
This list contains a variety of resources associated with strategies for parents and caregivers for supporting a child’s social development.
IEL Resources
- Tip Sheets:
- Tool Kit: Supporting Young Children’s Friendships
- Q&A: Development in Young Children
- Videos:
Web Resources
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Baby’s Temperament
(also in Spanish)Source: HealthyChildren.org
This article addresses baby’s temperament and how a baby’s temperamental traits will influence the way caregivers interact with them. The more a baby’s signals are paid attention to and caregivers learn to respond appropriately to their unique personality, the calmer and more predictable life will be in the early months.
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Fostering Healthy Social & Emotional Development in Young Children
Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS)
These tips, which are organized by age, are intended to help early childhood caregivers support children’s social and emotional development.
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Getting Along Together: Developing Social Competence in Young Children
Source: PBS
This article provides tips to help young children develop into a socially-competent person who can express their own feelings, empathize with others’ feelings, and be cooperative, generous and kind.
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Making Friends and Getting Along with Peers
Source: The National Academies Press
This chapter from the book From Neurons to Neighborhoods discusses how establishing relationships with peers is a major developmental task that is not always easy for children.
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The Not-So-Magic Word
Source: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
This article provides information on teaching politeness to young children.
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Promoting Positive Peer Social Interactions
Source: The Center on Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning
This brief discusses the importance of successful social interactions to promote positive social and emotional development in children.
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Promoting Young Children’s Social and Emotional Health
Source: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)
This resource describes why social and emotional health matters, shows how to build trusting relationships and teach social/emotional skills to young children.
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Supporting Social-Emotional Development
Source: Teaching Strategies
This webinar series, featuring short instructional videos, addresses positive relationships, modeling empathy, and the importance of social-emotional and cognitive development.
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Supporting Young Children’s Social Development
Source: Illinois Resource Center
In this 80-minute video, Dr. Lilian Katz discusses ways of defining social competence in the early years, provides an overview of what the research indicates must be achieved in the early years, and indicates ways that adults—parents and professionals—can support and strengthen this important aspect of young children’s development.
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Tips on Helping Your Child Build Relationships
(also in Spanish)Source: Zero to Three
This parenting resource provides information on how to help infants and toddlers develop strong relationships with the people in their lives. Through relationships, children discover who they are and learn to understand others.
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Tips on Helping Your Child Develop Confidence
Source: Zero to Three
This parenting resource provides information on how to help children develop the self-confidence they need for future success. Self-confidence is an essential ingredient for all aspects of your child’s healthy development and a key ingredient for school success.
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Tips on Helping Your Child Develop Empathy
Source: Zero to Three
This provides practical tips for caregivers to help infants and toddlers develop empathy and understand that others have different thoughts and feelings than they do.