Social-Emotional Development

To begin developing a toddler's intelligence, they need to feel safe and able to trust their adults.  But feeling safe and secure will also develop confidence, independence, and self-esteem.  A child who feels safe and secure will flourish, especially one that has been able to become independent and develop an individual identity (National Scientific Council on the Developing Child, 2004).

All children need time, attention, and praise from their adults.  However, they also need rules, routine, expectations, and forgiveness (allprodad.com, 2017).  By building trust at an early age, children will learn they can talk to their adults about anything as they get older.  Building trust should be the easiest of tasks, but sometimes it is the hardest.  We have to listen, have fun, help develop their talents, spend quality time, give affection, read naptime/bedtime stories, talk about what they did during the day, and give praise (even when are busy cooking, cleaning, working, etc.)  Remember, toddlers need undivided attention at intervals throughout their busy day.  The lack of undivided attention will lead to an expansion of worrisome traits that all toddlers possess and will use at one time or another in their development.

Biting, Hitting and Other Worrisome Traits Are Maybe Not So Worrisome 
           Children do not have that “little voice” in their heads (a conscious) telling them they know better until age seven or eight years of age (Bailey, CD 2011).  It is the adults’ responsibility to repeatedly give toddlers the rules and have consistent routines to emphasize the behavior the adults want.  However, those worrisome traits all toddlers exhibit are all a normal part of their development and should not be so worrisome at all.  These are actually learning traits!  

            Remember, emotions trump thinking skills every time when you are a toddler.  That makes sense, right?!  Don't we all feel like this at one time or another even as adults?  We all say and do things without thinking.  We all lose our tempers before we can stop, breathe, and think about what to say.  Think about our toddlers - they have all sorts of emotions going on all day long and have very few words to express how they feel.  They are not able to think; they just react!  If we respond in a positive manner, we are teaching those little people how to begin thinking and how to use their words to conquer disagreements, fears, conflicts, frustration, anger, etc.  They will have the ability to communicate their feelings and to solve their own problems instead of depending on someone else.  Our responses to our toddlers (negative, positive, or indifferent) will reinforce how that behavior is received by us.   

            What are some worrisome or learning traits you deal with?  How do you deal with them?  Can you think of a time your emotions go the best of you?  What ended up happening?  What caused it (fear, anxiety, frustration, etc)?  What did you learn from it?
Reflect on this and Toddler on!

Allprodad.com (2017). 10 Ways to Make Your Child Feel Secure. Retrieved from http://www.allprodad.com/10-ways-to-make-your-child-feel-secure/

Bailey, B. Dr. (2011). 10 Principles of Positive Discipline. A Conscious Discipline Audio Program, 2011.

National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2004). Young Children Develop in An Environment of Relationships (Working Paper No. 1). Center on the Developing child. Harvard University. Retrieved from http://developingchild.harvard.edu/library/reports_and_working_papers/working_papers/wp1