Micro-Scholarship, What it is, How can it help me.pdf
Chapter 15 facilitating social development
1. Facilitating Social
Development
Chapter 15 in The Exceptional Child: Inclusion in Early Childhood
Education. Allen, K. Eileen and Cowdery, Glynnis E.. 2015. Cengage
Learning.
2. Remember the Pyramid?
Children with developmental
disabilities may have to be
taught social behaviors
specifically and systematically;
skills in observation and
assessment are needed;
reflective and intentional
planning are vital; only then are
you approaching a truly
inclusive classroom.
TACSEI, 2011
3. Necessary Social Skills
• How to approach others, join in, and become included
• How to interact appropriately with others through sharing and
cooperation
• How to handle differences, whether through negative or appropriate
channels
• How to handle problems and conflict
(Gordon and Browne, 2010)
4. Key Concepts
• The quality of everyday relationships with others impacts how well
social skills develop.
• “Interpersonal relationships are reciprocal” (Allen and Cowdery, 2015)
• Children with developmental delays may not respond well to initial
opportunities for the give and take of interpersonal relationships;
responses may dwindles and opportunities to gain social skills
diminish.
• All children must learn appropriate social skills; making excuses for
children with developmental delays may further hinder their
development and cause secondary disabilities.
5. Key Concepts (cont.)
• As mentioned in the Pyramid Model, children with developmental
delays may need specific intervention and systematic instruction for
developing social skills and interacting appropriately
• Social skills are not stand alone. They are impacted by other
developmental domains and they impact other developmental
domains. Delays in social skills may be caused by delays in other
areas or may cause delays in other areas.
• The acquisition of social skills and necessary interventions need to
happen over extended time. Be prepared to provide support over the
long haul
6. Interactions of Social Skills and Other
Developmental Domains
• All development is interrelated. Development is sequential and
predictable. All children develop at their own pace with their own
strengths and needs. (Remember the 1st and 2nd core considerations
of DAP?)
• Children with developmental delays may not respond to social cues.
This, in turn, may lead to fewer opportunities to interact as others
make fewer and fewer efforts to engage.
• What are appropriate social skills? (Remember the 3rd core
consideration of DAP?) These are dictated by community and culture.
7. What Are Appropriate Social Skills?
• This is a tough one! The rules may change under various
circumstances.
• How do children learn to differentiate? Examples: inside and outside
voices; behaviors that may be acceptable or common at one’s home
may not be acceptable at school.
• Many skills, knowledge, and understanding are all needed to master
the complexities of using social skills appropriately under varying
circumstances.
• Note the many skills that are needed on p. 387 in your text. Children
with developmental delays may or may not have those necessary
skills.
8. Learning Social Skills
• The acquisition of social skills is influenced by our temperaments and
our emotions. Think of the gregarious, vivacious types of people.
What about the shy, withdrawn types?
• As babies, they were
• Easy babies,
• Difficult babies, or
• Slow-to-warm-up babies
9. Learning Social Skills (cont.)
• Observation of social skills provides information for adults to plan for
social development and specific interventions for children who need
“targeted social and emotional supports” and/or “intensive
intervention”. NAEYC Key Element 3c says that professionals should
be able to “understand and practice responsible assessment to
promote positive outcomes for each child”, including those with
developmental delays in social skills or other areas.
• The “Social Reinforcement” section on pp. 388- 389 is similar to #1)
the “Still Face Experiment” and #2) our cultural belief that “adult
responsiveness” results in “spoiled babies”. Time to think again!!
10. How Developmental Problems Impact Social
Development
• Look at the case studies on p. 390 in your text
• Early identification of developmental delays is important so that
parents can get needed help. They may not know how to best
interact with a child who is not responsive.
• Care must be taken to avoid overstimulation and over-responsiveness
• Remember: parents often go through stages of grief once they learn
their child has developmental problems. As a professional, care must
be taken to support parents without judging their interactions and
responsiveness towards their child with disabilities.
11. Sequence of Social Skills
Affective
bonds
Joint
attention
Separation
anxiety
Longer
interactions
and theory
of mind
develops
More
complex
play,
pretending
More
developed
peer
interactions
12. Our Role
• Prepare activities for children to learn and practice social and self-help
skills
• Help children identify as members of a group and build community
(remember EDU 146?)
• Provide opportunities for children to practice interactions, talk,
practice manners, problem-solve, resolve conflicts, etc.
• “Create healthy, respectful, supportive, and challenging learning
environments” (NAEYC Key Element 1c) that lead to evolving skills and
higher levels of play
• Know the terms for different types of play (pp. 394-395)
13. Teaching Play
• Children with developmental disabilities may need direct instruction
in play
• Many suggestions in helping children play are on pp. 396 – 397 in
your text.
• Adults must model appropriate play
• Careful planning of activities is crucial
• Children need a good balance of support and appropriate fading
• Some children (and perhaps their parents) need additional gentle
insistence. Avoid creating learned helplessness
14. Incidental Social Learning
• Use those “teachable moments”
• Ensure the child with disabilities has genuine opportunities to participate
and is not just off to the side
• The text offers suggestions for helping children take turns, share, and
appropriately assert themselves.
• Have materials and equipment that can be made available as needed to
enhance sharing and turn-taking that is age and developmentally
appropriate.
• Provide opportunities for imitation and modeling and reinforce imitation of
appropriate behaviors
• “Teachers make it happen!” (Allen and Cowdery, 2015)
15. Peer Interactions
• When arranging groups, teachers must plan with interests,
personalities, and skills of the students in mind. These plans and
activities should be beneficial for all of the children involved.
• More suggestions and strategies for planning peer interactions and
learning opportunities are on pp. 403 – p. 405 in your text
• Remember that class rules and expectations
apply to all children in the class
16. What About More Interventions?
• Remember the top level of the Social Emotional Pyramid?
If high-quality teachers with excellent
relationships and supportive environments
are not enough, they must plan additional
supports. If those are not enough, a child
may need intensive interventions.
Some children need one-on-one shadow
aides. As in other situations, a balance is
required that supports development and
minimizes dependence.
(TACSEI, 2011)
17. Review
• Learning social skills is a developmental process and may be harder
for children with developmental delays
• Social skills are learned behaviors that are dependent on reciprocal
relationships
• Teachers must be skilled observers and intentional practitioners in
preparing learning opportunities for development of social skills.
• Learning can also take place through incidental learning moments.
• Inclusive classrooms provide opportunities for children with
developmental delays to imitate and learn from more skilled peers.
