For Parents and Families of Preschoolers
The Devereux Center for Resilient Children (DCRC) is committed to promoting partnerships between the most important adults in a child’s life – parents, family members, as well as early care and education professionals, such as child care providers, teachers and home visitors.
The resources offered in this section will provide parents and families with ideas, activities, strategies and resources that promote resilience and social and emotional health in preschool-age children.
Actions and Activities to Promote Resilience in Preschoolers
Selected from Promoting Resilience For Now & Forever (Preschool Edition)
- Protective Factor – Attachment/Relationships (pdf) – English, Spanish
- Protective Factor – Initiative (pdf) – English, Spanish
- Protective Factor – Self-Regulation (pdf) – English, Spanish
- ALL Protective Factors – Combined (pdf) – English, Spanish
Activities from Socially Strong, Emotionally Secure: 50 Activities to Promote Resilience in Young Children
To Promote Resilience at Home through Supportive Interactions:
| Activity Title | This activity can be found in the book on page… |
|---|---|
| Give Me a Hand | 17 |
| When We Were Little; Now That We’re Big! | 19 |
| President for a Day | 22 |
| That’s My Name! | 25 |
| Let Me Show You | 28 |
| Feelings Quilt | 30 |
| Puppet Talk | 33 |
| Family & Friendship Fruit Salad | 35 |
| Negotiation Station | 38 |
| Message Center | 40 |
To Promote Resilience at Home through School and Home Partnerships:
| Activity Title | This activity can be found in the book on page… |
|---|---|
| Family Show and Tell | 45 |
| My Family Photo Album | 47 |
| Pass the Message Baton | 49 |
| I Can Take Care of Me | 52 |
| The Best Messenger | 54 |
| Bright Beginning, Happy Endings | 57 |
| Positive Postcards | 60 |
| A Kiss I Can Keep | 62 |
| Responsibility Apple Tree | 64 |
| Talking About Mistakes | 67 |
To Promote Resilience at Home through Activities and Experiences
| Activity Title | This activity can be found in the book on page… |
|---|---|
| The “Perfect Pair” | 73 |
| Find Delight Now, Catch Up Later | 75 |
| Our Welcome Wreath | 77 |
| Don’t FLIP Out, Use FLIP IT! | 79 |
| Turn That Frown Upside Down | 80 |
| Our Parade of Flags | 82 |
| Relaxation in a Bottle | 84 |
| Follow Your Leader | 87 |
| Our Family Flag | 89 |
| Still as Statues | 91 |
| Everyone’s Pet | 93 |
To Promote Resilience at Home through Daily Routines
| Activity Title | This activity can be found in the book on page… |
|---|---|
| Clothespin Pictoral Schedule | 99 |
| A Star Marks the Spot | 101 |
| On the Dance Floor | 103 |
| It’s My Choice | 106 |
| Let’s Pretend Charades | 108 |
| Leave a Little Wiggle Room | 111 |
| It’s Almost Time | 113 |
| Together We’re Better | 115 |
| Something to Talk About | 118 |
| A Season for Cleaning | 121 |
To Promote Resilience at Home through the Play and Learning Environment
| Activity Title | This activity can be found in the book on page… |
|---|---|
| Individual Theme Kits | 128 |
| Walking on My Knees for You | 130 |
| Where Does it Go? | 132 |
| The Be-By-Myself Box | 135 |
| Wall of Fame | 138 |
| My Family Place Mats | 140 |
| Cups of Fun | 142 |
| All About Me | 145 |
| Let’s Get Physical | 148 |
| Free the Toys! | 150 |
Click here to download the “Emotions Photos.”
Videos/Webinars for Parents
- Tips for Parents – Building Your Children’s Resilience: Take a peek at this video, featuring Dr. Nefertiti Poyner, as she shares a few simple ideas for parents (and other family members) that can help them build children’s resilience at home. Nefertiti is joined by a very special guest in this clip, so be sure to check it out!
- Boosting Your Child’s Resilience & Independence: Bright Horizons brings you our own Nefertiti Poyner, as she shares the building blocks for raising a resilient, independent child who’s able to confidently take initiative, persist through challenges, and try new things. Check it out yourself and/or share with the parents in your life!
- How Parents Can Reduce Children’s Challenging Behaviors: Hey, parents! Don’t FLIP OUT, use FLIP IT! Are you interested in finding a way to stay calm, be consistent and support your children (ages 3-8) when they are challenging you? FLIP IT® is a strategy that offers a simple, kind, and commonsense process to address children’s challenging behavior. Check out this one-hour webinar designed just for parents/families, all about this four-step strategy.
Video Series: Just Picture It! Building Resilience in Children and Families
This video series is made up of short and engaging videos designed to share the hopeful message of resilience with parents and families of young children (birth to age 5). Each video delivers practical insights and shares simple imagery that can be used to illustrate the key aspects of resilience. With each video comes a companion handout (linked in the YouTube video description) that can be used to extend learning and to spark meaningful conversations between all the adults in a child’s life.
These videos are perfect for promoting resilience and well-being in both children and the adults who care for them. They can be a powerful resource to deepen family engagement and offer practical, stress-free ways for parents to support their children’s development.
Are you an early care and education professional wondering how to use and share these videos? Here are a few ideas:
- Newsletters/email communications: Include the link to the playlist or links to specific videos in your weekly or monthly communication with families to offer them bite-sized actionable advice.
- Workshops and group discussions: Use the videos as conversation starters during parent workshops or group meetings. The companion handouts can guide discussions and help parents reflect on their experiences.
- On-the-go resources: Provide links to the videos and handouts in text messages or program/parent apps, making it easy for them to engage during their busy schedules.
- Classroom-to-home connections: Share the videos at pick-up or drop-off times as a quick, accessible way to remind parents about their important role in fostering resilience and wellness at home.
For Professionals Supporting Parents and Families
Your Journey Together (YJT) is a strength-based, trauma-sensitive parenting curriculum designed to promote the social and emotional well-being and resilience of vulnerable children and their families. The YJT curriculum focuses on empowering parents to promote safe, trusting and healing environment – all key elements of a trauma-sensitive program. Click here to learn more!
