Playing & Learning to Socialise (PALS) social skills programme

About the programme

The programme teaches children from three to six years of age about greeting others, listening, sharing, taking turns, dealing with feelings of fear, sadness and anger, and solving problems. Successful personal, social and emotional development is critical for very young children in all aspects of their lives and gives them the best opportunity for success in all other areas of learning.

Participants

The number of children enrolled in formal nursery and early childhood care is increasing and while the importance of teaching cognitive skills, sensory motor skills and pre-literacy skills before school is recognised, there are few programmes which systematically teach social skills to young children. The early childhood and early school years are when children start to make friends, to learn to co-operate with others and to solve social problems. Like all skills, some children develop social skills more easily than others.

Learnings

Children need to learn to wait their turn, share, resolve conflicts, manage anger, stand up for themselves appropriately and be socially confident. If they do not learn these basic skills in the early years it can affect their development.

PALS social skills programme teaches children constructive ways to solve problems that arise in social situations. This is done through stories acted out by puppets, video scenarios, probe questions, role-play activities and songs.

Programme history and development

Hillingdon Council has brought the programme, which was developed in Australia, to the UK for the first time. After a hugely successful pilot in nine nurseries and playgroups, PALS now runs in half of the borough's schools and one quarter of the nurseries. The evaluation of the pilot, which used respected measurement techniques throughout the programme, indicated 98% significant difference between children who received PALS and those who didn't.

The PALS programme kit comes in a useful holdall and contains a resource book, session book, audio CD, three large puppets with mouth movement, video and an A3 poster.

For more information please telephone 01895 250516