In my life, I have always felt that I was exceptional at communicating with others. I found it very easy to understand what people were trying to convey and express while also being able to share my thoughts with them in a clear and concise manner. This led to me having a lot of success in building relationships with people at work and in my social life; but what about with children? It never occurred to me that I would need to take a completely different approach with children and I had to learn those skills quickly when I was asked to step up as the head coach for my son’s youth football team. Although it was challenging, coaching youth football afforded me the opportunity to learn how to communicate with children more effectively. Initially, I tried to communicate with the children in the same manner that I do with everyone else, but I quickly learned how inefficient that approach was. The first lesson I learned was to explain every detail to the players, rather than assume they had a base knowledge of the subject. On our team, we had players with a wide variety of experience in playing football: players in their first year of playing to players that had been playing for as many as four years. In my first couple of practices not all of the kids understood what I was saying to them and what they needed to do to meet my expectations. I would say things like “hit the hole” and “secure the ball” without explaining what that meant. Only the kids with prior experience playing
When I am communicating with children/young people I need to ensure that I am always clear and to the point and that I am using a style and method of communication that is appropriate to their age, needs and abilities. This would involve me using words and phrases that children will understand, making use of facial gestures and body language, actively listening to them, making sure my responses remain positive when the children express their own views and feelings; and checking points to re-inforce their understanding and knowledge. I need to make sure I am speaking clearly and slowly so that the child understands what I am trying to say and that everyone gets a turn to speak about what they want to say. I also have to listen to the child/young person, make eye contact with them and use active listening so that they know that I am giving them my full attention. I need to ensure that I am approachable and that I get down to the child’s level as it can be intimidating if someone is towering over them. I need to smile and react in a positive way to what they are
Effective communication is important in developing positive relationships with children, young people and adults alike. It is the central key to establishing and maintaining such positive relationships. It means listening, questioning, understanding and responding to match each individual’s stage of development, their age, personal circumstances and their needs. It is important for the communication to be on the same level as the person you are speaking to so that neither person seems to have more power than the other. Good communication is not just about listening and speaking, it is also about watching and feeling. Excellent communication builds trust in relationships with all.
Adapting communication based on your audience is very important to ensure that your message is fully understood. Therefore, you must change how you communicate with different people and in different situations.
Communications with children or a young person will be different depending on their age, you would not speak to a 4 year old in the same way as say an 11 year old, for example. You need to adjust your choice of words and expressions so a young child child can understand what is being said to them. Younger children who have just started school or children who are new to the school will most probably need lots more reassurance so we must ensure we are always approachable and aware of these children to help them settle happily in to their new environment. It may be that they wish to hold our hand at playtime or stay close to feel secure in their new environment but these small exchanges will hopefully encourage a trusting relationship between
The ability to effectively communicate with a wide range of people is a vital factor in working towards building relationships that may flourish and enable the gaining of confidence and trust. For example in working with some young children who may have difficulty expressing themselves, an array of emotions could be displayed,
Effective communication is important in developing positive relationships with children and young adults because it helps the child to be able to communicate effectively with other people as they grow. Children react better to clear, concise communication and this in turn will help to build better relationships between child and adult and enable trust to grow, which is one of the key elements in building a relationship. It is also important to listen to the child and let them say what they want to say. Do not try to pre-empt or interrupt them. Try to keep your language and explanation simple and to the point. Make them feel that what
Unit 3.3.1 – How communication with children and young people differs across different age ranges and stages of development
As child practitioners we must work on our skills in communicating with children because the way we communicate with them is important not only for their communication and language development, but also the development of our relationship with them. Young children often aren't able to express their thoughts and feelings in words, or express them poorly. Because of this, it's important that child practitioners can listen carefully and help children to learn how to express themselves and also provide what they need.
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
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
There are two ways of communicating with children and young people , conventional and body languages , communication may be formal (adult-led activity) or informal (playtime or social situations). In order to communicate appropriately with any child or young people I need to show that I understand them. Using my body language; eye contact to make sure that I am at their level, try not to invade their space, avoid
When communicating with children, it is important to talk at their level while maintaining eye contact and use positive body language. We must give them time to understand and absorb what is being said to them. This will make the children feel respected and develop trust and thus they will feel confident to communicate with us. The child’s learning and development will benefit if the adults in their life can communicate effectively about them.
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.
Communication is extremely important in the workplace as it is essential that you develop good communications with everyone. This will then ensure that you develop a strong positive relationship, work well together and be able to share and gain information with each other. This will mean you can all work together to meet the needs of the children, young people and adults in the setting. If you do not have good relationships then it may cause bad feeling and a divide between colleagues. It may be the case that you will all not work well together or be able to share information then the parents and children may suffer. It is important to have good communication with the children in the setting as this ensures you have a good relationship with them which will help them feel more comfortable with us, which will help them settle in or provide reassurance during transitions in their lives as well as supporting them in their play and learning. It is also important that we remember that we are a role model to children and what behaviour we expect of them must be remembered by ourselves. Failing to do so will cause problems for children to understand the boundaries of what is acceptable. If parents see that you have a good relationship with the children it will help them feel more relaxed and helps them to trust us to care for their children.
Good communication is very important when working with children, young people, their families and carers. By being able to communicate effectively I am making sure that I am understood and understanding too. People, especially children respond well to positive communication, and by being able to communicate effectively with children I