Children and Conflict in the Classroom: Among the many tasks of early childhood, two stand out: to communicate needs in a respectful way to other children and to listen with respect to the ideas of others. These areas of learning are important to all young children, but especially to those who participate in group settings away from home—preschool and child care programs, playgroups, or summer camps. With the support of knowledgeable adults, children are able to learn the skills necessary for effective communication within peer groups. As children learn to be together in a group, they will inevitably experience conflict with another child. Many adults find conflict among children frustrating and feel uncertain about how to be helpful. However, when adults are thoughtful and skilled in their approach to classroom conflict, children benefit. Conflict resolution is an important foundation for future growth and learning.
What is conflict?Conflict is defined as a challenge to the way a person thinks or behaves. It can be an uncomfortable process for young children, causing one, both, or all children involved uneasiness, fear, or a range of other strong emotions.
Conflict is a natural and daily occurrence in early childhood programs. It is typical for young children in early childhood programs to experience conflict over:
What is conflict?Conflict is defined as a challenge to the way a person thinks or behaves. It can be an uncomfortable process for young children, causing one, both, or all children involved uneasiness, fear, or a range of other strong emotions.
Conflict is a natural and daily occurrence in early childhood programs. It is typical for young children in early childhood programs to experience conflict over:
- toys
- relationships
- ideas
- space
- power
- incomplete understanding