Develop Positive Relationships with Children, Young People and Others Involved in their Care Essay

1. Explain why positive relationships with children and young people are important and how these are built and maintained Positive relationships with children are paramount as a child enjoys being with you and feels valued will respond better. They are more likely to enjoy both playing and learning and in turn are more likely to show signs of positive behaviour. Building a positive relationship with children begins with considering their own individual needs and adapting the way in which you work to meet them as effectively as possible. Each child should feel valued, nurtured and acknowledged although as a practitioner the way you go about this will vary according to each child’s personality and age. With babies for example, physical contact is important, while with slightly older children talking and playing, especially on a one-to-one basis with a key-worker, is a solid building block. Getting the parents involved from the very beginning with several visits so that the child can familiarize themselves with both the practitioner and the setting is key. Consistency is important. The child needs to be confident that they way in which you respond to them and their needs is consistent. Having a key-worker who is only there (whether literally or metaphorically) only half of the time is not going to inspire confidence in the child which in turn is going to affect their relationship with you. Observing, listening and responding to and respecting a child’s needs at whatever age is key; understanding that every child is an individual and will respond to different approaches needs to be considered at all times. 2. Demonstrate how to listen to and build relationships with children and young people 3. Evaluate own effectiveness in building relationships with children or young people. While there is always room for improvement, I feel that personally one of my biggest strengths is my relationship with the children in my care, in particular my key children. Feedback from parents has brought to mine and my colleagues attention that I have built up fantastic relationships. My children are happy to be dropped off on a morning and parents have informed me that their children regularly talk about me at home. By spending time with the children in groups and  individually I have learnt what each child needs and responds to. We have a mutual respect for one another and by going out of my way to settle the children when they initially started in the room laid down the foundations for building strong bonds which have lasted even after they have moved on upstairs. Outcome 2 Be able to build positive relationships with people involved in the care of children and young people The learner ca n: 1. Explain why positive relationships with people involved in the care of children and young people are important Because you are working together with the same goals in order to help the child, having a positive relationship with others you are working with is important. Your everyday colleagues and yourself should have strong working relationship as children are very intuitional and can pick up any tensions around them, effecting their behaviour and development. Working as a team to provide all the children in your care is an absolute must and it makes everything a lot easier for everyone (adult or child) if all involved have a strong relationship. If you and your colleagues have poor relationships, communication begins to break down and you may be working towards different outcomes which are both confusing and unproductive. It is equally important that any outside agencies involved in the care of a child, such as a Speech, Language and Communication Officer, is able to build up a good working relationship with yourself. Knowing the child best you need to be able to pass on any observations an d personal judgements to be able to give the agencies an idea of what needs to be done. You will be helping one another to work with the child the achieve their full potential and if not reading from the same hymn sheet so to say, you will be hindering as opposed to helping, holding the child back at best. Carers and parents are probably the most important people to build a relationship with, second only to the child themselves. A good relationship means that you can pass on information effectively. They are able to inform you of how the child has been outside of the setting; they can pass on any wishes, such as when to begin potty training, knowing that you will be working with them to achieve the goal; they are, most importantly, comfortable leaving their child in your care on a regular basis.