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Housman Institute Emphasizes Importance of Emotional Intelligence This SEL Day

March 10, 2023
Boston, Mass.–Today is SEL Day (social emotional learning), and Housman Institute recognizes the importance of emotional intelligence and well-being as fundamental to any other learning, beginning from birth.
 
“Emotions are babies’ first language universally, and a baby’s brain develops the fastest during the first three years of life. Teaching babies and young children how to identify, manage and regulate their emotions is fundamental to emotional well-being, academic learning, and lifelong success. In recent years, we’ve seen alarming reports about our youth’s mental health suffering, and before we can teach our children anything, we must first help them self-regulate and learn to manage their emotions,” said Housman Institute Founder Dr. Donna Housman.
 

Research Shows Significant Increases in Cognitive Skills From Participating in Early Learning Program

b2E increased the ability for toddlers to think critically ad problem-solve

Dr. Donna Housman’s peer-reviewed research demonstrates that the linchpin to preparing a child for healthy brain development, emotional health, well-being, and lifelong learning is developing social and emotional competencies during the first years of life when the brain is most malleable and being informed and shaped by daily experiences. 
 
The study shows that Housman Institute’s flagship evidence-based program begin to ECSEL (Emotional, Cognitive, and Social Early Learning), designed to promote young children's emotional competence, significantly increases children’s self-regulation, executive functioning, and ability to learn. The model is based on emotional foundations of learning and cognition. 
 
Begin to ECSEL uses everyday emotional situations to teach young children appropriate strategies for managing feelings, behavior, and thinking, thereby fostering their development of emotional competence, self-regulation and executive functioning skills.
 
In the study, 94 children, ages 2 to 6, were enrolled in the begin to ECSEL preventive intervention program and matched with a comparison group not enrolled in the program. 
 
The study applied a series of tests from the Preschool Self-Regulation Assessment of children’s self-regulation and executive challenge functioning skills, measuring both “hot” and “cool” executive functions to assess impulse control and cognitive control, involving attention, thoughts, and behaviors.
 

Children Enrolled in Early Childhood Program begin to ECSEL Demonstrated Advanced Self-Regulation 

Children enrolled in b2e demonstrated advnaced self-regulation skills

The outcome was compelling–the children enrolled in begin to ECSEL demonstrated significantly better self-regulation and executive functioning skills than the comparison group who was, on average, one year older. 
 

About Housman Institute

Founded by Dr. Donna Housman, Ed.D, the Housman Institute is an early childhood teacher training, research, and advocacy organization that seeks to provide the building blocks of emotional intelligence for lifelong learning and success.
 

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