Infancy to Early Childhood

Educators are in a unique position to, directly and indirectly, influence children’s development. By being informed and having access to current information and resources, educators can empower themselves and their students to be intentional about social and emotional learning and development. Teachers also have a unique opportunity to encourage families to be mindful of how to support social and emotional development at home.

Prenatal Development and Care and Early Childhood Experiences

Prenatal development and early childhood experiences have a lasting impact on adolescent social and emotional development. Research suggests that birth weight, an indicator of prenatal development, and adult height, an indicator of early childhood development, are positively associated with cognitive, vision, and hearing function in adulthood (Dawes et al., 2015).

Babies born with a healthy weight and those who experience proper nutrition and care in early childhood tend to have better cognitive and sensory function later in life. This, in turn, can influence their social and emotional development during adolescence (Dawes et al., 2015).

Infancy, Toddlerhood, Early Childhood Social/Emotional Milestones

Infancy

From 2 to 12 months, babies hit some exciting social-emotional milestones. At 2 months, they react happily to seeing you, smile back when you smile, and calm down when you pick them up or talk to them. By 4 months, they're smiling on their own, making chuckle sounds, and trying to keep you focused on them. At 6 months, they recognize familiar people, enjoy mirror play, and laugh out loud. As they approach 9 months, they might get shy around strangers, make different facial expressions, and react to their name. By 12 months, they show affection for familiar people, play simple games, and might get anxious around strangers (Cleveland Clinic, 2025). Keep in mind, every baby develops at their own pace, and milestones are just guidelines. If you have concerns about your baby's development, your pediatrician is always there to help.

Toddlerhood

Between 15 months and 30 months, toddlers continue to develop socially and emotionally. At 15 months, they show affection with hugs and kisses, copy simple actions, clap hands, and point to objects. By 18 months, they're exploring their surroundings, pointing out interesting things, imitating household tasks, and expressing emotions. As they approach 2 years, they recognize and respond to others' emotions, use gestures to communicate, and play alongside other kids. By 30 months, they're playing with others, following simple routines, using short sentences, and identifying colors.

These milestones are important indicators of a child's social and emotional development. Keep in mind that every child develops at their own pace, and some may reach certain milestones earlier or later than others (Cleveland Clinic, 2025).

Early Childhood

Between 3 and 5 years old, children continue to develop socially, emotionally, and cognitively. At 3 years old, they handle separation, play with others, show concern for peers, and use words to express emotions. They take turns, share, and begin to resolve conflicts. They also show empathy, recognize emotions, and develop self-awareness and self-regulation skills. By 4 years old, they're pretending to be someone else, comforting others, and behaving differently in various settings. They're recognizing danger, trying to help, and developing friendships. They're also using more complex language, showing independence, and managing emotions. At 5 years old, they're following rules, doing simple chores, and having longer conversations. They're recognizing rhyming words, counting, and focusing on activities. They're also showing more independence, developing complex social relationships, and managing emotions effectively.

These milestones are important indicators of a child's social and emotional development. Keep in mind that every child develops at their own pace, and some may reach certain milestones earlier or later than others (Cleveland Clinic, 2025)

Social-Emotional Learning Strategies for Teachers to Implement in the Classroom

INFANCY

Engage with babies during daily routines like feeding and diaper changes by talking, singing, and playing together. Repeating favorite songs can be super soothing for them. Read books or tell stories in a gentle voice, pointing to words and pictures as you go. This helps create a sense of security and lays the groundwork for language development (Help Me Grow, n.d.).

 

TODDLERHOOD

Two social-emotional learning strategies for toddlers that teachers can implement in the classroom are Emotion Sorting and Feeling Faces. For Emotion Sorting, use stuffed animals or toys with different emotional faces (happy, sad, angry) and group them together, encouraging toddlers to categorize and understand emotions. For Feeling Faces, ask toddlers to draw or act out different emotions (e.g., "Can you show me what happy looks like?"), then discuss their artwork or actions to promote emotional expression and understanding. These activities help toddlers develop essential social-emotional skills, like recognizing and managing emotions (Innovative Interventions, 2024).

 

EARLY CHILDHOOD

Kindness Bingo: Create bingo cards with kind acts like helping a friend, sharing a toy, or saying something nice. Kids mark off activities they complete, encouraging them to be kind and fostering empathy and community.

