Early Childhood Education Journal, Vol. 34, No. 4, February 2007 (Ó 2006) DOI: 10.1007/s10643-006-0124-9

Loving and Learning with Wemberly and David: Fostering Emotional Development in Early Childhood Education Cory Cooper Hansen1,2 and Debby Zambo1

Children enter the world with simple emotions and gradually add complex feelings to their repertoire of skills. As children grow and develop, they learn to label their emotions and regulate them in socially appropriate ways. Literature is one way early childhood educators can foster healthy emotional development. This article explains how emotions develop during the preschool years (3–5), shares why it is important for early childhood educators to understand the connection between emotional and literacy development, and suggests books and strategies that can be used to enhance young children’s emotional and literate lives. KEY WORDS: early childhood literacy; picture books, early childhood development; emotional development; emotional regulation.

berly’s stuffed rabbit and the contact comfort they feel from their own toys. As the teacher continues, the children hear about Wemberly’s worries about beginning school: will the children like her, will they make fun of her, will her teacher be mean? Several blankets and toys are clutched a bit tighter during the reading of these pages but the teacher continues with a calm and soothing voice. At the end of the pages, she asks the children how they felt about coming to school. One child says he was, ‘‘crying in the morning’’, while another states she was, ‘‘scared like Wemberly to come to school’’. A third little boy informs the teacher that, ‘‘he isn’t scareda nothin’ cuz there’s nothing t’be scareda at school’’. The teacher listens respectfully, smiles at each child’s response, and continues to read about Wemberly. Fortunately for the little mouse, her teacher was perceptive enough to recognize how holding a stuffed toy helped her manage anxiety and stress on the first day of school. Wemberly’s teacher further assisted her by introducing her to Jewel, another student who nervously clutched a toy cat to ease her fears. The two characters identify with each other and recognize that they both get comfort from their toys. This commonality helps them ease their worries and become friends.

INTRODUCTION Imagine a group of preschool children sitting in front of their teacher listening to Wemberly Worried (Henkes, 2000) on one of their first days at school and away from their primary caregivers. As the children listen to the story, a few of them cling to stuffed animals or blankets and several suck on thumbs. All eyes and ears are on the teacher as she reads about a mouse named Wemberly who worries from morning to night about big things, little things, and things in between. A few children move in closer when the teacher reads the part where Wemberly is especially worried and begins to rub her stuffed rabbit’s ears. One child stops the story to show the teacher her own pink rabbit’s silky ears. Another chimes in that he has, ‘‘a favorite Teddy with soft brown fur’’. The teacher smiles at their connections between Wem-

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Department of Elementary Education, Arizona State University, 4701 W Thunderbird Road, Glendale, AZ 85069-7100, USA. 2 Correspondence should be directed to Cory Cooper Hansen, Department of Elementary Education, Arizona State University, 4701 W Thunderbird Road, Glendale, AZ 85069-7100, USA; e-mail: [email protected]

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274 After reading the story, the teacher gently closes the book and asks the children how they are feeling now that they have been in school for a while. The teacher does this because she knows that children 3– 5 years of age can recognize and label simple emotions and that children learn about themselves when they talk about their anxiety and fears. One little girl says she is, ‘‘Okay, but misses her daddy’’ and another, with her thumb in her mouth, leans forward to touch the teacher’s knee. After she listens and watches patiently, the teacher briefly talks about her first day at school when she was a little girl. She tells her students how she too was scared and that, like many of them, she kept a favorite toy with her at all times. As the children listen, their body postures relax and their faces indicate that they are ready for the next activity. The teacher is glad students are feeling more comfortable because she knows that positive emotions enhance learning whereas, negative ones like fear or sadness, can hinder learning and success in school. The teacher asks the children to stand up and the class moves to the art area where there are easels, paint, brushes, and smocks. The children excitedly don the smocks and are invited to paint a picture of their first day at school. As they paint, the teacher encourages their enthusiasm, talks to each child, and writes the words each child uses to tell about the painting. One little boy paints himself standing next to a mouse and says, ‘‘This is me and my unscared friend Wemberly’’. Another paints a brightly colored school with smiley sun above and a happy teacher sitting outside reading a book. The caption written on his paper simply reads ‘‘happy school’’. The students’ pictures and words will be revisited tomorrow to remind them that school is a positive experience and that they are learning to regulate fearful responses. This vignette is testimony to the importance of early read alouds for young children. Read aloud sessions with a well-chosen picture book and a sensitive, encouraging early childhood educator can help children understand and cope with their emotions. This is important because social, emotional, and literacy development go hand-in-hand (HirshPasek & Golinkoff, 2003). The purpose of this article is to explain the importance of emotions in the lives of young children and demonstrate how a caring adult and a well-chosen picture book can help young children learn how to recognize, label, and regulate their emotions in socially appropriate ways.

