Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs CYP Core 3.5 Develop positive relationships with children, young people and others involved in their care

Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs Develop positive relationships with children, young people and others involved in their care 1 credit As a practitioner, it is important that you: are able to develop positive relationships with children and young people. are able to build positive relationships with people involved in the care of children and young people. ( (See video ‘The sensory room’)

Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs The importance of positive relationships with children and young people 1.1 Communicating effectively identifying, and sorting out conflicts and disagreements Showing respect and courtesy Keeping promises and honouring commitments Being consistent and fair Keeping confidentiality Monitoring impact of own behaviour on others Ways of building and maintaining positive relationships

Communicating effectively 1.2 To feel happy and healthy, children and young people want their views listened to, to be valued as individuals, and their views acted upon. Make eye contact (if appropriate) and show that you are listening. Listen carefully to the child or young person’s spoken language. Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

How to communicate with children and young people 1.2 Repeat a child’s words in a correct form or complete sentence. Be a positive role model – speak clearly and use correct grammar and patterns of speech I feeded the cat Oh good, you fed your cat. That was kind of you. (see video ‘Supporting learning through play’) Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

Communicating with children and young people 1.2 Use open-ended questions which require an answer in phrases and/or sentences, rather than a simple ‘yes’ or ‘no’. ‘Tell me about your holiday?’ ‘Did you have a good holiday?’ What open-ended questions could you ask about: a)An activity being carried out? b)A story that has been read? c)Lunchtime food? (see video ‘Imaginative play’) Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

Communicating with children and young people 1.2 Use prompts such as: Oh, I see. Tell me more about that. That’s very Interesting. These invite a child or young person to say more Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

Communicating with children and young people 1.2 Listen attentively Get rid of distractions and pay attention to what the child or young person is saying. Respond sensitively Remember the importance of non-verbal communication. Say ‘Please,’ and ‘Thank you’ to children and young people and they will copy you. (see videos ‘Supporting learning through play’ and ‘Snack time for babies and toddlers’) Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs © Andrew Callaghan, 2010 thantoo

Communicating with children and young people Use appropriate language to help promote self-esteem kind words communicate love and respect. Do not use inappropriate language that puts children and young people down. Always be positive e.g. ‘Please put the toy down gently’ not ‘Don’t bang that toy down’. Do not: ridicule You are behaving like a baby label You are a very naughty girl shame I am so ashamed of you Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

Building and maintaining positive relationships Practitioners will need to:  Be able to identify and resolve conflicts and disagreements.  Be consistent and fair.  Address each child/young person’s needs.  Spend time with all children and young people in their care.  Show respect and courtesy.  Value and respect individuality.  Monitor the impact of their own behaviour on others.  Keep confidentiality as appropriate.  Respond appropriately to the power-base underpinning relationships. Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

Evaluating your own effectiveness 1.3 When evaluating your own effectiveness, you need to apply the principles of reflective practice. This requires a set of skills that the practitioner must use: self-awareness the ability to view situations from different perspectives the ability to critically analyse and to search for alternative explanations the ability to use evidence in supporting or evaluating a decision or position the ability to integrate new knowledge into existing knowledge, while making a judgement on the incident or situation. Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

The importance of positive relationships with other carers and parents 2.1 & 2.2 It is important to recognise that parents/carers and staff have different kinds of relationships with the children/young people in their care. Practitioners need to develop consistent, warm and affectionate relationships with children and young people, especially babies, but they do not seek to replace the parents or carers. Practitioners have knowledge of general child and young person development. Parents know their own child the best. For the partnership between parents, practitioners and child/young person to develop well, each needs to be able to trust and respect the other. Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs

Understanding the views of parents 2.1 & 2.2 It is only by understanding how parents and carers feel that professionals can share effectively what they know and have learned in their own training. This is especially important when working with families from different cultural backgrounds. Through mutual respect, trust can be established. This brings a deep commitment on both sides to working together for the child or young person. Published by Hodder Education, Copyright © 2011 Doreen Tombs