Teaching basic social interaction skills is foundational to creating a respectful and positive classroom community. This workshop uses puppets to specifically teach getting a peer’s attention, sharing toys, requesting, turn taking and giving a compliment. When these basic social skills are taught intentionally and are expected when initiating all peer interactions, classroom conflict is reduced. Teachers will collaborate and prepare a small group lesson with puppets using one of the peer interaction scripts as foundation to teach another positive social skill. Be prepared to share your creativity and strategies with colleagues to expand your student’s prosocial skills.
--Examine the Pyramid framework for teaching social emotional skills for creating respectful classroom communities.
--Investigate how to use puppets supports and strategies successfully in the preschool classroom.
--Analyze social scripts to intentionally teach how to initiate interaction with peers for: getting a peer’s attention, sharing toys, requesting, turn taking and giving a compliment.
--Construct a small group lesson using the social scripts presented as foundation to teach an additional peer interaction skill.