“Say it for the Slugs” CIT Blog Post by Sara Angel

A huge part of preschool is learning social skills and problem-solving strategies to navigate turn-taking and sharing with peers. When you are 3, this stuff is really challenging. It is hard work to give up a prized toy when a timer runs out. It’s crazy hard to TALK about it to the person who wants that prized toy, especially when they are also 3. These skills are not embedded in our DNA. They do not come naturally. (Adults even struggle with these social skills.)  The preschool classroom is where many young children learn to navigate peer problem-solving and gain skills that set them up for academic success down the road. The research is clear: young children with well-developed social/emotional skills demonstrate greater access to literacy and numeracy engagement. To learn more, you can Google “Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) skills significantly boost literacy and numeracy engagement.” So many resources and peer-reviewed articles. By now, you may ask, “Ok…but where do slugs fit into this?”

When you are 3, that prized toy can be anything. You have seen the viral videos of 3-year-olds tucking Halloween skeletons into bed, cradling a gourd like a baby doll, and fighting over who gets to hold the wooden soup spoon in the play kitchen. On my latest visit to a young 3’s classroom, the prize was a bucket of slugs. Yes. You read correctly. A bucket…. of SLUGS. 3-year-olds were working together on the playground to collect slugs from under wooden playground items as a TEAM. I heard 3-year-olds say things like, “You hold the side, I got the bucket,” “It is my turn with the bucket,” “I have a slug for you,” and my favorite, “This one is Pete.” (Pete is pictured to the right – and I am thinking he is the namesake of Pete the Cat – Google that one too if you are unfamiliar – he’s a preschool sensation.)

For 3-year-olds, this level of peer communication and teamwork is a big deal. Not as big as the feelings I can imagine Pete the Slug had over being handled by 3-year-olds, but still – really big. They were essentially working on a group project they created themselves, titled “Gather Slugs and Share Them.” If you looked at the day’s lesson plans, I guarantee that was not planned by the teacher (In fact, she did not want to touch the slugs).

As an Inclusion Specialist visiting this classroom, I jumped at this slimy opportunity to support social-emotional learning (SEL). Remember, I told you SEL plays a big role in academic readiness, and my job is to help support that for all students. While as an Inclusion Specialist, I focus on goals and progress for preschoolers who are developmentally behind their peers or need extra support to access those skills, my main goal is universal support. It should be unclear to an observer who exactly I am supporting in a classroom, and thanks to the slugs, everyone was involved in my focus on peer problem-solving. As you can imagine, the warm fuzzy teamwork feelings started to wear off when some of the 3-year-olds wanted a chance to hold Pete the Slug. He was a slug celebrity after all, and the biggest of the slugs. I guess he was king of the slugs because he was the only one who perched so majestically on top of the metal bucket. Who wouldn’t want to hold him (minus the teacher)?

That is exactly when we got to work on that peer communication. “Let’s say it for the slug to hear, I would like a turn with you, Pete the Slug.” “Let’s count to three and pass the slug.” “One – two – Three – Pass the slug.” “I love your slug waiting hand. What a perfect platform for a slug to come visit.” While I did not expect to say any of those supports that day, thanks to the slugs, Pete the Slug (special shout out), 3-year-olds told each other they were ready for a turn with a kind voice, shared, gave up a a prized “toy” to a peer, and used a calm and kind “waiting hand” has they waited for their turn to get slimy and up close with an unexpected visitor. Let’s say it for the slug, “Thanks, Pete.”

Special shout-out to Jessica’s group of students at Kidco Head Start in Lebanon.