Children’s personal, social and emotional development (PSED) is crucial for children to lead healthy and happy lives.
Strong, warm and supportive relationships with adults enable children to learn how to understand their own feelings and those of others. Children should be supported to manage emotions, develop a positive sense of self, set themselves simple goals and have confidence in their own abilities.
Through supported interaction with other children, they learn how to make friendships, develop self-awareness, express their emotions and collaborate to resolve conflicts peacefully. These attributes will provide a secure platform from which children can achieve at school and in later life.
Specific feedback helps children understand exactly what they did well and what they should continue to do to improve. This will give them a clear direction for how to repeat their success.
When feedback is specific, it is more meaningful and credible for children. Children are more likely to believe and internalise feedback that is specific and concrete, rather than general and vague. By focusing on the specific actions and behaviours that lead to success, children learn that their abilities are not fixed, but can be improved through effort and practice. It helps children to identify and appreciate their own strengths and unique talents, which can boost their self-esteem and confidence.
Talking about emotions with children and explaining how feelings appear helps children develop the ability to regulate their emotions and manage their behaviour. By adults talking about their own emotions, they can help the child understand the emotions of others, developing empathy and social skills. Talking about emotions supports creativity and self-expression.
Including your child in age-appropriate tasks around the house, such as putting toys away and laying the table, helps them develop independence, responsibility, self-esteem and life skills. It also teaches them to contribute to the household and be part of a team, as well as providing opportunities for parents to guide and mentor them, and to reinforce positive behaviours, values and attitudes.
Teaching children the importance of taking care of their health can help them to develop self-care skills and empower them to make healthy choices throughout their lives. Including your child in healthy cooking is a great way for them to learn about different ingredients and where food comes from, as well as helping to develop their fine motor skills as they help to chop, mix and measure ingredients.
Planting herbs helps to teach children about the environment and how we can grow our own food as part of a balanced diet. It is a great way to develop children’s fine motor skills as they plant, care for and harvest the herbs, as well as promoting a sense of responsibility and ownership as they take care of their own plants.
Doing this provides a fun and interactive way for children to learn about different herbs and their uses, developing their sense of curiosity and creativity as they explore new ways of using them. They are also a great addition to some tasty homemade meals.
The Old Station Nursery has been great since day one. We're so glad we opted for them. The Manager and the whole team take such good care of our little boy, and he's flourished since joining a few months ago. He loves attending and has a wonderful bond with the team which is lovely to see - as do seemingly all kids who go to the Old Station. As a parent, I can't recommend it enough and couldn't be happier that we made the decision to enrol our son there.
Fabulous nursery with such compassionate, reactive and knowledgable staff. Our little one has come on leaps and bounds since attending Filkins, especially in their confidence and language skills. Collecting my little one is a joy as they are always so happy and eager to tell me all about their day. We are also regularly updated with what they have been doing throughout the day, which we love, and it means we can continue with activities or learning ideas at home too.
My son has settled wonderfully at Small Friends; as a result of a couple of moves in a short period of time, this was his third nursery in the space of a few months, and it is by far the happiest he has been. He is always happy to arrive every morning, and the staff clearly adore him and really take the time to give us meaningful feedback at the end of each day when we collect him. We really could not be happier.