5 simple things that might help your kid in school, and life | By: Committee for Children Singing together. Telling stories. Playing together. Reading and eating meals together. If you do these things with any regularity with your children, they'll be more likely to fare better in school. They might even fare better in life. A recent study, published in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics, focused on how the social- emotional health of children is effected by family environment. Social -emotional health (SEH) is characterized by an ability to understand emotions, express empathy, demonstrate self regulation, and form positive relationships with peers and adults. Having high social emotional health is associated with better academic performance, easier adaption to the school environment and more positive long-term outcomes. This article first appeared on babycenter.com on March 5, 2014.