Nurturing a Healthy Mindset in Kindergarten

When exploring a Kindergarten program, you may hear teachers and administrators refer to the social-emotional curriculum or a wellness program. Social-emotional learning helps kids better understand their emotions and fosters skills like impulse control, empathy, communication, conflict resolution, and cooperation. Research has shown a strong link between social-emotional learning and academic performance and behavior. These programs support kids as they develop these skills and learn how to succeed in a classroom environment. As you look ahead to Kindergarten, here is what you should expect from a good Kindergarten wellness curriculum: 

1. Helps kids identify and share emotions

“We want Kindergarten students to be able to label their emotions and develop an awareness of what those emotions feel like and how they might look to someone else,” says Fay’s Wellness Department Chair Heidi Qua. Students at Fay start each wellness class with a “check-in” where they assign a number to how they are feeling that day and explain why. One student might feel like a “9” because they are excited about their favorite lunch, while another student might only be a “3” because they feel tired. 

2. Builds communication and self-advocacy skills

Good communication skills and the ability to self-advocate are essential tools for young students. In wellness classes at Fay, students discuss what those skills look like in the Kindergarten classroom. They learn how to ask for what they need, whether it is help from a teacher with a difficult concept or to borrow a marker from another student to complete a picture. 

3. Develops social skills and manners

Starting Kindergarten is a massive expansion of a child’s social circle, and this is an excellent opportunity to teach and learn social skills and manners. At Fay, Kindergarten students learn to greet one another appropriately by using names and making eye contact. They practice greeting Head of Primary School Katie Knuppel at the door as they enter school every morning. In wellness, students are taught the “school listening look,” where students show that they are attentive to a speaker by facing them, making eye contact, keeping their bodies still, and not talking over someone else.

4. Encourages problem-solving with peers

In wellness, students learn how to handle disagreements in the classroom and on the playground, and they learn vocabulary for managing conflict resolution. “We give them the skills to solve the problem,” says Kindergarten teacher Anne Canada. “We work through situations with kids and talk about their options, so they learn to think and advocate for themselves. By the end of the year, they are compromising and solving most problems amongst themselves.”

5. Meets students where they are

A good wellness and social-emotional curriculum is responsive to student needs. At Fay, our wellness teachers work closely with the classroom teachers to address issues as they arise, and they can pivot their lessons to respond to those needs. “We have that open line of communication, and we are all there to support each other and the students, which is a huge part of wellness,” says Heidi.