4 Powerful Studies Early Childhood and SEL (2026)

Selected by the managing editor of Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy (otherwise known as the SEL Journal), these four must-read articles showcase findings about SEL and early childhood. 

Emotion socialization in early childhood education and care

Key Takeaways:

• Teachers’ initial emotion coaching and co-regulation positively influence children’s independent self-regulation.
• The effectiveness of these strategies depends on the intensity and quality of the child’s emotional experience.
• Co-regulation includes different levels, with meta-cognitive prompts being most effective in promoting self-regulation.
• Early childhood teachers should be trained in targeted emotion coaching techniques to optimize social-emotional learning.

Silkenbeumer, J., Lüken, L. M., Holodynski, M., & Kärtner, J. (2024). Emotion socialization in early childhood education and care – How preschool teachers support children’s emotion regulation. Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 4, 100057. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sel.2024.100057 

Changes in observed and self-reported emotion-focused teaching

Key Takeaways:

• Coaching significantly improves teachers’ emotion-focused teaching, both in observed and self-reported measures.
• Teachers learn to model, respond to, and instruct children about emotions, which enhances student social-emotional skills.
• While coaching sessions improved overall outcomes, individual session characteristics (modality, duration) were not directly linked to success.
• Alternative licensure programs incorporating SEL-focused coaching can bridge the training gap for early childhood educators.

Curby, T. W., Zinsser, K. M., Main, C., & Skourletos, J. (2024). Changes in observed and self-reported emotion-focused teaching: Coaching in the context of an early childhood alternative licensure program. Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 4, 100059. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sel.2024.100059

Supporting SEL through infant and early childhood mental health consultation 

Key Takeaways:

• Infant and early childhood mental health consultation (IECMHC) enhances SEL by improving caregiver-child relationships.
• Teachers who receive mental health consultation feel better equipped to support children’s emotional needs.
• SEL starts in infancy, making early interventions crucial for lifelong emotional well-being.
• Integrating IECMHC into early childhood education can lead to large-scale improvements in social-emotional learning outcomes.

Mondi, C. F. (2025). Supporting social and emotional learning through infant and early childhood mental health consultation. Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 5, 100084. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sel.2025.100084

Supporting preschool teachers’ social-emotional competencies and “lenses” for challenging behavior 

Key Takeaways:

• Teachers’ perceptions of challenging behavior influence how they respond and support children’s social-emotional learning.
• Training teachers to use the “Lenses for Children and Families” tool improves their ability to respond empathetically to student behaviors.
• Social-emotional competencies like self-awareness and emotion regulation are critical for effective teaching.
• Mental health consultation programs can enhance SEL by shifting teacher mindsets and classroom practices.

Partee, A. M., Lhospital, A. S., Hammond, S. A., Williford, A. P., & Downer, J. T. (2025). Supporting preschool teachers’ social-emotional competencies and “lenses” for challenging behavior in Virginia’s Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Program. Social and Emotional Learning: Research, Practice, and Policy, 5, 100096. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sel.2025.100096

The views in this blog are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of CASEL.

Related Posts:

• 4 Insightful Studies on Assessing SEL in the Classroom (2026)
• 5 Powerful New Studies on Teacher Well-Being From the SEL Journal (2025)
• 5 Must-Read Articles from the SEL Journal (2025)

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