Abstract
School success has traditionally been measured in quantifiable terms such as academic performance or, more specifically, grades and test scores. Recent research highlights the importance of academic enablers, such as social skills, to academic success; however, a substantial number of children lack the necessary resources for healthy social-emotional development upon entering kindergarten, which negatively impacts academic achievement, social functioning, and overall school functioning (Durlak, Weissbert, Dymnicki, Taylor, & Schellinger, 2011). In an attempt to address this issue, a trend for social-emotional learning (SEL) in schools is now on the rise, yet tools and curricula are limited for early childhood classrooms. The purpose of SEL is to teach social emotional competence, such as the ability to identify and label emotions, promote regulation of behaviors, and form prosocial relationships. Such competencies have positive short-term and long-term outcomes for academic skills, social skills, as well as self-esteem development (Shultz, Izard, Ackerman, & Youngstrom, 2001). Conversely, negative long-term outcomes are associated with poor social-emotional competence. This project consisted of a literature review on research supporting SEL during early childhood and evidence-based practices for SEL. The literature reviewed was used to develop the Little Detectives: Essentials for Social and Emotional Readiness in Young Children (Little Detectives) curriculum, a research-informed tool designed to foster social and emotional readiness in preschool and kindergarten students. This project serves as an additional resource for teachers, counselors, school psychologists, and intervention specialists to remediate deficits in social-emotional competence early.