Key Takeaways
- Play types progress from solitary to parallel to cooperative
- Model and coach social skills like sharing and using polite words
- Encourage empathy by labeling emotions and reading emotion books
- Teach conflict resolution: calm down, identify problem, think of solutions
- Provide cooperative activities to build social skills
Last updated: January 2026
Social Development
Functional Area 9 focuses on helping each child function effectively in the group, learn to cooperate with others, and encourage feelings of empathy and mutual respect.
Social Skill Development by Age
Infants (0-12 months):
- Social smiling
- Attachment to caregivers
- Beginning awareness of others
- Parallel awareness (noticing other babies)
Toddlers (12-36 months):
- Parallel play (playing beside, not with)
- Beginning to share with prompting
- Awareness of others' emotions
- Some cooperative play by age 3
Preschoolers (3-5 years):
- Cooperative play
- Taking turns with support
- Making friends
- Understanding rules of games
- Beginning empathy
Types of Play
| Type | Age | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Solitary | 0-2 years | Playing alone |
| Onlooker | 2-2.5 years | Watching others play |
| Parallel | 2-3 years | Playing beside others with same materials |
| Associative | 3-4 years | Playing with others, sharing materials |
| Cooperative | 4+ years | Playing together with shared goals |
Teaching Social Skills
Model appropriate behaviors:
- Use polite words (please, thank you)
- Show respect for others
- Demonstrate sharing and turn-taking
- Express emotions appropriately
Coach social interactions:
- Help children enter play groups
- Suggest words to use
- Guide conflict resolution
- Praise prosocial behaviors
Encouraging Empathy
Help children recognize and respond to others' feelings:
- Label emotions ("She looks sad")
- Ask about feelings ("How do you think he feels?")
- Read books about emotions
- Encourage helping behaviors
- Model caring responses
Friendship Development
Support friendships by:
- Providing cooperative activities
- Creating small group experiences
- Facilitating introductions
- Allowing time for free play
- Helping children find common interests
Conflict Resolution
Teach problem-solving steps:
- Stop and calm down
- Identify the problem
- Think of solutions
- Choose and try a solution
- Evaluate: Did it work?
Support children in conflicts:
- Stay neutral; don't take sides
- Help children express feelings
- Guide them to find solutions
- Avoid solving problems for them
- Follow up to ensure resolution
Cooperative Activities
| Activity Type | Examples |
|---|---|
| Partner games | Rolling ball, building together |
| Group projects | Class mural, construction projects |
| Cooperative games | Parachute, group movement activities |
| Classroom jobs | Clean-up, caring for plants/pets |
Test Your Knowledge
What type of play involves children playing beside each other with similar materials but not together?
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D
Test Your Knowledge
What is the FIRST step when helping children resolve conflicts?
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B
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D