are you?" They begin to play games and will usually follow rules. Preschoolers are better at sharing and turn-taking than toddlers. Though young children occasionally have outbursts when they do not want to share, they are typically quite skilled at developing relationships by the time they reach kindergarten age.
Information in this lesson is used with permission from:
Minnesota Department of Education. (1991). Model learner outcomes for early childhood
education. Minneapolis, MN: The Minnesota Curriculum Services Center.
Rush, K. (1999). Early childhood: The role of the paraprofessional. Minneapolis, MN: University of Minnesota,
Institute on Community Integration.
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