Development of Social Skills in Children with Learning Impairment

Introduction

Whenever children with learning impairment face difficulties in school, it’s natural to assume that the problem is due to a lack of a certain skill. While this may be accurate, there may be more to the narrative. Students with special needs frequently have academic difficulties, at least in part, as a result of a lack of appropriate problem-solving techniques. In this blog on education, we will discuss the development of social skills in children with learning impairment and the role of parents in this entire process.

Here are some techniques for parents and educators to help children, especially those with learning challenges, develop social skills:

Setting Objectives

Setting goals is a key aspect of self-control. It can serve as a springboard for other self-control techniques. Students can get a chance to observe their own behavior when they set goals. This insight can assist them in identifying areas where they can improve. Learning how to make objectives assists them in identifying what they need to achieve, allowing them to track their progress, and motivating them to take action. Parents can assist their children in setting personal goals. Objectives should be specific and demanding, but not too difficult. Students should be able to achieve a goal fast so they can feel accomplished and move on to the next one.

A student who is having trouble with homework, for example, may see time management as a difficulty. As a result, individuals opt to sacrifice a free time activity in order to meet their objective of finishing schoolwork that day. Another kid could not even be doing any homework. Their objective could be as simple as doing 15 minutes one night. If they reach their goal, be sure to congratulate them as quickly as possible. It’s the appropriate celebration of victory that helps them lock in positive behaviors by releasing feel-good neurotransmitters in their brain.

Parents should keep the following in mind when assisting their children with goal setting:

Self-Monitoring

Self-monitoring involves questioning oneself if they have indulged in a particular, desirable behavior. Managing the goal-setting scenario above as an example, our students can ask themselves, “Am I using my time wisely to do my assignments by mealtime?”

Self-monitoring for behaviors such as paying attention, remaining on target, following technique actions, and fulfilling performance standards such as finishing all homework problems or accurately spelling 8 out of 10 spelling words may be beneficial to students.

Self-Teaching

“Self-talk” is another term for self-teaching. For many younger kids, it is a typical aspect of their growth. When students of any age utilize it to self-regulate and control their learning behavior, it can be highly effective. Someone who is having trouble understanding difficult material can think to themselves, “I need to check up the meaning of these unknown words and reread this page again.”

Learners can use self-talk to motivate themselves to concentrate, take good measures when confronted with challenges, reward positive behaviors, and more. Parents should model positive self-talk for their children, but they should also allow them to construct and employ their own statements. A little forethought can be beneficial in this situation. In the spur of the moment, when concentration has been lost and tensions are getting higher, coming up with the appropriate sentence is unlikely to help. However, taking a few minutes to write down some valuable phrases before starting a new project or starting a homework assignment might help students get out of a bind.

Self-Reinforcement objectives

Whenever a learner selects a motivational incentive, this is known as self-reinforcement. Then she gives it to herself when she reaches a goal. Self-reinforcement can be utilized for both short and long periods of time, and it can be tied to specific goals. Consider our student, who has identified time management as a challenge. Someone might say, “I can go to the theater on Weekends because I completed all of my homework every day this week.”

A child can give themselves a prize once she has satisfied the requirements. For example, after finishing the day’s writing assignment, the child can choose a sticker for her journal.

Studying with a Goal

Students can employ self-regulation to help them enhance their educational outcomes. Self-regulation is the mechanism by which students take control of their own learning by monitoring their behavior and progress and making modifications as needed to move from concept to implementation. It’s the transition of deliberate thought into deliberate action. Although becoming a stronger self-regulator isn’t a cure-all for academic problems, individuals with learning challenges who acquire effective self-regulation skills will benefit.

They’ll have resources to test out in a variety of scenarios prior to requesting external assistance, or if help isn’t accessible right away. They’ll be able to see how their actions affect their learning outcomes. They will also realize that learning is a deliberate, active process in which they are the driving force. Best of all, these self-control tactics can help all students, not just those who are having difficulty.

Online programs and professional assistance

Where do you turn if you believe your child requires expert assistance? First and foremost, speak with your child’s teacher or school. See if they can assist you. It’s possible that your school offers SEL programs. Alternatively, they may have a member of staff who has experience teaching social and emotional skills. If you can’t find what you’re looking for in a school, there are SEL professionals who can help. Speech pathologists, psychologists, and counselors may be able to assist you.

Additionally, several online programs and online teaching exist to assist your child in developing social and emotional skills at home. These initiatives have the potential to be quite effective. They use interactive video animation exercises that are generally fun for kids to do.

Originally published at https://blogs.dynamind.co on April 5, 2022.