Creating emotionally safe learning environments is essential for helping children learn and grow from their mistakes. Using positive discipline strategies, you can build caring, nurturing relationships with children and guide them in understanding and managing their big emotions. Young children are in the early stages of recognizing and navigating their feelings. They might experience a wide range of emotions throughout the day—from joy to frustration, laughter to tears. This journey of making sense of their feelings can be overwhelming for many.
Our job is to model techniques for managing these big feelings so that everyone stays safe in our room and creates emotionally safe learning environments. We can teach and support children in identifying their feelings and then finding strategies to manage them.
Create a Positive Environment for Learning
Early childhood teachers are overwhelmed with the responsibilities and stresses of the day, but our interaction with children matters.
- Use Children’s Names When Speaking
- Engage in Frequent Meaningful Conversation
- Speak Politely and Respectfully
- Give Specific and Meaningful Praise
- Use Positive Nonverbal Communications
Read more about these positive interaction strategies here.
Looking for more information on positive discipline and practices? Register for our Positive Discipline: Safe to Make a Mistake training and earn training hours.
Take a positive approach with these six strategies for embracing big emotions with big compassion. Download and use the Positive Approach guide as a cue for how to respond when your classroom climate gets a little hot.
