An Activity-based Approach to Developing Young Children's Social Emotional Competence

From the creators of ASQ®, this practical guidebook gives non-mental health professionals exactly what they need: a ready-to-use, start-to-finish linked system for identifying concerns and improving young children's social-emotional health. This book walks readers through the five-step intervention process called Activity-Based Intervention: Social Emotional (ABI:SE):

1. Screening. Get guidance on the best screening tools available, and evaluate the family environment with Environmental Screening Questionnaire (ESQ), the photocopiable, 30-question caregiver questionnaire included in the book.
2. Assessment. Capture detailed information on children's social and emotional competence and caregiver competence using the photocopiable Social Emotional Assessment Measure (SEAM™), a more in-depth assessment questionnaire for each of three age ranges—infant, toddler, and preschool.
3. Goal development. Review strengths and needs of the child and family, and work with the parent to identify meaningful goals.
4. Intervention. Help the family embed learning opportunities into everyday routines and activities.
5. Evaluation. Monitor child and family progress and assess the program's overall success.

With this step-by-step process, easily integrated into existing programs, non-mental health experts will go beyond the screening stage and answer the critical question "what do we do next?" Complete with suggested intervention activities and case studies, this book is just what interventionists, educators, and other professionals need to support social-emotional development and improve outcomes for children and families.

See which domain of school readiness in the Head Start Early Learning Outcomes Framework this book addresses.

Dr. Squires is Professor of Special Education, focusing on the field of early intervention/early childhood special education. She oversees research and outreach projects in the areas of developmental screening, implementation of screening systems, early identification of developmental delays, and the involvement of parents in monitoring their young children’s development.

She is lead author of the Ages & Stages Questionnaires®, Third Edition (ASQ®-3; with D. Bricker; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2009), Ages & Stages Questionnaires®: Social-Emotional, Second Edition (ASQ®:SE-2; with D. Bricker and E. Twombly; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2015), and the Social-Emotional Assessment/Evaluation Measure (SEAM™), Research Edition (with D. Bricker, M. Waddell, K. Funk, J. Clifford, & R. Hoselton; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2014).

She has authored or coauthored more than 90 books, chapters, assessments, videotapes, and articles on developmental screening and early childhood disabilities. In 2013, she coauthored the book Developmental Screening in Your Community: An Integrated Approach for Connecting Children with Services (Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2013). Dr. Squires currently teaches doctoral-level courses in early intervention/special education and conducts research on comprehensive early identification and referral systems for preschool children.

Dr. Bricker served as Director of the Early Intervention Program at the Center on Human Development, University of Oregon, from 1978 to 2004. She was a professor of special education, focusing on the fields of early intervention and social-communication.

Her professional interests have addressed three major areas: early intervention service delivery approaches, curricula-based assessment and evaluation, and developmental-behavioral screening. Dr. Bricker's work in early intervention approaches has been summarized in two volumes: An Activity-Based Approach to Early Intervention, Fourth Edition (with J. Johnson & N. Rahn; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2015) and An Activity-Based Approach to Developing Young Children’s Social Emotional Competence (with J. Squires; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2007). Her work in curricula-based assessment/evaluation has focused on the development of the Assessment, Evaluation, and Programming System for Infants and Children, Second Edition (AEPS®; with B. Capt, K. Pretti- Frontczak, J. Johnson, K. Slentz, E. Straka, & M Waddell; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2004). This measure and curricula provides intervention personnel with a system for the comprehensive assessment of young children with results that link directly to curricular content and subsequent evaluation of child progress.

Dr. Bricker has been a primary author of the Ages & Stages Questionnaires® (ASQ®; with J. Squires; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 1995, 1999, 2009) and directed research activities on the ASQ system starting in 1980. Developmental Screening in Your Community: An Integrated Approach for Connecting Children with Services (Bricker, Macy, Squires, & Marks; Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co., 2013) offers a comprehensive system for creating and operating community-wide developmental-behavioral screening programs for young children.

Dr. Bricker's distinctions include the Division of Early Childhood, Council for Exceptional Children Service to the Field Award, December 1992, and the Peabody College Distinguished Alumna Award, May 1995.