Recently I had the pleasure of working with SJASD's Early Childhood Committee to support them in hosting a childhood development workshop for caregivers. This free, virtual event took place on Wednesday April 23, 2025 and provided information to parents on current childhood development trends, and recommendations to help nurture and support their children. SJASD experts Sarah Juchnowski (School Psychologist), Charlene Mitchell (Speech-Language Pathologist), and Deidre Sagert (Early Years Support Teacher) led the workshop, focusing on ways to improve communication skills, emotional maturity and resilience in children ages one to 10.
From Deidre's presentation on current early childhood trends, I found it particularly interesting that social-emotional maturity is a concern for approximately 20 per cent of our students. This information set the stage for learning more about brain development and how children learn from experiences, especially social interactions. Through social interactions with peers and caregivers, children develop problem-solving and communication skills through a process of serve and return. This back-and-forth social learning has been hindered in recent years due to the COVID-19 pandemic, overreliance on technology, and the current cautious parenting trend. To address the barriers holding kids back from building strong emotional maturity, presenters provided suggestions for how caregivers can build resilience in their children.
One of the recommendations that stood out to me the most was encouraging caregivers to let children struggle with challenges so they can develop strong problem-solving skills. Another was the concept of mental health. School Psychologist Sarah Juchnowski highlighted that society thinks of mental health as a state of happiness. In reality, it is an individual's ability to pick themselves back up after a setback. The best way for children to develop self-reliance and resilience is to practice in real life scenarios—which means allowing them to take risks. For example, allowing children to go for independent walks, which is important for helping them grow their self-confidence. As workshop hosts stated, parents often overestimate outside dangers and underestimate online dangers, so allowing some minor risks in real life is better for development than exposure to online dangers. By allowing children to explore and play, they will experience challenges and learn to overcome them, reducing their risk of developing anxiety in the future because they will develop the confidence to say “I can handle this."
The Let Them: Parenting IRL (in real life) workshop is a great example of how SJASD is supporting the success of students and their families. With the tools and tactics covered in this and other SJASD workshops, I am excited to see how parents will be better equipped to help their children reach their full potential.
If you missed this workshop but would like to view the recording, please check it out below:
Did you know? In addition to the Early Childhood Committee webinar last month, SJASD also produces a number of free, virtual Staying Well Workshops each year to support SJASD families, courtesy of Educational Support Services. This year, workshops covered digital wellness, power struggles and meltdowns, and supporting children with autism in school. All of these outreach initiatives prioritize ongoing communication and collaboration with families and caregivers in accordance with the Division's Strategic Plan. Browse our Staying Well YouTube Playlist
Angela Dunn
School Trustee - East Ward
St. James-Assiniboia School Division
For more information on Trustee Dunn, visit her bio.
