THE TEACHER'S ROLE IN PROMOTING EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE IN PRE-PRIMARY EDUCATION

Abstract

Emotions are present in every aspect of our lives, especially in school, and specifically in the pre-primary education stage, which is mostly for all children the first contact with the real world aside from their house and their family. The concept of emotional intelligence is not new, it has been researched since 1990 by different authors such as the mentioned ones in the theoretical framework, who have demonstrated the potential of promoting emotional intelligence. This is why a didactic proposal for the promotion of emotional intelligence in early childhood education has been created. It consists of 12 activities which should be done throughout one trimester. The implementation of this proposal will be done with an active methodology. It might be carried out through artworks, books and tales about emotions, meditation, group games and reflections and individual activities. All these must be adapted to the needs and interest of the children and should be integrated into the curriculum to teach diverse transversal contents. The main objective of this proposal is to educate children in a healthy and positive way adapted to our current society where emotional intelligence is gaining importance by providing them with the necessary skills and tools to have a developed emotional intelligence that allows them to deal with emotions in their lives. The consequences and benefits of a great promotion of emotional intelligence can be amazing. It must be a priority as teachers. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is the elaboration of a didactic proposal thought for being implemented in the second cycle of early childhood education in a 5-year-old classroom working through diverse reading, games, handcrafts, activities and reflections on the importance of the emotional intelligence, after carrying out a bibliographical review on the topic. With this, it is hoped to achieve a good climate atmosphere, to make children see teachers, classmates and the school as a safe place and to make them understand the importance of emotions and emotional intelligence.