1. 1. The different reasons why people communicate in a child care setting are;
Communication is fundamental to all human beings.
Talk is the major vehicle of communication.
Communication is a tool with which influence can be exercised on others. Communication can be used to bring out changes in attitudes, motivate people and establish and maintain relationships. Communication is vital for seeking and providing information. We communicate to express our emotions like courage or fear, joy or sorrow, satisfaction or disappointment with appropriate gestures and words. Communication is crucial for developing positive relationships with children, young people and their families, colleagues and other professionals. Communication allows ideas to be conveyed clearly and succinctly. It is a process by which two or more people exchange ideas, facts, feelings or impressions in ways that each gains a common understanding of the message.
People communicate for different reasons; these reasons vary and are as follows; * To maintain and promote good working relationships * To encourage the children to communicate effectively * To share knowledge and information * To ensure that everybody knows where they stand * To get their point across and ensure safety in the work environment * To help people understand how you are feeling and act accordingly * To work together * To prevent errors * Express your wants and needs * To help build and maintain trust * To negotiate and liaise with others 1. 2
Without communication the world would be a lonely place and communication is particularly important in the work setting as it can affect the relationships you build. Team communication is important as it is important to keep everyone in the group knowledgeable about what is going on within that group. As I would be communicating with parents, colleagues, children and other professionals (i. e. health visitors, speech and language therapists, social workers, other schools, Police and other governing bodies) it is important that everybody is provided the information they need. Communication is vital to establishing effective relationships in the work setting.
It would allow you to expect support from your colleagues and to provide them with the necessary support in times of stress and difficulty. In my role I provide daily opportunities for children to share stories, songs and rhymes. Provide a range of methods of communication for children to explore. Provide a range of books, which are accessible to all children. I ensure sharing books with children is fun and is enjoyable. I provide a range of mark making materials for young children.
2. 1Effective communication affects all aspects of my own work in the following way;
Effective communication is a two-way process – sending the right message, that is also being correctly received and understood by the other person/s. It is essential that there is good and effective communication taking place within the setting. Daily tasks will only be successful with smooth transfers of information. In order for me to develop within my role, there must be effective communication between the manager , key workers and myself. This will help keep positive morale and improve the quality of work.
Staff that do not feel as if they have good communication with their managers may not be as efficient with their work. Effective communication skills are also needed to encourage staff and myself to talk about what we are feeling, to say what we think or to express our needs, concerns, wishes or preferences. Positive verbal and non-verbal communication skills, such as being friendly, smiling and shaking hands when greeting parents and staff, are required on a daily basis to show that I care and am there to support the children.
There are various reasons for communicating in a childcare settings but it all leads to the same reasons to keep the child’s welfare paramount and to have a pleasant working environment for everyone. Sharing ideas and thoughts are part of our creativity in being individuals, getting feedback from our colleagues as well as children enables us to have a broader and open mind to improving our learning environment as a whole; it is also a great way of implementing new strategies that are appropriate into the setting, keeping learning fresh for the children this is one of the main ECM (Every Child Matters) aims which is making a positive contribution it’s vital they feel their voice is heard.
For e. g. if a young person gives you feedback on how their work should be set out in their usual classroom, it’s good to take this into consideration as you are allowing the child to enjoy and achieve in an environment they are proud and comfortable to sit on. Building and maintaining relationships are another reason why people communicate; parent, child/young person and practitioner is such a strong circle it’s very important that they all have a good relationship and are able to maintain that healthy relationship in between themselves. In a Childcare Setting children frequently start at different periods of the academic year, it’s extremely nerve racking to do this as you do not know anybody the practitioner is usually the first person they communicate with; greeting them with a smile makes it more welcoming and develops a nice relationship.
When working with children, adults and/or young people communication is the most important thing to building a positive relationship.
As a practitioner I communicate with parents/carers on a regular basis to share information about the child’s interests, enthusiasm and developmental stage to ensure a consistent, sensitive and responsive learning experience for the child.
I communicate with children by communicating clearly using the appropriate language, I vary my tone of voice and facial expressions. I have a positive friendly approach when communicating. I sing , play games and read stories and play rhyming and word play. I listen , respond and encourage babies and young children’s attempts to communicate. I am aware of the different needs of young children in our care. I provide developmentally appropriate activities that match the different levels of children’s interests.
