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.