Behind-the-Scenes
Top 10 games for social-emotional development
Behind-the-Scenes
- Your kiddo's the star of School's newest topic!
There’s someone familiar in Sago Mini School’s newest topic! About Me is all about self-discovery and social-emotional learning, starting with little ones creating a character that looks just like them to bring into the activities. With a variety of diverse hairstyles, birthmarks, skin tones, head coverings, and wheelchairs, your little one can also make their family and friends, too!
After almost two years of increased isolation due to the pandemic, children have had limited opportunities for social interaction with others outside of their homes. Social-emotional skills are essential for early childhood development, and About Me is full of activities that help preschoolers identify emotions, practice empathy, and gain self-awareness.
Here’s a letter from Connie Bossert, Sago Mini School education consultant:
Dear Parents,
At about age two, kids begin to see themselves as unique individuals with their own thoughts, ideas, preferences, and abilities. As kids build and explore their self concept, it’s important to give them opportunities for self-reflection. That’s what inspired us to create the new About Me topic in Sago Mini School.
Your kiddo will have a blast creating a “self” character along with a few custom friends. With lots of diverse options for hair, skin tones, clothing, head-coverings, wheelchairs, and accessories, the Character Creator provides endless possibilities for expression. Plus, the adorable characters you create join you in all the activities, including a completely customizable birthday party scene.
The About Me topic includes lots of other opportunities for self-discovery – matching emotions with faces, drawing favorite things, dressing up for different jobs, and watching videos about what it means to be uniquely human.
And guess what? There’s a wonderful hidden gem in this topic – the brand new mindfulness breathing activity. Your kiddo will help Jinja take slow, deep breaths to draw all the colors of the rainbow and become calm. I know we could all use a little more calm in our lives these days!
So, encourage your kiddo to try out those self-reflection and mindfulness activities in the new About Me topic. After all, it’s never too early to begin learning about who you are as a person.
Connie Bossert, PhD – Sago Mini School Education Consultant
Try this at home!
As kids develop their self-concept, they can boost their confidence by learning to complete tasks on their own. Sometimes kids see “grown-up jobs” (e.g. making dinner) as more important than “kid-jobs” (e.g. putting toys away). We thought your kiddo might enjoy trying some of these grown-up jobs at home:
- Sort clean cutlery into a kitchen drawer.
- Set the table for dinner.
- Match up clean socks in the laundry.
- Wash a window or table using a spray bottle with water.
- Sweep a porch, deck, or sidewalk.
- Use a small rake to rake leaves.
- Dust with a damp rag.
- Feed or brush pets.
- Put groceries away.
- Use a small cup to water plants.
Remember to include high fives for their efforts, even if it's not quite perfect!
Jinja's Breathing Break
Behind-the-Scenes