Hansen and Zambo The Importance of Emotions Emotions, or affect, are both physiological and psychological feelings that children have in response to events in their world. Emotions are important to young children because they focus their attention, energize their bodies, and organize their thinking in ways that are adaptive to their needs (Goleman, 1995; Izard & Ackerman, 2000; LeDoux, 1996). For example, fear is one strong emotion that has implications for survival needs. When children are fearful they are more aware of their surroundings and this, in turn, helps them be more cautious. Happiness is also an emotion with an adaptive function. A smiling child is infectious and adults are drawn in to share the joy. When this occurs, interpersonal relationships and loving bonds begin to form. Likewise, disgust keeps children away from harmful substances that might make them ill. Emotions have developed over the course of human history to meet the challenges of the environment and help both the young and old survive (Izard & Ackerman, 2000). Emotions serve children well most of the time but they can be detrimental if they are misunderstood, inappropriate, or displayed in the wrong manner, with the wrong intensity, or at the wrong time (Ekman, 2003; Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff, 1996). Unfortunately, with so much emphasis on promoting academic achievement, the importance of emotions in the lives of children can be forgotten (Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff, 2003; Siegel, 1999). If current trends continue, and early childhood educators focus more on academics, they may miss opportunities to help children develop emotionally. This is detrimental because emotional development lays the foundation for both cognitive and interpersonal skills (Hirsh-Pasek & Golinkoff, 2003; LeDoux, 1996). Recognizing the significance of emotions in development is important and cannot be ignored because many children today are facing environmental threats like divorce, violence, and a fast-paced world. Too many preschool children are being exposed to adult-like stressors at a young age, with little nurturance, comfort, or support. Not surprisingly, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry notes that the number of children and adolescents with emotional problems, like depression, has risen to 3.4 million, or 5 percent of all youngsters in the United States today. Children’s anxiety levels have increased significantly and it is not uncommon to hear of children experiencing panic attacks, phobias, and somatic symptoms. Each of these disorders

Loving and Learning with Wemberly and David may stem from lack of emotional bonding or little social contact with a caring adult (Ekman, 2003; Siegel, 1999). The first step to help children is to understand their emotional development. Emotional Development In the opening vignette, the teacher was perceptive of her students’ needs and she chose a picture book that eased some of their fears on their first day at school. Listening and talking about Wemberly’s worries helped the students understand that school is no place to fear. A caring, perceptive, and supportive teacher contributes to the positive emotions young children feel about new experiences such as starting school, interacting with new adults, and engaging in new activities. The work of Erikson (1963) and his contemporary Urie Bronfenbrenner (1979, 1989) offers insight into the importance of social relations in children’s emotional lives. Erikson (1963) believed that children ages 3–6 are developing initiative and, as a result, need encouragement and support. Children in preschool are, in Erikson’s words, ‘‘on the move’’ and ‘‘on the make’’. This independence gives them both mental and physical joy (Erikson, 1963, p. 235). Bronfenbrenner (1979, 1989) posed a similar, yet expanded perspective of the bi-directional and reciprocal nature of social relations and interactions that children encounter. To Bronfenbrenner, relationships with teachers are part of the microsystems that influence children and, in turn, are influenced by the children themselves. The theories of Erikson and Bronfenbrenner establish the importance of caring adults in the lives of children for all aspects of development including cognitive, psychological, social, and emotional. Early childhood educators need to meet all the needs of children: cognitive development is only one. Understanding the important role adults play in healthy emotional development and understanding that healthy emotional development relies on independence is key. Acting independently without adult guidance or support motivates preschool children. When a child says, ‘‘Look at me, look at what I did!’’ an adult might erroneously view the statement as boastful and become critical or controlling. If adults are unsupportive of a child’s autonomous acts, the children may develop shameful feelings and doubt in their ability. However, if, such statements are viewed as celebrations and help the child feel good a sense of accomplishment, positive emotions ensue. Art pro-

