DEVELOPMENTAL CONTINUUM

Child’s First Name: V. Age: 5 years 1 month

Educational Setting: Preschool Lab at Brigham Young University - Idaho
Child’s Goal: Self – regulation (calming herself down) Developmental Domain: Social/Emotional

AGE APPROPRIATENESS
Age this goal is typically achieved: 5 years
Self-regulation is the ability for one to manage emotions and behavior, especially in social situations.
This is a skill that children and adults continue to learn throughout their life. By age five, a child should be able
to calm themselves from difficult emotions (such as anger, disappointment, frustration, etc.) with little or no
support from an adult (Dodge, Colker, & Heroman, 2002, p. 46). At this age they are also able to control
impulses such as screaming, hitting, or throwing items at others (Dodge, Colker, & Heroman, 2002, p. 46). This
child often gets overwhelmed by emotions to the point where she cannot engage in anything else for twenty or
more minutes. Since she is over five years old, this is an age appropriate goal for her.
References:
Dodge, D. T., Colker, L. J., & Heroman, C. (2002). The Creative CurriculumR for Preschool. Fourth Edition
(4th ed.). Place of publication not identified: Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse.

CULTURAL APPROPRIATENESS
The mastery of this goal is very important in this child’s community and in her family. Being able to
self-regulate and control impulses helps children in school because they can focus on academic subjects
(McGill, Boaden, & Hanen Certified SLPs and Clinical Program Assistants, n.d.). Being able to self-regulate
complicated emotions is the first step towards gaining and showing empathy for others, which is an attribute
valued highly by the child’s culture (McGill, Boaden, & Hanen Certified SLPs and Clinical Program Assistants,
n.d.). The pattern of successful self-regulation helps a child to establish healthy and positive relationships with
others, which will help them become successful in the work place, social settings, and in the community
(McGill, Boaden, & Hanen Certified SLPs and Clinical Program Assistants, n.d.; "Social-Emotional
Development", n.d.). The presence of self-regulation skills has also been linked to high mental health later in
life, another attribute highly valued in today’s culture ("Social-Emotional Development", n.d.).
The child’s parent was the one who suggested this goal and the preschool teachers quickly agreed. Her
mother has noticed that the child’s twin sister does not have any issues calming down after difficult situations.
She also mentioned how she has watched the children her daughters play with and those in their church class
(around the same age) and said that those children do not have the intensity of emotions as V.. The mother is
worried about her daughter’s ability to focus and be in a traditional classroom next year.
References:
McGill, F., Boaden, D., & Hanen Certified SLPs and Clinical Program Assistants. (n.d.). Why Self-regulation Is
Important for Young Children. Retrieved November 18, 2019, from http://www.hanen.org/Helpful-
Info/Articles/Why-Self-regulation-Is-Important-for-Young-Childre.aspx.
Social-Emotional Development. (n.d.). Retrieved November 18, 2019, from https://tkcalifornia.org/teaching-
tools/social-emotional/.

INDIVIDUAL APPROPRIATENESS
Developmental Developmental Developmental Developmental Developmental
Continuum 1 Continuum 2 Continuum 3 Continuum 4 Continuum 5

Child comes up
Child shows Child can describe with strategies and
Child can manage impulse control feelings and their solutions for Child has and
emotions and and can identify causes; Can calm managing intense shows empathy for
impulses (such as feelings; still down on their emotions and can others and can
hitting) with adult needs adult own, not always calm themselves negotiate solutions
support and support to calm needing adult with little or no with others
guidance down support adult support or
guidance

Evidence of Mastery
She will say things
such as, “I want to
take these home
and I’m sad
‘because I can’t.”
When she screams
She says, “I am In the course of
and is provided a
mad. You are seven weeks, she
script, she will
making me has had ten spells
repeat “I don’t like
angry.” She then of intense emotion.
that, please stop”
crosses her arms Six of these, where
instead of hitting or
and bows her she has not been
pushing another
head down. able to calm
child.
herself. Even with
adult support, it
takes over 20
minutes to calm
her down.

Yes, this goal is individually appropriate for this child. Looking at the continuum, her goal is the next
logical step. V. is emotionally intelligent in that she can find the reasons for why she is feeling the intense
emotion. She is just unable to keep it from overwhelming her to the point where she cannot focus on anything
else for extended periods of time. The times she has been successful at calming herself have been when the
situation deals with an object that she does not put as much value in compared to the times she cannot calm
herself.
References:
Dodge, D. T., Colker, L. J., & Heroman, C. (2002). The Creative CurriculumR for Preschool. Fourth Edition
(4th ed.). Place of publication not identified: Distributed by ERIC Clearinghouse.
Social & Emotional Development. (2019, November 19). Retrieved November 19, 2019, from
http://sdstepahead.com/learning-domains/social-economic-development.

DEVELOPMENTAL APPROPRIATENESS
After reviewing the age, cultural, and individual reasons for the goal I found that emotional regulation is
a developmentally appropriate goal for V. at this time. She is at the correct age for the goal to be accomplished.
Self-regulation is a skill that is valued highly by her culture and her family. She needs to develop this skill to be
successful in her future and to create positive relationships and connections with other people. As seen on the
previous continuum, her goal is the natural “next-step” in her development.

Goal Re-examined
V.’s goal: To come up with options of what she can do to calm herself down.

ACTION PLAN
In order to have self-regulation skills, V. needs working memory, mental flexibility, and impulse
control. V. has demonstrated working memory by telling stories from previous semesters of preschool and
family vacations when she was upset or sad. She also demonstrates impulse control as she does not hit or push
other children when they take items from her. Mental flexibility is the executive function that she needs a little
more practice on.
1. An activity that might help her is having a solitary place where she can go and paint. She loves to paint,
and her mother says it has worked as a coping strategy at home. Having a solitary place where she can
do this will help her create a habit, which will strengthen the pathway in her brain to calm down.
2. Another activity would be to intentionally place materials in the dramatic play area that require her to
problem solve. She spends a lot of time in the dramatic play area and has her favorite items such as baby
dolls and stuffed animals. By placing stuffed animals that I know are not her favorite, I provide an
opportunity for her to use mental flexibility to adjust her play plan.
3. A third activity I could plan for her would be a slime/flubber activity. She also spends a lot of time at
these types of activities but has a hard time when other children are there using the materials as well.
She will tell the other children to do certain tasks, but most continue to play in their own way. This
would be another chance for her to use mental flexibility, as people are not doing as she wants them too.
All these activities would require adult support at first, to help her through the intense emotions. After a few
coaching sessions, she will be able to think of her own strategies on how to deal with the emotions that arise
when plans do not go as expected.