California Preschool Learning Foundations - ECEZero2Three ...

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
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Children’s play with peers changes
significantly during the later preschool
period. Preschoolers become capable
of greater cooperation and coordination
in their shared activity, playing
interactively rather than just side by
side. In addition, imaginative or pretend
play—one of the hallmarks of
preschool play activity—develops significantly
in complexity and sophistication.
Young children proceed from
simple sequences of pretend activity
to well-coordinated, complex episodes
of imaginative play that involve planning,
coordination of roles, and mutual
correction as the story line is enacted
(Goncu 1993; Howes 1987, 1988,
1992; Howes and Matheson 1992).
The remarkable ability of older preschool
children to competently enact
pretend roles, coordinate their activity
with that of other children in pretend
roles, and monitor the unfolding of the
sociodramatic play script is consistent
with—and helps to confirm—much
of what we know about their social
understanding and capacities for
cooperation, self-awareness, and
self-regulation during this period.
Peer interactions do not always
proceed happily, of course. There are
significant developmental changes
during this period in how young
children express their hostility when
disagreements arise. Younger preschool
children are more likely to
respond with physical aggression,
while older preschool children are
more capable of expressing their
hostility in more socially acceptable
Imaginative or pretend play—one of
the hallmarks of preschool play
activity—develops significantly in
complexity and sophistication.
ways and are more likely to use verbal
taunts and teasing rather than hitting
(Tremblay 2000). Fortunately, there
are also developmental changes in
children’s capacities for conflict negotiation,
such that by the later preschool
years, children are capable of spontaneously
suggesting simple conflict
resolution strategies (such as proposing
alternative play materials or taking
turns) and enlisting negotiation over
aggression (Howes 1987, 1988; Rubin
and others 2005; Rubin, Bukowski,
and Parker 2006; Vandell, Nenide, and
Van Winkle 2006). These conflict resolution
strategies will develop further
in the elementary grades, of course,
but differences in the capacities of
preschoolers to spontaneously enlist
conflict resolution strategies are an
important basis for their social competence
with peers at this age.
Group Participation
The ability to participate cooperatively
and constructively in group
activity is an essential skill in any
group learning activity; thus, it is a
critical component of school readiness.
This substrand integrates the
developmental achievements described
in other social-emotional foundations
and applies them to the young child’s
competency as a group member (see
Developmentally Appropriate Practice in
Early Childhood Programs 1997; Landy
2002). These developmental achievements
(described in detail in other
foundations) include:
• Developing capacities for self-regulation
and self-control, which enable
the older preschool child to remember
the rules for classroom behavior,
games, and other activities; apply
the rules to his or her own behav-
Preschool Learning Foundations, Volume 1 • California Department of Education