275 jects by preschoolers are another example. Finger painting, coloring, and drawing are enjoyable for young children just because they are fun to do. The doing gives pleasure and it is this feeling that is more important than the creation of a pleasing product. Understanding this helps adults who work with children respond appropriately in all domains, including writing and reading. Many preschoolers are convinced that they can write and are surprised when adults cannot decipher their print (Pflaum, 1986). Early writing begins with simple scribbles, progresses to letter-like forms, moves on to printing often used letters repeatedly, invented spellings, and then recognizable print (Sulzby, 1985). Honoring early attempts at writing, even though they may be scribbles on a page, connects positive emotions to a child’s initiative in becoming a writer. When a preschooler decides he or she has written a story, it is important that the adult show interest and pride in their effort even though it may be in an unrecognizable form. How a teacher, parent, or caregiver responds to initial efforts influences how a child feels about literacy. When early writing is linked to positive emotions such as pride and happiness, motivation and a sense of accomplishment buffers the hard work involved as childrenÕs abilities in literacy emerge into literacy. This is especially true for beginning readers. Children move from listening, to imitation, to decoding, and comprehension of print (Morrow, 1989). When early reading attempts are respected, they too come to be associated with positive feelings and more initiative. Holding up a book and pretending to read, making up stories to go along with the pictures, narrating a story in a ‘‘reading voice’’, and repeating memorized text are steps in emergent literacy. Acknowledging these behaviors as steps towards becoming a fluent reader honors the attempts the child is making towards understanding the meaning of text (Wells, 1986). Awareness of this process enables adults to respond positively to a child’s initiative in the reading process. Patient, caring adults help children link literacy to positive emotions and sets children on the road to becoming life-long learners. USING PICTURE BOOK TO HELP CHILDREN RECOGNIZE, LABEL, AND REGULATE THEIR EMOTIONS Just as teachers, parents, and caregivers must work to understand healthy emotional development,

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preschoolers must also work to understand that their growing initiative must sometimes be tempered and their emotions controlled. However, perceiving what emotions are appropriate is not always an easy task for a young child (Izard, Hayes, Chisolm, & Baak, 1991). As preschoolers take initiative and become successful in their interactions, they become less dependent on adults and gain self-assurance and confidence in themselves. This self-assurance may come at a cost if the feelings of others are not considered and adults may need to intervene. If this is done without sensitivity, or if efforts are constantly criticized or inhibited, guilt and shame may begin to replace feelings of happiness and pride. Children burdened by guilt are less likely to take initiative in play or readily enter groups (Mize & Ladd, 1990). They are also less likely to connect literacy with pleasure if their early attempts have been criticized.

Reading books with characters exhibiting initiative and how initiative impacts others can help children develop both their autonomy and emotional growth. For example, the picture book No, David! by Shannon (1998) can be used to help children understand that what they want may not be appropriate or welcomed by others. Through David’s antics, initiative is shown with much pleasure: sneaking cookies from the cookie jar, tracking mud into the house, and playing with food. Early childhood educators can use the illustrations in this book to help children identify and label David’s feelings as he takes initiative. For example, on the pages where David tracks mud into the house, children can look at David’s face and interpret how he might be feeling. Voicing emotional words like guilty and sad and connecting them to how they look are powerful emotional learning experiences for

Table I. Bibliography of Children’s Books Organized by Emotional Connection Anger