Emotion Charades: Kids take turns acting out emotions, helping them recognize and express feelings through body language and facial expressions. The group guesses the emotion, promoting emotional understanding.

These activities help kids develop essential social-emotional skills (Brightwheel, 2025).

What is Self-Regulation?

Self-regulation is about understanding and managing your behavior, reactions to your own emotions, and responses to what's happening around you (Raising Children Network, 2025). Self-regulation develops throughout childhood and adolescence. Infants might suck their fingers for comfort or look away from caregivers to calm down. Toddlers can wait short times for food and toys but may still snatch toys or have tantrums when overwhelmed. Preschoolers start to understand expectations, play with others, and speak softly in quiet places. School-age children get better at controlling their wants and needs, focusing on teachers, and considering others' perspectives. Pre-teens and teenagers develop skills like planning, managing distractions, and thinking about how their behavior affects others (Raising Children Network, 2025).

How Teachers can Model and Encourage the Development of Self-Regulation Skills in the Classroom

Teachers can model and encourage self-regulation skills in the classroom in several ways. One approach is to model emotional regulation by sharing their own feelings and strategies, such as "I'm feeling frustrated, so I'm taking a deep breath and trying again" (Brightwheel, 2023). Teachers can also teach deep breathing techniques, having kids lie down, breathe in deeply, hold it, and then blow out slowly. (Brightwheel, 2023). This can become a regular routine to help kids relax and focus. Additionally, creating a predictable classroom environment with a structured routine and organized space can help kids regulate their behavior and transition smoothly between activities, including arranging furniture to promote focus and minimizing distractions (Brightwheel, 2023).

 

Implement Social and Emotional Learning Strategies and Self-Regulations at Home (Infancy, Toddlerhood, Early Childhood) 

Families can support their child's social-emotional development and self-regulation skills at home by trying a few simple strategies. Using puppets is a great way to introduce children to feeling words like happy, sad, and angry, and can facilitate discussions about challenging topics (NAEYC, n.d.). Thinking out loud is another helpful approach, sharing your thought process with your child to help them understand how to cope with frustration and solve problems. Reading bedtime stories is also an ideal time for talking about feelings, discussing characters and events, and inviting your child to share their thoughts and feelings. Doing a job together, like folding laundry or painting a wall, promotes cooperation and teamwork. Playing games that encourage turn-taking, cooperation, and frustration management is also beneficial. Finally, preventing potential problems by preparing your child for social situations, like playdates or outings, can help them feel more secure and develop self-regulation skills (NAEYC, n.d.).

References

 

Brightwheel. (2025). Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) Activities in Early Childhood.

https://mybrightwheel.com/blog/social-and-emotional-learning

Cleveland Clinic. (2025). Baby Developmental Milestones (Infant Milestones).

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22063-baby-development-milestones-safety

Cleveland Clinic. (2025). Child Development.

 https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/21559-child-development

Cleveland Clinic. (2025). Toddler Milestones.

https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/articles/22625-toddler-developmental-milestones--safety

Dawes, P., Cruickshanks, K. J., Moore, D. R., Fortnum, H., Edmondson-Jones, M., McCormack, A., & Munro, K. J. (2015). The Effect of Prenatal and Childhood Development on Hearing, Vision and Cognition in Adulthood. PloS one, 10(8), e0136590. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0136590 https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4547702/

Help Me Grow. (n.d.). Practicing Social Skills: Activity Ideas for Babies. https://helpmegrowmn.org/HMG/HelpfulRes/Articles/socialskillsbabies/index.htm

Innovative Interventions. (2024). 20 Interactive Social Emotional Activities For Toddlers. https://www.innovativeinterventionsnj.com/post/10-interactive-social-emotional-activities-for-toddlers

NAEYC. (n.d.). Building Social and Emotional Skills at Home.

https://www.naeyc.org/our-work/families/building-social-emotional-skills-at-home

Raising Children Network. (2025). Suitable for 1-18 years. Self-regulation: Children and Teenagers. https://raisingchildren.net.au/toddlers/behaviour/understanding-behaviour/self-regulation#what-is-self-regulation-nav-title