In this article, you will find 10 Earth Day Activities, 12 Earth Day Lesson Ideas, and 10 Earth Day Picture Books to instill wonder in young children. Jump to: Earth Day Activity Ideas Earth Day Lesson Ideas Earth Day Book List As we celebrate Earth Day, let’s use this great opportunity to spark and empower […]
It is time for parents to teach young people early on that in diversity there is beauty and there is strength. ~Maya Angelou Don’t miss the resource and book list on the bottom of this blog! ⬇️ Why is it important to learn about different types of people? As Black History Month comes to a close, it […]
Take a moment and reflect: what is our first response when our child has an angry emotional outburst? Is it to stop the behavior? Or is it to understand what’s behind the anger, help them understand what’s behind the anger, and how to manage it? In a recent article in the Boston Globe Magazine, educator and parent Deborah […]
As co-teachers at a begin to ECSEL school, we have experienced countless moments where ECSEL language, tools, and techniques are so vital to shaping children’s emotional learning and overall character development. One of our favorite tools to use in our classroom is Our Emotions Board. When should I use Our Emotions Board? Whether it be a transitional tool in […]
Join our begin to ECSEL educator and coach, Emily, regarding 5 common child scenarios, and sentence examples and advice to get children back on track to learning! As a begin to ECSEL educator, I often find that the most teachable moments are not outlined in a science lesson or correcting a child’s pencil grasp, or even a Venn Diagram activity, but in identifying, […]
“Dramatic Play.” For my fellow early childhood educators, these words can hold many different meanings: imagination, creativity, a clean-up disaster, playing dress-up, tearful negotiations over who gets to be the “mommy,” “Welcome to our restaurant! What would you like to eat?” and so much more. That is the beauty of dramatic play– it is a […]
Sometimes it seems like a young child’s favorite words are “why” and “no.” Why do we have to go to the store, why do we have to leave the park, no I don’t want carrots for lunch, no I don’t want to wear pants. We can give them any variation of answers…because we need food […]
Children are born ready to learn and it is not only traditional skills that we need to teach from a young age, we also need to foster children’s understanding of their emotions and those of others from the very beginning.1 By reaching children in their earliest years we have the extraordinary opportunity to shape children’s […]
Teachers are incredible. You consistently go above and beyond in providing quality education for your students. Each day you take on the role of caregiver, advocate, cheerleader, guidance counselor, and mediator rolled into one… and now you do all of this while trying to keep yourself and those around you safe. And it doesn’t stop […]
For all children, play is a child’s “work” and is essential in developing the foundation for social, emotional, and cognitive skills. A wealth of research shows that unstructured play is a fundamental necessity for children to thrive physically, emotionally, mentally and socially. The importance of play is something that I have stressed repeatedly in my […]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we’re reading a lot about the importance of practicing mindfulness to manage stress. Is it a practice that young children can use? As a former preschool teacher who implemented the begin to ECSEL® program in my classroom, I encouraged children to practice mindfulness every day. It is a practice whose principles […]
With Thanksgiving right around the corner, we here at Housman Institute are reflecting on gratitude and what it means for the development of emotional intelligence in young children. As Robert Emmons, Ph.D. the world’s leading scientific expert on gratitude. a professor of psychology and founding editor-in-chief of The Journal of Positive Psychology, has discovered when people regularly […]
November marks World Kindness Day, observed for over twenty years in many countries, including the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Nigeria, and the United Arab Emirates. Through the begin to ECSEL program, overseen by Housman Institute, Beginnings School has been actively promoting kindness since our inception, not only because of its societal importance but also because of […]
This month, The Boston Globe published an article about how childhood misbehavior is an essential stepping stone in the development of emotional intelligence. The unique, evidence-based begin to ECSEL program was born out of the realization of how important emotional intelligence is for lifelong learning, mental health, well-being and success. The Globe article identifies several cultural factors that may […]
