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Running head: INVENTORY OF PRACTICES 1

Inventory of Practices for promoting Childrens Social Competence


Ramona Torres-Martinez
Fresno Pacific University

Inventory of Practices
The Inventory of Practices for Promoting Childrens Social Emotional Competence,

(CSEFEL, n.d.) is an assessment tool that is useful for preschool programs to evaluate the quality

of relationships, classroom environment, and social emotional teaching in the classroom. This

essay will summarize the inventory results of an early childhood program and provide an action

plan for improvement for the low scoring indicators.


The inventory was conducted on an early childhood program classroom providing

services for children of preschool age. The completion and evaluation of the inventory of

practices identified three areas of strengths based on the scores of the indicators. The first area

of strengthen was Building Positive Relationships, the majority of the indicators scored in the
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consistently. The teachers in the classroom observed smiled at the children during arrival and

departures and used their name to personalize the greeting. The staff in the classroom was

respectful of the childrens language and spoke to English learners in their home language.

During arrival time the teacher communicated with parents verbally to inform them about the

upcoming events and parent meeting. The teacher also sent out notices to parents to inform them

about the upcoming holiday vacation days, and communicated with a parent through the phone

to inquire about a sick child. During dismissal time the teacher communicated with a parent

about the childs challenging behavior in the classroom and listened attentively as the parent

explained to her about their current living situation.


The second area of strength identified was Designing Supportive Environments.

(CSEFEL, n.d.) The centers in the classroom were clearly defined and arrange using double

sided shelves to minimize large open spaces. There were a few centers like the computer center,

library center, sensory table, and writing center that limit the number of children to two or three

at a time. The rest of the areas in the classroom allowed from four to five children at a time

during center time. During circle time the classroom teacher reminded the children of the

sequence of the classroom schedule and the change in the schedule due to picture day. The

directions for the table activities were also explained in both English and Spanish. The

transitions between activities were short and the teacher engaged the waiting children in finger

play songs with they waited to transition. The teacher and her assistants provided the children

with encouraging feedback during center time and circle time. When all the children were sitting

down quietly on the carpet for circle time, the teacher said thank you boys and girls for being

ready to start our circle time. During center time the teacher assistances gave feedback on the

childrens accomplishments and said J. I like the way you matched up the blocks correctly on

the shelf.
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The third area of strength was the Individualized Intensive Interventions. (CSEFEL, n.d)

The staff in the classroom conducted observations on the children to use as evidence for their

Desired Results Developmental Profile. The teacher in the classroom shared that she currently

has two children with Individualized Educational Plans (IEP) and conducts observations on the

children to monitor their progress. The teacher and staff during the day made positive comments

to children that were displaying appropriate behavior. During center time one of the teacher

assistants said thank you, for walking when the child playing the art center walked over to the

sink to wash her hands after using paint. Another comment observed was from the teacher when

a child at her table handed the child sitting next to her a marker. The teacher said that was kind

of you to give your friend a marker.


The Social Emotional Teaching Strategies area was identified as an area with a few low

scoring indicators. (CSEFEL, n.d) One indicator in this area that scored low because the

behavior was not observed from the teacher or the students was using a variety of sources to

acknowledge different emotions. The visual resourced available in the classroom only included

a bear feeling chart in the quiet area of the classroom. During the observation the teacher was

observed labeling the feelings of a child after a conflict over a toy. The teacher cuddled the child

and said in a calm low voice, I know that you feel sad because your friend took the toy from

you then she explained to the other child, She feels sad because you took her toy away. The

teacher instructed the child to apologize and return the toy back to the child. Another indicator

that scored low was providing opportunities for the children to resolve problems by problem

solving for solutions.


The action plan includes activities and strategies aimed at improving the scores for the

two indicators under the Social Emotional Teaching Strategies. (CSEFEL, n.d) The first area of

focus is promoting awareness of emotions in self and in others. A strategy for this would be to
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include additional posters throughout the different centers in the classroom to encourage the

children to become more familiar with emotions. Another idea is to include specific reading

material into the lesson plan that focuses on different emotions and then encouraging the children

to share about a time that they have experienced a similar emotions. The third strategy would be

to create a class emotion book with the children mimicking the different emotions and the

teacher could provide large print labels with the names of the emotions. This book could be used

by the children to indicate how they if they are unable to verbally communicate their emotions.
To address the second indicators of encouraging children to use their problem solving

skills during class time, the teacher could implement activities that promote the children to think

about solutions to problems. One strategy would be to use puppets during circle time or story

time to role play a real life scenario that has occurred in the classroom and encouraging children

to provide input on ways to solve the problem. Another strategy would be to use books with

stories that the children can use their problem solving skills. An example would be the story of

the three little Pigs or the three little Bears, the teacher can encourage the children to think about

alternate ending to the stories. Lastly, the teacher can plan center time activities such as putting

together a large puzzle, creating a tall tower, or a group art activity and encourage children to

think about ways to share the materials to complete the project.


In conclusion, the findings of the inventory indicated that the early childhood classroom

observed promotes the importance of creating relationships with children and their families. The

results also indicated that the classroom environment is supportive and encouraged children to

participate in the activities with positive encouragement from the staff. The staff is aware of the

childrens challenging behaviors and provides assistance especially to the children with IEP

plans. The finding of the inventory also indicated that the staff could implement strategies from
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an action to improve the awareness of emotions in the children and in other. The plan can also

be used to promote and improve the childrens problem solving skills in the classroom setting.

References
The Center on the Social and Emotional Foundations for Early Learning (CSEFEL). (n.d).

Inventory of Practices for Promoting Social Emotional Competence. Retrieved

November 18, 2016, from http://learning.fresno.edu/mod/resource/view.php?id=682112

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