Supporting Children’s Social Development: Strategies for Parents and Caregivers

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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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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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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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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Social Development in 3-5 Year Olds
Source: Scholastic
Preschoolers are learning sophisticated ways to relate to others. This article provides information on social development, including empathy, imagination, and more.
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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.