3. Identify five strategies that you as an educator would use to develop relationships with babies/toddlers and their families and briefly explain why they are important. As part of your response include how an educator would:
• Offer relaxed physical contact
• Respond positively to exploratory behaviour
• Use comfort items from home in the care of babies and toddlers.
Relationships with families and children are very important to ensure that we can meet the needs of individual children and their families. Quality care means we strive to become part of a partnerships with families with our shared goal being the growth and development of their child.
Some methods I would use are to offer positive comments to a child (getting down to their level, hand on shoulder) ie “Sally, I love your sandcastle, look how high it is”
Offer favourite activities that a parent has mentioned a child enjoys from home, this might include bringing something. Ie Lisa loves to lie holding her favourite doll at rest time.
Offer contact at times of distress – “I can see you are upset Lisa, would you like a hug”
Give children a chance to extend themselves during playtime. Ie. A crawling child might enjoy being able to crawl to see the interesting items placed a little further than they normally crawl too.
Offer opportunities for children to have a voice “What do you think we could put in the sandpit”
Offer opportunities for children to offer feedback “What did you enjoy the most today”
4. Outline and reflect on the methods you could use to develop relationships with babies and toddlers.
Be available – This means being available to the child or parent ie. Being able to offer a hug a drop off, offering to call parent a little later to offer how their child is going.
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