Module 2Developing relationships with
children
Module overview
In the first Module you were introduced to the legislation and
framework that underpin your practices as an Early Childhood
Educator (ECE). In this module we will begin unpacking further the
EYLF (AGDE, 2022) Practices and Principles and NQS Quality Areas
(QA) (ACECQA, 2020) to expand awareness of how these help us
plan our curriculum for children. We will look at the critical
importance of establishing genuine relationships with children;
being responsive to children; and begin to understand how
educators must ensure programs respect diversity, and value the
cultural and social contexts of children and their families. The aim
for this module is to assist educators in understanding why it is
important to establish these foundational realtionships.
Module purpose
By the end of this Module you will be able to:
Describe the importance of developing relationships with and
being responsive to children.
Identify the impact of positive interactions on the brain and
emotions of young children.
Show respect for and value diversity, in children and families
cultural and social contexts.
Explain the need to incorporate social and cultural competence
when working with children and families.
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Introduction
Welcome to Module 2! The relationships with individuals around us
in an early childhood setting, are foundational for children's learning
and development. These relationships are between children and
children, children and their families, children and staff, staff and
families, and the service and its community. The National Quality
Standards (NQS) (ACECQA, 2020) QA 5 specifically
covers Relationships with children. The Early Years Learning
Framework (EYLF) (AGDE, 2022) highlights the view that children's
lives are characterised by belonging, being and becoming with a
number of Practice and Principles referring to building relationships.
From before birth children are connected to family, community,
culture and place. Their earliest development and learning takes
place through these relationships, particularly within families, who
are children’s first and most influential educators. It is therefore
imperative EC educators as one of the first non-family adults in
children's lives are adept at establishing and maintaining quality
relationships with those around them.
Readings
Boyd, W., Green, N. & Jovanovic, J. (2021). Chapter 7: Fostering
meaningful and respectful relationships with children. Learning and
Teaching in early childhood: Pedagogies of inquiry and
relationships. Cambridge University Press.
This reading is available via the MyReadings tab.
Early Childhood Australia Code of Ethics 2016 ECA-COE-Brochure-
[Link] this document with ReadSpeaker docReader
Additional readings:
We will be referring to the NQS site which refers to QA 5 Relations
with children. This link has the Elements and details, as well as a tab
displaying a number of quality Resources for this topic.
Watch the short video
Watch these short but valuable video that introduce this topic:
See Disclaimer below regarding the H5P Note taking tool.
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NQS QA 5: Relationships with children
The importance of Relationships with children is covered in the
National Quality Standards (NQS) Quality Area 5 (ACECQA, 2018).
Standard 5.1 Relationships between educators and children:
Respectful and equitable relationships are maintained with
each child
Element 5.1.1 Positive educator to child interactions: Responsive
and meaningful interactions build trusting relationships which
engage and support each child to feel secure, confident and
included.
Element 5.1.2 Dignity and rights of the child: The dignity and rights
of every child are maintained.
Standard 5.2 Relationships between children: Each child is
supported to build and maintain sensitive and responsive
relationships
Element 5.2.1 Collaborative learning: Children are supported to
collaborate, learn from and help each other.
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Element 5.2.2 Self-regulation: Each child is supported to regulate
their own behaviour, respond appropriately to the behaviour of
others and communicate effectively to resolve conflicts.
In practice these are the core roles that underpin everything
educators do and say. Positive interactions show the child you are
there to listen and assist them in whatever way they need.
Respecting their dignity and rights means we allow the child to
make decisions, choices and we are mindful of our actions and
language. Collaborative learning creates a parnership, where
educators encourage learning through the experiences and interest
of children as they build friendships and social connections. Moving
into a group situation can often be testing for childrens self-
regulation as they learn to interact, compromise and solve complex
relationship dilemmas every day.
Image sources: [Link]
Building brain connections
We know that the early years of life matter because the interactive
influences of both early experience and gene expression affect the
architecture of the maturing brain. Brain circuits stabilise with age
making them increasingly more difficult to alter (Shonkoff & Phillips,
2000). Relationships are the active ingredients of early experiences
(Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000) and therefore, the relationships we have
with children influences the architecture of their brains.
Investigate the hotspot image below.
Source: [Link]
All children are born wired for feelings and ready to learn - babies
respond to attention; we know from our understanding of perceptual
development that infants are learning through their sense about the
world around them. Early environments matter and responsive
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relationships are essential. Current research supports that the early
childhod years are critical to long term behaviours and benefits to
society (Garcia et al., 2017).
Society is changing and the needs of younger children need to be
addressed. When young children are in care then high quality
primary care needs, learning and development need to be met by
educators who are able to form close responsive relationships.
Parents are often uneasy about leaving their child in the care of
educators when their child does not settle well and this is an anxious
time for all involved. This leads us into a discussion on how children
develop attachments and the importance of educators building solid
attachment with children in their settings.
