Allowing children to recognize their emotions and reconcile with them, accepting their feelings and learning to cope with them, is one of the primary tasks that an early childhood educator faces. The importance of building emotional intelligence in young learners has been emphasized multiple times by experts such as Erikson, who outlines the emotional experiences such as trust, shame, and doubt in his developmental paradigm (Curtis et al., 2013). Therefore, Songyi Cheon’s idea of helping Ryan acknowledge and accept his emotional response by saying that the teacher understands his feelings is crucial in supporting him and encouraging him to develop further, gaining insight into his perception of the world.
Moreover, examining the role of the teacher as an educator in the described scenario is another critical point that Songyi raises. Specifically, as a teacher, one must use the available opportunity to discuss the phenomenon of rain with the student and shed some light on the subject matter. Thus, opportunities for a comprehensive look at the subject will be explored. Namely, the student will learn to identify the phenomenon, its nature, and its effects on the student’s emotional well-being.
Furthermore, Ryan is likely to be particularly enthusiastic about learning what the rain is and prone to remembering the information due to the link to the emotional response that the rain has elicited in him. Therefore, the specified scenario represents a unique learning opportunity, as Songyi has pointed out. Additionally, a teacher could help the student make positive connections to the phenomenon by encouraging him to share his most memorable experiences linked to rain. Overall, the significance of the learning opportunity emphasized in this post is a remarkable observation.
Reference
Curtis, D., Lebo, D., Cividanes, W. C., & Carter, M. (2013). Reflecting in communities of practice: A workbook for early childhood educators. St. Paul, MN: Redleaf Press.