Anxiety

Disgust

Fear

Guilt

Happiness

Sadness

Shame

Pride

Books that cover a wide array of emotions

Kaiser, C. (2004). If you’re angry and you know it! New York: Scholastic Spelman, C. M. (2000). When I feel angry. New York: Scholastic Vail, R. (2002). Sometimes I’m bombaloo. New York: Scholastic Arnold, T. (1997). Parts. New York: Scholastic Henkes, K. (1993). Owen. New York: Greenwillow Books Joosse, B. M. (2005). Papa, do you love me? New York: Scholastic Gomi, T., & Stinchecum, A. (1993). Everyone poops. La Jolla, CA: Kane/Miller Kotzwinkle, W., & Murray, G. (2001). Walter the farting dog. Berkeley, CA: Frog Ltd. Pittau, F., & Gervais, B. (2004). That’s disgusting! New York: Black Dog & Leventhal Edwards, M., & Root, P. (2002). What’s that noise? Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Mayer, M. (1968). There’s a nightmare in my closet. New York: Penguin Books O’Neill, A. (2002). The recess queen. New York: Scholastic Fox, M. (2000). Harriet, you’ll drive me wild ! New York: Scholastic Henkes, K. (1996). Lilly’s purple plastic purse. New York: Scholastic Lester, H. (1985). It wasn’t my fault. New York: Scholastic Carlson, N. (1997). ABC I like me! New York: Scholastic Falconer, I. (2000). Olivia. New York: Scholastic Lovell, P. (2001). Stand tall, Molly Lou Melon. New York: Scholastic Fox, M. (1988). Koala Lou. San Diego, CA: Voyager Books Lund, J. (1999). Two cool coyotes. New York: Dutton Children’s Books Wood, A. (2000). Jubal’s wish. New York: Scholastic Couric, K. (2000). The brand new kid. New York: Scholastic Shannon, D. (1998). A bad case of stripes. New York: Scholastic Shannon, D. (2002). David gets in trouble. New York: Scholastic Carle, E. (1997). From head to toe. New York: Harper Collins Carlson, N. (1998). I like me! New York: Puffin Books Wood, A. (1982). Quick as a cricket. New York: Scholastic Aliki. (1993). Communication. New York: Scholastic Buehner, C. (1998). I did it, I’m sorry. New York: Scholastic Cain, J. (2000). The way I feel. New York: Scholastic Curtis, J. (1998). Today I feel silly. New York: Scholastic Dellinger, A. (1985). Hugging: What is it? Chicago, IL: Children’s Press Masteller, S. (1988). Feelings A to Z. New York: Modern Publishing McCourt, L. (1997). I love you, stinky face. New York: Scholastic Ross, D. (1999). A book of friends. New York: Scholastic Waber, B. (1972). Ira sleeps over. Boston, MA: Houghton Mifflin Wilson-Max, K. (1999). L is for loving. New York: Scholastic

Loving and Learning with Wemberly and David children. Teachers can extend this by having children brainstorm ways that emotions sound, look, and feel, writing ideas and words on a large piece of chart paper for future reference. The value of No, David! as a teaching tool does not stop there because, in addition to focusing on David and the illustrations, children can also learn about empathy by listening and talking about the words of David’s mother. Her words can be used to help children identify how she might be feeling when she says things like, ‘‘That’s enough, David,’’ or ‘‘No, David, no’’. These words tell that David’s mother might be feeling angry or sad and children can be asked when they or their caregivers have felt the same. Helping children label feelings in others develops empathy without a sense of guilt. Children can also role-play better behaviors for David and with bold facial and body expressions. For example, after David tracked mud into the house he could have helped his Mother clean it up and gained a sense of pride. A pair of children can pretend to be David and his mother cleaning up the mud. The end scene could be David with a big smile, a stuck out chest, and the mother beaming and nodding because David understands how his mother feels and recognizes the right thing to do. No, David! is a wonderful book to help children learn about positive and negative emotions as well as unconditional love. The words and illustrations show children that

277 behaviors will be forgiven and happiness experienced again. More books that can be used to enhance emotional growth are suggested in Table I. This table is organized by emotions so connections can be easily made between feelings, books, and their characters. CONCLUSION Children enter the world with simple emotions and gradually add complex feelings to their repertoire of skills (Hansen & Zambo, 2006; Siegel, 1999). As children grow and develop, they learn to label their emotions and regulate them in socially appropriate ways. A positive self-concept and more friends are indicators of children with strong emotional skills: they learn how to cooperate with peers and adults and become empathic toward others in need. In contrast, children whose emotional development is stunted or has not been nurtured may become hyperactive, aggressive, or withdrawn (Greenspan, 1998; Greenspan & Shanker, 2004). When emotional development is neglected, both social skills and learning suffer. Children become who they are by how they are treated and spoken to. If early childhood educators are sensitive to the growing needs of children and help them interpret their feelings, children begin to think about their feelings, label them, and ultimately

