Children develop a sense of self through their life experiences, culture, and relationships with important adults. This lesson provides an introduction to the concept of sense of self, how it is developed in adults and children, and how you can support children’s positive sense of self.

Children are learning who they are and forming a sense of identity during every stage of their development. Family child care providers have an important role in this process. This lesson will further describe what sense of self means for children at different ages and discuss how providers can promote acceptance of individual differences, address the needs of diverse learners, and encourage family participation in children’s development of self.

The environment consists of the space in which children learn as well as the people in that space—their peers and caregivers. This lesson will focus on how the family child care environment influences children’s sense of self and describes how you can create environments that engage children in meaningful experiences that promote development and a healthy self-concept.

High-quality experiences, environments, curricula, and programming are critical to development and learning, and they help children develop a positive sense of self. This lesson will focus on how you can engage children in meaningful experiences that promote and support their sense of self.