By providing opportunities for students to interact with their peers, student care centres play an essential role in helping students develop social skills, such as learning how to communicate effectively and resolving conflicts peacefully.
Importance of Social Skills
Social skills are the skills we use to interact with other people, such as communication, empathy, and self-regulation of our emotions. Many of us take our social skills for granted, but they play a vital role in our lives. Individuals who have strong social skills tend to be more successful academically and professionally. They can better communicate their needs and wants, and they have an easier time building relationships.
How After School Care Centres Develop Your Child’s Social Skills
With proper supervision and educational role models to emulate, after school student care centres are conducive environments for children to interact with one another and develop their social skills.
1. Safe and supportive environment
Interacting with new people can be a daunting experience, and this applies even more so for children still forming ideas about the world around them. Unsure of what to expect and inexperienced at regulating their emotions, children faced with unfamiliar faces in novel environments must first feel and be supported. Only then will they step outside their comfort zone to interact with strangers and make friends. After school care centres provide that level of safety and support, aiding the development of social skills in children. Teachers and facilitators serve as a secure base for any tenuous feelings within these kids, allowing them to learn and grow in a positive environment.
After school student care centres also teach children how to resolve conflicts peacefully and regulate their emotions. Backed by teachers and facilitators trained to resolve disputes and conflicts, children benefit from after school student care centres when they properly learn how to convey emotions and communicate their feelings.
2. Playing with others
Another crucial aspect of developing social skills in children lies in playing with others. Aside from communication, key non-verbal social skills like understanding body language and turn-taking are the cornerstone of healthy social interaction. Playtime is one of the top ways that children pick up these skills.
In after school student care centres, children are encouraged to interact with each other and build such social skills. Utilising structured programs led by certified educators, activities that stimulate social interaction with their peers are a direct way to reinforce strong social skills. The development of these skills also help children pick up traits such as empathy and the understanding of personal boundaries, and parents can rest easy knowing that their children will be adequately cared for and taught.
3. Accredited Champion Mindset coaches
The personnel attending to and educating children in after school student care centres can make all the difference. Considering that most after school care programmes run for six hours a day, on average, the influence that these educators and facilitators have will be significant to say the least. Not only should these individuals have a strong mastery of the dynamics between children and early adolescents, they should also be equipped with subject matter expertise in their respective fields.
For instance, MindSpace’s after school student care team makes use of The Champion Mindset to unlock every child’s full potential, while reinforcing values such as active understanding, recall, application, and storage. For parents looking for a holistic and well-rounded after school student care programme, an approach such as this covers all the bases.
Foster Your Child’s Holistic Development With MindSpace
The need to develop social skills in childhood is clear to see, and after school student care centres are undoubtedly a great way to help develop these skills and foster your child’s holistic development. If you wish to find out more about MindSpace’s after school or weekend enrichment programmes, head online and book a visit today.