Table II. Literacy-Based Strategies to Enhance the Emotional Lives of Children Strategies to help children recognize and express their own emotions Respect all responses in talk about emotions Ask children to verbalize descriptions of characters’ emotions in stories Talk about your own emotions Talk about initial reactions and how you dealt with negative emotions Encourage young children to draw/write/paint about how they feel Sing and chant about emotions and how to respond to their feelings Have children retell the story and share their emotional Brainstorm and create ‘‘Sounds Like ... Looks Like ... Feels Like ... ’’charts about emotions Strategies to help children read and identify emotions in others Stop stories to have children predict what characters are feeling Brainstorm ways to react to feelings and why they may be feeling that way Confirm and reward appropriate responses to difficult situations in stories Talk about what characters could have done differently in stories Have children role play characters and tell how they feel Retell stories from a character’s perspective Practice reading the emotions of others from pictures in books Strategies to develop a vocabulary of emotion words and practice using those words Have children analyze and label the emotions characters in stories are portraying. Discuss and practice both positive and negative reactions Model and talk about how you handle disappointment or sadness. Use puppets to model different reactions Include stuffed animals in the library center to ‘‘listen’’ to children’s stories

278 regulate how they feel. Feelings are on the inside and when adults read stories and talk about how characters feel they bring them outside where they can be examined, considered, and understood. Table II contains the literacy-emotion strategies presented in this article along with other ideas that a teacher, parent, or caregiver can use to enhance the emotional lives of children. There is no easy solution to helping children deal with their emotions because that only happens through sad, angry, anxious, scary, and happy interactions. Especially now, in our fast-paced world, early childhood educators need to help children interpret their feelings and the feelings of others, to model how this is done, and to be a positive influence in the emotional development of their students. A focus on cognitive skills, without recognizing the importance of emotions, can develop a child who lacks empathy and understanding. Being able to express how one feels, recognizing those emotions in self and others, and labeling those emotions with words has long-term consequences for adjustment and success in life (Greenspan & Shanker, 2004; Siegel, 1999). As early childhood educators, we can give these tools to children as they take initiative to venture outside their homes to the world beyond. REFERENCES Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979). The ecology of human development. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Bronfenbrenner, U. (1989). Ecological systems theory. In R..Vasta (Ed.), Annals of child development (pp. 187–251).6 Greenwich, CT: JAI. Ekman, P. (2003). Emotions revealed. New York: Times Books. Erikson, E. H. (1963). Childhood and society. New York: W. W. Norton & Company.

Hansen and Zambo Goleman, D. (1995). Emotional intelligence. New York: Bantam. Greenspan, S.G. (1998). The growth of the mind. Reading, MA: Addison-Wesley. Greenspan, S. G., & Shanker, S. G. (2004). The first idea: How symbols, language and intelligence evolved from our primate ancestors to modern humans. Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press. Hansen, C. C., & Zambo, D. (2006). Piaget, meet Lilly: Understanding child development through picture book characters. The Early Childhood Education Journal. Retrieval date November 16, 2005 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10643005-0020-8 . Henkes, K. (2000). Wemberly worried.. New York: Scholastic. Hirsh-Pasek K., & Golinkoff, R.M. (1996). The origins of grammar: Evidence from early language comprehension. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press. Hirsh-Pasek, K., & Golinkoff, R.M. (2003). Einstein never used flash cards: How out children really learn–and why they need to play more and memorize less. New York: Rodale. Izard, C.E., Hayes, M., Chisolm, G., & Baak, K (1991). Emotional determinants of infant–mother attachment. Child Development, 62, 906–917. Izard, C. E., & Ackerman, B. P. (2000). Motivational, organizational, and regulatory and functions of discrete emotions. In Lewis M. L. Haviland-Jones (Eds) Handbook of emotions (2nd ed., pp. 523–264). New York: Guliford Press. LeDoux, J. (1996). The emotional brain. New York: Touchstone. Mize, J., & Ladd, G.W (1990). A cognitive-social learning approach to social skills training with low-status preschool children Developmental Psychology, 26, 388–397. Morrow, L.M. (1989). Literacy development in the early years: Helping children read and write. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall. Pflaum, S. (1986). The development of language and literacy in young children. Columbus, OH: Chas. E. Merrill. Shannon, (1998). No, David! New York: Scholastic. Siegel, D.J. (1999). The developing mind: Toward a neurobiology of interpersonal experience. New York: Guliford Press. Sulzby, E. (1985). Kindergartners as writers and readers. In M. Farr (Ed.), Advances in writing Research: Vol. 1. ChildrenÕs early writing development (pp. 127–199). Norwood, NJ: Ablex Publishing Corporation. Wells, G. (1986). The meaning makers: Children learning language and using language to learn. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.