How often in early childhood settings do we experience children using hitting, biting, or harmful words to communicate or express themselves? How often do we have immediate reactions and responses like Ms. Kim?  

As we reflect on this issue’s topic of what it means to transform our understanding of and approaches to children’s behaviors, let’s consider ways in which we are fostering an environment that supports young children’s social and emotional health and development. For over 20 years, one of my areas of interest, teaching, and research has been ways to create environments that are socially, emotionally, and culturally responsive to young children. Too often, we react to the child rather than reflect in action; that is, pause and think in that moment about what the behavior is communicating. Take for example the opening scenario. What is Alex’s behavior communicating to us? Is it communicating his frustration with being interrupted by a peer while engaging in a task? Is it communicating the need for intentional teaching on the vocabulary to use when expressing his feelings? Is his behavior also communicating the need to teach Hailey social engagement and emotional literacy skills? Lastly, is his behavior communicating his need to feel included, valued, and respected?  

In my previous columns, I encouraged us to reflect on three questions, “Who are you?”, “Why are you here?”, and “Are you ready?” These questions were appropriate as, in June 2024, we began our journey together with me as your NAEYC Governing Board president. We are about to enter a new year with new opportunities and challenges that face us in early childhood education. Therefore, I ask us to take a moment and consider a new essential question: “How are we reimagining our teaching, engagement, and experiences with young children?” 

Close your eyes and visualize your last conversation with or about a young child.  

When I take a moment to reflect, I recall a conversation with the after-school preschool teachers of my 4-year-old, Isaiah. When I picked him up, the teachers expressed concern that he would not come back into the building after outside play. Only after they sought the assistance of his primary teacher, Ms. Alice, would he return to the classroom. As a result, Isaiah didn’t receive the special treat the teachers had brought to share.  

Upon hearing this, I had two responses. My first was a mother response.  

I wanted to center Isaiah’s experience and listen to his why. I also wanted to create a teachable moment about safety and the role of his teachers and to acknowledge his feelings. 

My second response was my early childhood teacher response. I said to the teachers, “Isaiah really enjoys outside play, and it appears he was not quite ready to come on the inside. Tell me a little about your routine in transitioning children back on the inside?”   

With them, I was trying to shift away from the child and back to what the behavior was communicating and how we can guide young children’s behavior in an inclusive and responsive manner. I later followed up with the center director to offer my professional supports for the teachers focused on responses to and consequences for children’s behavior, building positive relationships with children, strategies for creating responsive routines and environments, and teaching and enhancing children’s social and emotional development. But the work doesn’t end there: I will be providing supports related to culturally responsive and racially equitable teaching.  

We bring with us multiple identities and ways in which we view and experience the world. This particular scenario highly activated my identities as a Black mother, early childhood educator, and racial equity scholar. As a Black mother and early childhood educator, I have observed Black and Brown children negatively labeled, shunned, and punished for exhibiting the same behaviors as their White peers. As a racial equity scholar, I’m all too aware of the well-documented research and scholarship on how Black children are disproportionately impacted by preschool suspensions, expulsion, and early tracking into special education. Therefore, professional training should ensure that early childhood professionals are equipped with the skills and knowledge to provide a responsive, equitable, and safe environment for Black and Brown children that supports their social and emotional development and well-being.   

Part of being culturally responsive and racially equitable is constant reflection on how we engage (or not) with each child in our settings when we are triggered by certain behaviors. What are your triggers when children exhibit certain behaviors? In turn, how might your response to a child differ based on gender, race, body size, personality, and home language? It is when we do not take time to critically self-reflect on our own biases and responses to children that we engage in inequitable discipline practices and approaches. Therefore, it’s important to critically self-reflect: this is the initial step toward racially equitable engagement with children.  

From that place, we can reimagine an equitable early learning environment in which we 

• explore, engage, and teach with children, not to children and at children 
• cocreate a community of care, learning, and joy where all participants (adults, children, families, classroom pets) feel a sense of belonging 
• establish collectively how we will safely, responsibly engage with one another  
• intentionally teach and model social and emotional skills  
• offer children the freedom to be creative, curious, collaborative, and be their authentic selves 
• promote social and emotional well-being, positivity, enthusiasm, and an overall sense of motivation and engagement  

Please join me this season in reimagining and transforming how we engage with children and support their social and emotional development. Join me as we collectively create for children and ourselves a community of care, learning, and joy!  

Photographs courtesy of Tonia R. Durden.
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