Teachers rightfully feel a sense of accomplishment when their students demonstrate learning of content area concepts and and/or achieve success showing development of a physical or cognitive skill that he had been trying to achieve over an extended period of time.  This is certainly commendable and should be both recognized and celebrated.  However teachers, especially those of young children, must keep in mind first and foremost how critical it is to meet a child’s social and emotional needs by providing an environment that is consistently predictable, respectful and sensitive of feelings.  It should be emotionally safe and supportive, one that nurtures positive social relationships, and one that employs positive guidance strategies to address challenging behaviors. This classroom cultivates a sense of belonging to a community of learners whose efforts are validated and accomplishments celebrated.  While learning content area and skills is important, they are predicated upon the child’s ability to manage his own behavior.  They more effectively learned and sustained when social and emotional skills are nurtured first.