“Criss-Cross Applesauce”

Abstract

This chapter analyzes how the discourse of emotional intelligence intersects with national curriculum efforts such as No Child Left Behind and Common Core, as well as how these discourses play out in an actual kindergarten classroom. Emotional management dovetails with physical regulation to teach young children how to manage themselves for their own success; the chapter shows how this involves the expression rather than suppression of emotions and thus intersects with neoliberal notions of self-management. This chapter lays the groundwork for the later argument about educational media, showing how kids’ television programming prepares kids for a successful school experience.