5 credits
Proactive guidance and positive, safe learning environments promote healthy child development and learning. Education professionals in this course focus on understanding and fostering social and emotional development in preschool-age children, and they learn strategies for establishing classroom communities in which all children feel safe, valued, and respected. They explore a range of topics, including teaching social skills, routines, and procedures; collaborating with families; preventing and working with challenging behaviors; developing problem-solving abilities; and organizing the classroom setting to support learning, cooperation, and social and emotional growth.