California Preschool Learning Foundations - ECEZero2Three ...

SOCIAL-EMOTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
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share. As with younger children, preschoolers
exhibit their trust in attachment
figures through their preference
to be with the adult; the adult’s capacity
to assist and comfort them when
others cannot; their efforts to attract
the attachment figure’s positive regard
(and avoid criticism by this person);
their pleasure in shared activity with
the adult; and the greater ease with
which they can disclose and discuss
troubling topics (such as distressing
experiences) with the attachment
figure.
All of the behavioral indicators
included in this foundation should be
readily observed of children interacting
with their family attachment figures
while in a preschool or early childhood
setting. An additional indicator concerns
preschoolers’ success in coping
with departing from the attachment
figure at the beginning of the day and
with separation throughout the day,
for which younger preschool children
require greater assistance than do
older preschool children. This difference
arises from the greater ability
of older preschoolers to maintain a
satisfying mental representation of the
attachment figure and their relationship
with that person to sustain them;
their greater self-regulatory capacities;
and their enhanced involvement with
peer relationships and the activities of
the setting.
Close Relationships with
Teachers and Caregivers
Just as researchers have acknowledged
the importance of nonparental
caregivers within the family to the
emotional well-being of young children,
they have also recognized the importance
of caregivers outside the home.
Preschoolers develop strong emotional
bonds with their teachers and caregivers
in early childhood settings, and
although there is some debate about
whether these should be considered
“attachments” as the term is applied
to primary family caregivers (parents
or other adults raising the child), it is
apparent that these close family caregiver
relationships function very much
like attachment relationships for children
in early childhood settings (Berlin
and Cassidy 1999; Dunn 1993; Howes
1999). Young children rely on their
primary teachers or caregivers in early
childhood settings in much the same
manner that they rely on their family
caregivers at home. Although these
relationships are not interchangeable,
and close relationships outside the
home do not diminish the strength of
the young child’s attachments to the
parents, it is apparent that both kinds
of relationships are developmentally
important.
Young children’s close relationships
with preschool teachers and caregivers
are also important to their development
of school readiness. A number
of studies have found that the warmth
and security of the preschool child’s
relationship with a preschool teacher
are predictive of the child’s subsequent
classroom performance, attentional
skills, and social competence in
the kindergarten and primary grade
classroom (Peisner-Feinberg and others
2001; Pianta, Nimetz, and Bennett
1997; see Committee on Early
Childhood Pedagogy 2001 and Lamb
1998 for reviews). The importance of
close relationships outside the home
extends to children’s adaptation to
school. Several studies have confirmed
that young children’s success in kindergarten
and the primary grades is
significantly influenced by the qual-
Preschool Learning Foundations, Volume 1 • California Department of Education