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Glossary & Citations

Communication

The ability to convey daily needs, ask questions, express emotions and concepts, speak in a group, and listen and respond to others. This includes an understanding of how others are likely to react.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Critical Thinking

Critical thinking is ability to question assumptions and the ongoing search for valid and reliable knowledge to guide beliefs, decisions and actions.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Kahneman, Daniel (2011). Thinking Fast and Slow. New York: Farrar, Straus, & Giroux. Kahneman won a Nobel prize for his groundbreaking work on associative thinking, decision making and the role of critical thinking. This book is his summation of his work written for non-scientists.

Emotional Independence

As children mature, they develop empathy and the ability to recognize and manage their own emotions.

Pathways. (2020). Social-Emotional Development and Skills for Kids. Pathways.org. Retrieved from https://pathways.org/topics-of-development/social-emotional/

Executive Function and Self Regulation

A set of skills that are crucial to mental development. They are important for completing tasks, prioritizing needs, self-control, and problem solving.

Executive Function & Self-Regulation. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2020, March 24). Retrieved from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/executive-function/

Fine Motor Skills

Movements involving smaller muscle groups such as those in the hand and wrist.

Pathways. (2020). Motor Skills: Fine and Gross Motor Development. Pathways.org. Retrieved from https://pathways.org/topics-of-development/motor-skills-2/

Fixed Mindset

The mental attitude that skills and talents are static and innate, a part of who you are, as in: “I have a great fashion sense” or “I’m not good at art.”

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Focus and Self Control

The ability to ignore distractions and focus on the task at hand. The ability to control impulses and delay gratification. This is part of the executive function and is tied to later success in school.

Executive Function & Self-Regulation. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2020, March 24). Retrieved from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/executive-function/

Gross Motor Skills

Movements related to large muscle groups such as movement of legs and arms.

Pathways. (2020). Motor Skills: Fine and Gross Motor Development. Pathways.org. Retrieved from https://pathways.org/topics-of-development/motor-skills-2/

Group Dynamics

The interactions and relationships that take place among group members, as well as between the group and the rest of society. It includes interdependence of group members, collective problem solving, decision making, and group conformity.

Group dynamics. (n.d.) Mosby’s Medical Dictionary, 8th edition. (2009). Retrieved from https://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/group+dynamics

Growth Mindset

The mental attitude that one’s skills and talents are not innate or static but can be developed over time.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Letter Recognition

Knowing the names and sounds of printed letters.

Early Beginnings – LINCS/Adult Education and Literacy. (2009, January 1). Retrieved from https://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/NELPEarlyBeginnings09.pdf

Literacy

Activities involved in speaking, listening, reading, writing, and appreciating spoken and written language.

Early Beginnings – LINCS/Adult Education and Literacy. (2009, January 1). Retrieved from https://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/NELPEarlyBeginnings09.pdf

Making Connections

Understanding the relationship between things and grasping how they are related. This association skill is a vital part of how we learn and understand the world.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Kahneman, Daniel (2011). Thinking Fast and Slow. New York: Farrar, Straus, & Giroux. Kahneman won a Nobel prize for his groundbreaking work on associative thinking, decision making and the role of critical thinking. This book is his summation of his work written for non-scientists.

Mental Flexibility

Helps us sustain or shift attention in response to different demands or apply different rules in different settings.

Executive Function & Self-Regulation. Center on the Developing Child at Harvard University. (2020, March 24). Retrieved from https://developingchild.harvard.edu/science/key-concepts/executive-function/

Numeracy

The ability to recognize and understand numbers and use them in real world situations.

Admin. (2020, July 20). What is numeracy? National Numeracy. Retrieved from https://www.nationalnumeracy.org.uk/what-numeracy

Perspective Taking

Recognizing and considering others’ feelings and perspectives. The understanding that these are different from one’s own perspective. This skill is important for connecting to others and preventing conflict.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Phonological Awareness

Ability to detect and manipulate sounds used in spoken language, including the awareness that words are made from smaller units of sound: i.e., syllables or phonemes.

Early Beginnings – LINCS/Adult Education and Literacy. (2009, January 1). Retrieved from https://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/NELPEarlyBeginnings09.pdf

Print Awareness

An understanding of concepts about print and the way printed letters and words represents spoken words. For example, awareness of the title, where the story starts, and in what order the pages are read.

Early Beginnings – LINCS/Adult Education and Literacy. (2009, January 1). Retrieved from https://lincs.ed.gov/publications/pdf/NELPEarlyBeginnings09.pdf

Self Directed Engaged Learning

Learning initiated by the child, who sets their own strategies and goals. This type of self-directed learning engages the executive functions and is a vital skill for problem solving.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Sequencing

Sequencing identifies the order of events in a story or event. It aids comprehension and is an important element of problem solving.

Reading Rockets. (2020, January 3). Story Sequence: Classroom Strategy. Reading Rockets. Retrieved from https://www.readingrockets.org/strategies/story_sequence

Social Independence

As children develop, they begin to see themselves as independent from their caregivers and assert their own agenda. Children are learning that they can make their own plans and are learning to problem solve and deal with consequences without assistance.

Miller, S. A., Church, E. B., & Poole, C. Ages & Stages: Nuturing Young Children’s Independence. Scholastic. Retrieved from https://www.scholastic.com/teachers/articles/teaching-content/ages-stages-nuturing-young-childrens-independence/

Taking on Challenges

Life is full of stresses and challenges. Children who are willing to take on challenges (instead of avoiding them or simply coping with them) do better in school and in life.

Galinsky, E. (2010). Mind in the making: the seven essential life skills every child needs. HarperStudio. Retrieved from www.mindinthemaking.org

Unstructured Play/Unstructured Time

Time without predetermined activities or goals for children. Unstructured play allows children the freedom to explore, create and discover. It fosters social, emotional, and physical development, and encourages creativity and problem-solving skills.

Yogman, M., Garner, A., Hutchinson, J., Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Golinkoff, R. M. (2018). The Power of Play: A Pediatric Role in Enhancing Development in Young Children. Pediatrics, 142(3). Retrieved from https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-2058

Talking to Young Children About

Bias and Prejudice

Leading experts on child development argue that the problem begins as early as preschool, where children have already learned stereotypes or acquired negative attitudes toward "others." The process of countering those negatives with positives begins at an early age.

Learn More
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