Title:
Founder & President
Organization:
Beginnings School
Biography
Dr. Donna Housman is the Founder and President of Beginnings School in Weston, MA. She is a licensed psychologist for children and adults with a private practice in Wellesley Hills. She holds a Doctorate in Psychology from Boston University and is Assistant Clinical Professor at the B.U. School of Medicine. She is a leading expert in the early education community and provides research, consulting, training, and keynote talks on emotional intelligence, bullying, and developmental issues for parents and educators.
For over 25 years, Beginnings School of Weston has been introducing Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) to the developmental process of social and emotional intelligence within the first 5 years of life, enabling children to develop and communicate the emotional competencies necessary in recognizing, understanding, constructively expressing and managing their own emotions and those of others. The age group that Beginnings School works with coincides with the period that neuroscience describes as “neuroplasticity”: the period when the brain is most malleable to the day-to-day experiences both at home and at school. Learning experiences during this critical phase of development actually impact and shape the brain’s circuitry and set the stage for all further, life-long development.
Helping children to develop a strong sense of self and of others is fundamental for life success. These emotional competencies are essential skills that promote an understanding of others and the world around them through empathy, sensitivity, and enable them to connect in compassionate, respectful ways.
