St. Paul Catholic Preschool Tampa

We are PROBLEM SOLVERS! 🧠🕵️‍♀️

In our school's use of Program-Wide Positive Behavior Support (PWPBS), teaching preschool students effective problem-solving strategies is essential for several key reasons:

1. Promotes Social-Emotional Development
Problem-solving helps young children learn to manage frustration, resolve conflicts, and express their needs appropriately. These skills are foundational for building healthy relationships with peers and adults.

2. Builds Independence and Confidence
When children are taught how to work through challenges—such as sharing a toy or asking for help—they develop confidence in their ability to handle difficult situations on their own, reducing reliance on adults to mediate.

3. Prevents Challenging Behavior
Many behavior issues stem from a lack of skills. Teaching children how to identify a problem, think through options, and choose a positive solution reduces impulsive reactions like hitting, yelling, or withdrawing.

4. Supports School Readiness
Problem-solving is a critical part of executive functioning. Children who can focus attention, control impulses, and solve social problems are better prepared for academic learning and classroom routines.

5. Encourages Consistency Across Settings
By using common problem-solving language (e.g., “Use your words,” “Take a deep breath,” “What could you do instead?”), children experience a consistent approach both at school and, ideally, at home—making skills more likely to stick.

We encourage you to try these resources at home as they mirror what we use in the classroom at St. Paul. Let's work together to set your child up for a positive school experience! ❤

⭐️We Can Be Problem Solvers at Home! (scripted story): https://www.challengingbehavior.org/document/we-can-be-problem-solvers-at-home/
⭐️Introducing the Solution Kit:https://challengingbehavior.org/docs/solution-kit-families.pdf
⭐️Solution Kit Cards for Home:https://challengingbehavior.org/docs/Solution_kit_cards_home.pdf
⭐️Problem-Solving Steps:https://challengingbehavior.org/docs/SocialEmotionalSkills_problem-solving-steps_poster.pdf

🌟 Supporting Your Child's Social-Emotional Growth at Home, School & Beyond 🌟

As we approach the summer months and look ahead to the new school year, it's the perfect time to focus on nurturing your child's social-emotional development. By reinforcing Positive Behavior Support (PBS) strategies at home, you can help your child build the skills they need for success in school and life.

Why It Matters:

🧠 Emotional Intelligence: Teaching children to identify and express their emotions fosters self-awareness and empathy.

🛠️ Coping Skills: Equipping kids with tools to manage their feelings leads to better behavior and resilience.

🤝 Positive Relationships: Open communication about emotions strengthens bonds with peers and adults.

Practical Strategies to Try:

FEELINGS CHECK-INS: Use visual tools like a feelings chart to help your child articulate their emotions. This practice encourages emotional awareness and provides a foundation for discussing feelings openly.

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT: Recognize and praise positive behaviors to reinforce desired actions and build self-esteem.

CONSISTENT ROUTINES: Establishing predictable routines at home can provide a sense of security and help children manage transitions smoothly.

Resources to Support You and Your Child:

📘 Teaching Your Child to Identify and Express Emotions – Practical tips for fostering emotional intelligence.
https://challengingbehavior.org/docs/TeachingYourChild_emotions.pdf

🖼️ Feelings Check-In Chart – A visual tool to help your child communicate their feelings. This tool is used daily in our classrooms at St. Paul.
https://challengingbehavior.org/docs/FeelingFaces_chart_template.pdf
https://challengingbehavior.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/FeelingFaces_chart_EN-SP.pdf

By integrating these strategies into your daily routine, you can set your child up for a successful and emotionally healthy school year.

THANK YOU to our preschool families for the love and appreciation you showed to our amazing teachers during Teacher Appreciation Week. From the lovely notes, flowers, and treats to the gifts and delicious Carrabba's lunch, we are truly grateful! Another big THANK YOU goes to our room parents for helping to organize this week as well. We are truly blessed!

Our three- and four-year-olds enjoyed an engaging water safety lesson with Ms. Rachael from BayCare Kids! Using Josh the Otter, hands-on water props, and a playful otter puppet, students were actively involved in learning how to stay safe this summer.

WE PLEDGED TO:
• Learn to swim or use a safety device
• Swim with an adult nearby
• Swim with a buddy
• Enter water feet first
• Wear sunscreen

Thank you, Ms. Rachael, for making safety learning fun and meaningful!

Family Friday wrapped up our NAEYC Week of the Young Child in such a special way!

Each of our classes hosted a family playdate, inviting parents and loved ones to play, explore, and connect with one another. It was a wonderful opportunity for families to spend time together and build community with other class families.

Family Friday is a reminder that parents and families are a child’s first teachers. When we partner together, we create meaningful, supportive learning experiences for our youngest learners.

Thank you to all of our families for joining us this week—we loved sharing this time with you! 💛

Think, problem solve, and create! For NAEYC’s Week of the Young Child, we celebrated Work Together Wednesday and Artsy Thursday with hands-on, collaborative experiences across our campus.

At St. Paul, our students worked together on a variety of creative projects—from a shared “glue table” on the playground, to building with large wooden blocks on the pavilion, to collaborative art and building experiences in the classroom. These activities encouraged teamwork, communication, and lots of imaginative thinking!

As children build and create together, they explore early math and science concepts while strengthening social and early literacy skills. Open-ended art invites creativity, supports fine motor development, and gives children the freedom to make choices and express their ideas.

We love celebrating the joy of learning through creativity and collaboration! Take a look at our preschool friends working together to design, build, and create. 🎨🧱

Check out Tasty Tuesday fun with Ms. Diaz's class! The process started last week when the class voted on a pizza party theme and worked together to create a list of ingredients they would need—building early math and decision-making skills.

On Tasty Tuesday, the children created a class menu and practiced emergent writing skills by making their own individual order forms. Parent volunteers helped the students to make pizza dough, and everyone explored it with their hands—such a fun sensory experience! As the children prepared their pizzas, they used language and social skills to talk about their menus, share ideas, and collaborate with one another.

The day wrapped up with dessert and a reading of Pete the Cat and the Perfect Pizza Party. What a delicious and engaging way to learn through play!

We continued to celebrate the NAEYC Week of the Young Child with Tasty Tuesday! Tasty Tuesday isn’t just about eating your favorite snacks together. It’s also about cooking together and connecting math with literacy skills and science while introducing ways to incorporate healthy habits into children’s lifestyles.

Our classes enjoyed making personal pizzas, fruit tarts, cereal rainbows, and comparing sweet vs. salty snacks. Thank you to our teachers and parent volunteers for making this a meaningful learning experience!

🎶 Music Monday was a hit at our school-wide dance party! Our preschoolers had so much fun moving, singing, and celebrating together during NAEYC’s Week of the Young Child®!

Each April, the National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) brings educators, families, and communities together to celebrate the joy of early learning and the importance of the adults who support young children. Throughout the week, special days like Music Monday highlight how play, creativity, and connection help children learn and grow.

We are proud to be a NAEYC-accredited preschool and to provide high-quality early childhood experiences for our students every day. 💛