Children all around the world are struggling with their education. In order to allow young kids to thrive, more emotional management skills need to be taught to students by their educators. 

Speaker Olympia Della Flora begins her TedTalk with an anecdote of one particular student from her school who was struggling. This student would regularly disrupt class, throw chairs, and regularly have fits, which would escalate so much to the point where the entire school would have to go on lockdown. The only options were to throw him out of the school, which would only make his behavior worse, or find out the root of the problem. 

Della Flora then mentions how the education system often looks for a solution that is outside of the box instead of looking at what they already have inside the box. She found out that this child’s father was not in his life and his mother was working long shifts, so he had no stable adult figure in his life to connect with. As a result, he was really struggling to transition into the school system, so she figured out some techniques to ease his transition from home life into school life, such as creating a calm space for him in their time-out space and allowing him to help mentor the younger children at school

Other teachers started to incorporate these techniques that Della Flora was using in their classrooms and were able to be more proactive in their approaches. By teaching young kids coping strategies in order to help them regulate their strong emotions, you are setting them up with the skills to be able to self-regulate. 

 

To watch the full Ted Talk, click here!

Alexandra Lagaros, UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Preschool is a big adjustment for many children, and it changes their lives significantly. The preschool period is a very important stage in a child’s development, as they learn how to function within a school setting, understanding and practicing the behaviors required for successful interactions with peers and adults, and participating in classroom activities.

This study focuses on the extent to which theory of mind abilities and the quality of peer relationships contribute to preschool children’s success in adapting to being in a school environment. The theory of mind is defined as “a child’s ability to predict and understand that the behavior of others is meaningful and intentional” (Rowe et al., 2001). Acquiring the ability of theory of mind allows for children to have a better understanding of what children are thinking. Theory of mind skills are crucial for children to build healthy social connections, navigate social challenges, and successfully adjust to school.

To read more, click here!

Alexandra Lagaros, UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Parents want what is best for their children, regardless of age, socioeconomic status, and marital status. Despite this, parenting books send conflicting messages about whether tiger parenting or free-range parenting is the best approach. The one thing all of the parenting books do have in common is the fact that they all say that if your child isn’t succeeding, then you are doing something wrong. 

However, parenting isn’t about controlling a child’s future; it is much more complex than that. The speaker, Yuko Munakata, describes trying to predict how a child will turn out based on the parents’ choices as like trying to predict a hurricane from the flap of a butterfly’s wings. In reality, children can be shaped by many forces that are often intertwined, such as successful parents, successful genes, successful peers, and growing up in a culture of success.

Growing up in the same house does not make children more alike in how successful, happy, or self-reliant you are. A meta-analysis done in 2015 found a pattern across 14 million twin pairs that every single outcome they measured in the twins was heritable, meaning genes influence who children become. Environment also matters; however, it isn’t the actual parenting that has a direct influence on the child’s outcome. The same parent could shape children in different ways. Just because an event doesn’t shape people in the same way does not mean it didn’t have any affect at all. Parenting could be shaping children, but just not in ways that result in them becoming more alike! Parents have influence, not control. 

 

To watch the full Ted Talk, click here!

Alexandra Lagaros, UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday!

 

 

 

 

 

The answer to last week’s Trivia Tuesday is… 1-2 months! Typically, during this age, an infant only smiles in response to another person smiling at them first. This phenomenon is called a social smile!

This week’s question is: In what stage of Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development are children able to understand and take the perspectives of other people?

1. Sensorimotor 
2. Preoperational
3. Concrete Operational 
4. Formal Operational

Tune in next week to find out the answer to this week’s question!

 

Alexandra is a research assistant for UConn KIDS from New Canaan, Connecticut. She is a junior Psychological Sciences major with minors in Human Development and Family Sciences and Cognitive Science. She is excited to be a part of UConn KIDS because it gives her the opportunity to be more involved with the research going on at UConn.

After graduating, she plans on pursuing a Masters in School Psychology, as she enjoys working with children. In her free time, she likes to go hiking, read, and bake!

The goal of most parents is to provide the best life for their children that they possibly can so that they are able to thrive and succeed. It has been discovered that the earliest years of life are crucial for promoting early child development. More specifically, parenting interventions in the first three years of a child’s life have remarkable impacts on their development!

Evidence has shown that children participating in these intervention programs showed significant improvements in cognitive, language, and motor skills due to the fact that many programs focus on giving parents strategies that engage their children in stimulating activities, encourage play-based learning, and strengthen communication skills

Not only did these interventions increase development in children, but they also improved parenting knowledge, practices, and the overall quality of parent-child interactions. When parents feel supported, informed, and equipped, they can create a more nurturing and responsive environment. This could result in parents feeling less stressed and more confident, leading to more positive interactions with their children.

To read more, click here!

Alexandra Lagaros, UConn KIDS Research Assistant

A stressful pregnancy can impact a child’s development, specifically affecting their self-control and increasing their vulnerability to mental health challenges. Prenatal stress has been linked to internalizing behaviors (such as anxiety or withdrawal) and difficulties with impulse control.

However, prenatal stress was associated with these factors when maternal sensitivity, emotional support, and cognitive stimulation in the home environment were all low. In other words, mothers who are highly sensitive and responsive to their children’s needs, and provided a nurturing and stimulating home, resulted in children to be less likely to have these effects.

Because a child’s brain development, stress response system, and immune system are all still rapidly developing in early childhood and are influenced by the environment, sensitive parenting and a stimulating home can positively shape this ongoing development, counteracting the negative effects of prenatal stress.

A supportive environment helps children form secure attachments, feel emotionally safe, and learn to regulate their emotions. This emotional security is crucial and can protect against internalizing problems even if a child experienced prenatal stress.

To read more, click here!

Alexandra Lagaros, UConn KIDS Research Assistant

Welcome back to Trivia Tuesday!

This week’s question is: “The ability of the nervous system to change in response to experience or environmental stimulation” (American Psychological Association, 2018) is called… 

1. Neuroregeneration
2. Behavioral plasticity
3. Neural Plasticity
4. Reflexive Conditioning

 

Tune in next week to find out the answer to this week’s question!