Transcript: Social skills are really important. Because at the end of the day, and what most parents don't realize, is that social skills is where we see children developing the necessary cognitive skills to be academically successful. A lot of parents get very focused on letters, the numbers and colors, and making sure that their children have the tools to succeed in school. But the reality is, they also need to know how to socialize and navigate their friendships. When we teach children social skills, what we're really doing is strengthening the executive functioning skills that children need to be academically successful.

Things like focused attention, which we see through long term imaginative play. We see underlying memory skills being practiced when kids are in role plays, and acting out something. They have to remember to stay in character. We also see them learning skills like planning and strategy. And these skills really are what make children successful, both socially and academically. So, even though you might be focused on how well your kid is doing in school, which is really important; you don't want to forget how important the friendship piece is.