Childhood Essay

Be able to develop positive relationships with children and young people Explain why positive relationships with children and young people are important and how these are built and maintained. Positive relationships with children and young people are important for the child so that they can learn and develop to their full ability. If a child feels comfortable with you they would be more inclined to leave their parents in the morning easier. This makes the parent feel happier – leaving their child with someone their child enjoys being – and makes them feel less guilty about going to work. This also then means they can start to play and interact with other children. Through playing and exploring and socialising the child or young person will then start to participate in more and more activities. A good relationship with the child means you make them feel safe and secure and if the child has positive emotions it is more likely they will stay healthier and not get run down or ill. A positive relationship is also important because it is then less likely that the child will act out and behave negatively. They are less likely to act out and behave negatively if the child has a positive bond with you because you will know them well enough to cater for their wants, wishes and individual needs, therefore they will not feel frustrated or alone and will not need to act out to relieve stress or anger or to gain attention. A positive relationship is important as it helps a child develop confidence at a quicker rate and develop their language and communication skills quicker too. If a child feels comfortable with you they will start to talk to you more, providing you with the opportunity to assess where the child is at developmentally with their speech, language, knowledge and other aspects, and also find out about their personal interests. You can then set activities to help the child to further develop based on what they can already do and ensure the activity will fun for them by incorporating their interests into the activity. This means they can start to develop quicker and with the help of someone they have a positive relationship with. Having a positive relationship with a child will mean you know them well, their personality, their emotions, the little things. Therefor you can easily pick up on a difference in body language to know if there is something wrong, and also you begin to know what facial expression means what and so can address any issues quicker. Also with a positive relationship the child will feel like they can come to you and this is important so that they do not keep anything inside and instead share and resolve the issue so they feel calm again and happiness is essential in childhood. A positive relationship is built through trust. It’s the little things you do that helps you build up a positive relationship with the child. For example: – Giving them praise for doing something good – Giving them a cuddle when they need it – Helping and supporting them through the daily routine – Keeping them safe and feeling secure – having a positive relationship with their parents. All of these are ways to build and maintain a relationship with the child or young person and their career. Children and young people like consistency and stability, they like what they know and as long as you can be or are there for them consistently, and are positive towards them they will begin to form a bond with you. Evaluate own effectiveness in building relationships with children or young people When settling a new child into my room there are a few things I do to make them feel comfortable and hopefully build a positive relationship with them. Firstly, when a child or young person enters the room I always make sure I greet them, making eye contact, saying hello and smiling. I make sure I get down to their level and offer to give them a hug. I try to make the environment they walk into a positive one so they do not feel threatened or intimidated but more welcomed and wanted. I think this is effective as it is becomes a routine they can get used to – seeing me when they walk through the door – and will then instinctively start to say hello back and accept your offer of a hug. I also ensure I am always happy and have a chat with their parent or guardian. I think if the parent and you have a positive relationship the child will pick up on this and start react that way too. I think it’s an effective method to use as they do not see you as ‘the person that takes them away from their parent or guardian’ but instead sees you as a friend of theirs and their parent/guardian. I also find another very effective way to build a positive relationship with a child or young person is to constantly encourage them. Giving them a variety of toys and saying ‘oh what’s this? Would you like to play in the sand? ’ ect. This promotes to them you are fun and want to play with them. Children usually like someone to play with however this is not always effective if the child’s individual preference is to be left alone. In which case it is better to build the relationship by giving them their space, but making sure you are there for them when they need you for example, they are upset and you give them cuddles and/or words of reassurance. We recently had a little girl start and every day she will sit at the breakfast table. For a couple of weeks now I have been smiling at her and asking if she wants to come play. In the past she hasn’t, but by not being too pushy and letting her settle in at her own pace, she has started to smile back and will sometimes gain the confidence to come and join me in playing in the sand for example. Therefore, patience, understanding but persevering too is an effective way to build a relationship with the child, letting them have their own time to get used to you, trust you and like you. A method I use to build a relationship with a child is to just always be in the room paying and having fun. If a new child see’s you having fun playing and the children you are with doing so too they will normally begin to do so to. I think this is effective because the ‘fun factor’ is something I have found no child can resist. Also the fact that you are always there they can get used to you quicker the more you are available to them. If you ask the children or young people questions I find they begin to come out of themselves more, however there is the potential of a language barrier and so the effectiveness of asking question is non-existent. In this case it is effective to learn some of the child’s key words in their language and communication is an effective way of building a bond with a child. If you are seen to be trying the child will recognise this and begin to try to. I have in the past learnt key words in another language and began to say it in their language and then English, this has been effective as they have wanted to learn and hey used to come ad sit with me a lot just practicing these few English words. However, I only found this effective once the child had settled into the setting and was used to being there.