( Read more about building make-believe play opportunities in preschool and kindergarten in“ Assessing and Scaffolding: Make-Believe Play” and“ Intentionally Building Self-Regulation and Literacy Skills: The Power of Dramatization in Kindergarten.”)
Prevent and Respond to Unregulated Behaviors
Even in settings with clear, consistent rules and routines, where educators have intentionally planned experiences to foster self-regulation, the unexpected will occur. It takes time for children to develop self-regulation. Even when they know what they should do, children may act impulsively— grabbing a toy, doing something out of turn, or blurting out the answer.
When this happens, educators can remind themselves that it is due to unregulated behavior, not a power struggle or malicious intent. They can remind the child what to do( rather than what not to do), focusing on what the desired regulated behavior is, and express confidence that the child will be able to self-regulate soon. They can also explore the root of the behavior: Was the child unable to remember what to do? Or did the child know what they were supposed to do but were unable to inhibit the impulse to do something else? Educators also can work toward helping children anticipate common conflicts and plan how they will pause, think, and choose a better action before things escalate.
to take turns: Meiling goes first, then Juan, then Sarah, using a timer for each child’ s turn; or they can create a scenario in which everyone plays with the truck( one person drives the truck and the others load and unload it).
In this situation, brainstorming with the children before they begin play not only positions them as active agents in problem solving to avert disagreements, but it also builds self-regulation.( See the Spring 2025 issue of Young Children on guidance and behavior for more ideas.)
As children become more self-regulated, they will begin to support each other’ s selfregulation. At the beginning, this may show up as children reporting when their peers do not follow the rules. While a teacher might be inclined to immediately put an end to this behavior, it is a natural developmental step in children’ s emerging self-regulation. Educators can respond with a brief confirmation:“ Yes, that’ s the rule.” Over time, children internalize the rule and follow it themselves.
For example, if Mr. Rodriguez knows that Juan, Meiling, and Sarah are going to play together, he can say to the children,“ You know there is that special truck. How will you decide a fair way to take turns playing with it because there is only one of them?” He and the children can brainstorm to come up with ideas about how
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