Develop professional relationships with children, young people and adults Essay Example

give you a good idea about the vocabulary of different ages of children. No matter what words you choose to communicate with young children, the most important factor is to talk to them, not at them. They are people with feelings, needs and intellect. Their life experiences are more limited than that of adults but their views are as important as yours. So listening as well as talking is important. Never talk down to a child. He or she may be young, but is not a lower life form.

I have also found that you do not have to dumb down your conversation. You may even insert words that the child doesn't understand with the provision that he or she is welcome to stop you to ask. At the same time, keep the subject relevant to the child's age and interests. For instance, you may tell your child that you work as a scientist but until he is ready to want a deeper explanation, he doesn't need an explanation of the theory of relativity. He needs to know that you study how the world works. Allow the child's questions to guide you to how much information he needs.

2.3 To demonstrate strategies to promote understanding and trust in communication you have to use a personal and professional approach in having consistency of what you do/practice, eye contact, facial expression, body language, listening to children, being welcoming, open, friendly, available, approachable and dependable.

As we build positive relationships with children, we must promote understanding and trust with them in many ways. Where miscommunication can happen with younger children, it can affect their confidence

and this can be difficult to restore. Strategies to promote understanding and trust in communication can include; • Active listening • avoiding assumptions • using questions to clarify and check understanding • summarising and confirming key points

3.1 Rapport is more than finding a way to match and mirror another person in an effort to make a connection. Rapport starts with a first impression and goes deeper to move individuals to the same wavelength. To build rapport, you must come to recognize the uniqueness of a particular individual and strive for harmony in how you relate to one another. When working with other adults, whether this is inside or outside the school environment, you should be able to work in an environment of mutual support and openness. In a school setting you need to be able to work with others as working independently of others will not work, as it is not practical. You will also need to maintain professionalism in a school environment to be able to support other adults in a practical and sensitive way. The support required for other adults is;

* Practical support * Informative support * Professional support * Emotional support Linton mead also tries to support and encourage good lines of communication between all staff, as this is an effective way to promote and maintain positive working relationships.

3.2 As a teaching assistant at Linton Mead I need to be aware of the cultural and social differences when communicating with adults. I have to remember to adapt how I speak to different adults accordingly. At Linton Mead I know we have policies and procedures in place to

help us with barriers of communication that can arise. For example if you have a large group or adults who speak English as an additional language, I would seek advice from senior members of staff to see if anyone could translate for the group of adults to make it easier and clearer for them to understand.

You will also find that some adults will deal with different social events in a different approach to others, when this does happen you need to make sure you listen and take into account all involved and show respect to other people’s views and beliefs. There are many forms and ways you can adapt your communication skills to the context of communication, by the way you communicate depending on the situation in hand, whether this be formal or informal verbal communication but also this could be through; - emails, letters, newsletters, notices, etc… At Linton Mead we have a wide range of ways to communicate with our parents/careers and all information is always accessible to those who want or need it.

3.3 It is vital to build trust and understanding with the adults in and around the school environment as this leads to making a positive relationship. We should try to value others and respect their views. To do this you can;

* Listen to all adults. * Let other adults put their ideas forward. * Encourage discussion. * Address the person/s in question how they like to be addressed (eg, Miss Kotz, Ms Andrews). * Never judge someone, especially if you do not know the whole background of the person or situation. * Use questions

to check your own understanding of what is being said to you. * Nod to show you are listening and taking in what is being said you. * Summarise, by saying key points out loud again when the other adult has finished talking to show and ensure that you yourself are clear on what has or is going to happen. Another major point we all try to remember at Linton Mead is that everyone is entitled to their opinion, and that as individuals you will not always share the same view as others and that you should not expect to always share yours.