A child’s social skills, emotional state, and sense of value affect his or her academic learning. Yes, it is important for children to learn their letter sounds, count, and identify numbers. But it is also important for children to learn how to build relationships. In our preschool classrooms we help children establish secure relationships with adults and help them learn how to:
- Help, share, and work together in a group.
- Take turns.
- Participate in activities with the class.
- Trust and respect responsible adults.
- Engage and communicate with teachers and students.
- Develop friendships with peers.
- Cooperate with others.
- Be mindful of people and of the classroom environment.
Teachers and parents see children working together as a team towards common goals and there is a decrease in aggressive behaviors and negative attitudes
Because building relationships is at the center of each of our classrooms, the quality of student-teacher interactions and academics improves. Teachers and parents notice children using kind words with each other. They see children working together as a team towards common goals and there is a decrease in aggressive behaviors and negative attitudes. There is an overall improvement in the classroom climate and academics and school readiness also increase.
Each of our classrooms implement a curriculum embedded with building positive relationships into everyday play and learning. Teachers lead group discussions, model, and practice building relationship skills such as how to kindly get a friend’s attention, how to take turns, and how to solve friendship squabbles. These opportunities to learn and practice within each day help children connect with others, disengage stress, and commit to making positive, kind choices.
Parents can help their children build relationships by doing the following:
1. Spend uninterrupted time together each day
2. Encourage communication and expressing feeling
3. Respect their feelings
4. Allow your child to play with other children
5. Limit screen time
You can use the given tips to effectively allow your kids to communicate, respect, and have a balanced relationship at every age.