Watch these brain development
videos
While watching these two video's reflect on the questions below:
Here is another useful resource if you are interested: 5 steps for
brain building serve and return
Optional Reading
The following article is for extension reading only if you choose, and
shows the development of Attachment theory and more current
thinking around research into this topic.
Critendon, P. (2017). Gifts from Mary Ainsworth and John
Bowlby. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, Vol. 22(3) 436–
442.
Respecting cultural perspectives, the
EYLF
There are many ways of living, being and of knowing. Children are
born belonging to a culture, which is not only influenced by
traditional practices, heritage and ancestral knowledge, but also by
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the experiences, values and beliefs of individual families and
communities. Respecting diversity means within the curriculum
valuing and reflecting the practices, values and beliefs of families.
Educators honour the histories, cultures, languages, traditions, child
rearing practices and lifestyle choices of families. They value
children’s different capacities and abilities and respect differences in
families’ home lives.
Educators recognise that diversity contributes to the richness of our
society and provides a valid evidence base about ways of knowing.
For Australia it also includes promoting greater understanding of
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander ways of knowing and being.
When early childhood educators respect the diversity of families and
communities, and the aspirations they hold for children, they are
able to foster children’s motivation to learn and reinforce their sense
of themselves as competent learners. They make curriculum
decisions that uphold all children’s rights to have their cultures,
identities, abilities and strengths acknowledged and valued, and
respond to the complexity of children’s and families’ lives.
Educators think critically about opportunities and dilemmas that can
arise from diversity and take action to redress unfairness. They
provide opportunities to learn about similarities and difference and
about interdependence and how we can learn to live together
(ADGE, 2022).
Respect each child and familiy as every family is unique, no two
families will have the same history, cultural mix, values or beliefs.
When you reflec on this fact, it highlights that it is imperative you
become familiar with each child's family. On enrolment, core
information will be gathered on the family. However this is simply
one layer, and as the educator you are responsible for delving much
deeper to find familial practices, beliefs and wishes to ensure your
environment refelcts and supports the child's needs and interests.
Practices must not be as 'token' events or trivialised practices;
educators show true respect for culture by involving families in
decisions to ensure their wishes are truly reflected. In Australia this
is especially important when honouring Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander ways of knowing and being.
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Quality relationships in early
childhood
There are so many quality interactions in this video, watch, listen
and reflect. We will discuss our relfection in the tutorial.
Summary
This module has introduced a wide variety of topics that help
educators understand the importance of building respectful, quality
relationships with children. Areas such as brain development and
attachment theory show why it is critical for children at this age to
feel secure in their relationships. Breaking down the NQS and EYLF
Practice and Principles explains the importance of this focus under
educators EC legislative requirements. Looking at practices through
the eyes of EC services has provided a view of what these
relationships look like in practice. When working in EC, it is the
relationships we form with children that are the basis for why we
become educators, and this introduction has aimed at deepening
knowledge around forming these bonds. The next module will look
at how we can partner with families to provide cultural awareness
for our interactions and planning learning experiences.
References
Arthur, L., Beecher, B., Death, E., Dockett, S., & Farmer, S.
(2018). Programming and planning in early childhood settings (7th
ed.). Cengage.
Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority [ACECQA]
(2018). National Quality Standards.
[Link]
Australian Children's Education and Care Quality Authority
[ACECQA]. (2022). Starting Blocks video.
[Link]
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Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority (ACARA).
(2022). Australian
Curriculum. [Link]
Australian Government Department of Education. (2022). Belonging,
being and becoming: Early Years Learning Framework for
Australia. Commonwealth of Australia.
Australian Institute of Teaching and School Leadership.
(2022). Respecting local culture, history and language.
[Link]
Boyd, W., Green, N. & Jovanovic, J. (2021). Learning and Teaching in
early childhood: Pedagogies of inquiry and relationships. Cambridge
University Press.
Centre on the Developing Child, (2011). Experiences build brain
architecture. [Link]
Centre on the Developing Child, (2022). 5 Steps for brain-building
serve and return. [Link]
steps-for-brain-building-serve-and-return/
Coppola, M. (2013). Secure, insecure, avoidant ambivalent
attachment in mothers babies. [Link]
Critendon, P. (2017). Gifts from Mary Ainsworth and John
Bowlby. Clinical Child Psychology and Psychiatry, Vol. 22(3) 436–
442.
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
[DEEWR]. (2010). Educators Guide to the Early Years Learning
Framework of Australia. Commonwealth of Australia.
Garcia, J. Heckman, J., Leaf, D. & Prados, M. (2017). Quantifying the
life-cycle benefits of a prototypical early childhood program.
National Bureau of Economic Research, Massachusetts.
Kretzmann, J. (2013). Child development core story, Part 1: Brain
architecture. [Link]
Pantonwas, E. (2017). Case study: Adult interactions Carterhatch
Infants School. Quality Interactions Early
Years. [Link]
Shonkoff, J. P., Phillips, D. A. (Eds.). (2000). From neurons to
neighborhoods: The science of early childhood
development. National Academies Press.
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