How To Ensure Positive Relationships In A School Setting

Children are social learners and it is crucial that all adults working with them need to model good communication through listening and speaking which will aid the development of the child’s friendships, confidence and self-esteem.

For us as educators this is key to see where children are at. In the early stages of childhood 0-12 months it can be seen from imitation of parents or us as educators as they are grasping the basic tones. We will try and correct children as well who use words that are slurred or incorrectly to help them be able to develop correctly. A child not being able to understand at such a young age even slightly may show signs of deafness or something else with their development. As we progress further into age groups we as educators try and use language more with children, getting them to perfect basic words they are using as well as introducing new words into their vocabulary and environment to give them a broad range of what can be said. As they enter

People communicate for different reasons, to portray their feelings, emotions, pain, opinions, etc. To work with children and young people, communication plays a very important part to make sure that the best provision is created for all. There are many different reasons why people communicate. People communicate to share information and express a need. They communicate to learn new things and develop learning. People also communicate to discuss a situation, negotiate or make a point.

As quoted, (Children and young peoples workforce, early and child care book 2010) there are a number of reasons why people communicate which are to:

Every child needs communication to help promote their learning and development. Every child needs a good listener and eye contact when talking.

Effective communication with children is important to make sure that they understand the language of learning so that they can grasp concepts and ideas, actively take part in problem solving and successfully develop their own ideas and opinions. It is important for children to be able to feel welcome in the classroom environment and valued within the school. Encouraging children to ask questions, give their own answers and contribute to class activities will help to develop a positive working relationship with the children. It is

When communicating with children, a number of skills need to be demonstrated to communicate effectively. Children learn to communicate through the responses of others, if they feel they have not had there contributions valued they are less likely to initiate communication themselves appropriate responses reinforce the child’s self-esteem, values this is important in building relationships initiating conversations and finding out the answers to questions builds on the language skills that are integral to child’s learning. In the setting working with children with

It helps to build a positive relationship with those that are within your team, as well as showing that there is support for one another within the structure. When there is team work, responsibilities and tasks are shared and are completed more effectively and also in a good time scale. Each member or person has their own skill and or expertise, communicating with them helps you to learn, build up your own knowledge and know your own responsibilities. Communication is an invaluable tool in team work; you can ask for advice or even give advice about certain subjects or topics, as well as sharing ideas on them too. When it comes to the pupils, communicating between each other is important as you will share information on the chid such as the child’s welfare, medical information or even their progress within the classroom. When adults are working effectively together and are working as part of a team, the children will see them as role models and will follow, copy and mimic what they see. Not only using it in and around school, but also when they are at home. To a parent this shows that the school are setting a good example to its pupils, which in turn will give the school respectively high standards and a great reputation.

When working within a school environment you have to have effective communication and also show you have strong communication skills to convey to the other people within the environment that you are approachable. You need to make sure all the individuals feel valued and secure. However you also need to set clear ground rules for effective communication and this will develop a mutually effective relationship. The best forms of communication are as follows:

It is important to adapt communication to include all children. In my class the children are always greeted with a smile, good morning and how are you today. Some of the children have news to tell you. I get down to their level and have eye contact and listen to what they have to say. I always show interest in what they are saying as it boosts their confidence and shows that you care. When talking to the children I use

If you had a child in the nursery who had English as a second language, and knew few words, verbally communicating with this child wouldn’t be the first thing you would do. There are loads of different ways to do this for example; using picture cars with words, not only will this technique help communicate but also help build the childs English vocabulary. Another being demonstrating, for example; in an activity, lets say gluing and sticking, show the child what to do by demonstrating the activity for them to then copy your actions.

Effective communication, and respectful relationships are vital when talking with children, young people, and adults as they both allow accurate gathering of information and feelings and the subsequent passing along of any issues that may need to be followed up on.

From this case study we understand it is important to act quickly to support children who have speech and language or communication needs, as language is crucial to learning and enables one to express thoughts in an organised way. Children with language delay may also find it harder to communicate and form relationships with others. They may become frustrated, leading to possible behaviour problems. Very young children in particular do not have the experience to recognise the reason for their

The main form of communication in society is spoken language, supported and enhanced by the delivery of gestures, facial expressions, body posture and movement (Fellowes & Oakley, 2014, pp. 18-19). To be able to understand language a child will first need to understand speech. Both expressive and receptive oral language are important for communication skills needed throughout a child’s schooling (2014, p. 19). Children learn to copy and produce meaningful speech gradually and decode language used by people around them (2014, p. 20).

There are so many dimensions to relationships in the school environment. Once a child develops the skill of empathy, they then need to channel that into positive relationships with other students, with teachers, with administrators, with parents and finally with themselves. Trust is an essential component of healthy relationships, as it allows students to see where they can improve without becoming self-critical or defensive (Lynch, 2016). Trust fosters smooth and productive relationships with teachers and with peers. Emotional elements are the driving forces behind so much of the modern educational environment, and the role of relationships should be considered when creating policies, process and procedures within the school environment. Relationship building enables schools to boost their performance and is essential to making schools work.