I feel as though I have established and maintained very positive relationships with the children at my centre. From my past experiences with children, I knew that they prefer friendly adults who smile and seem interested in them. So right from the first day in the centre I made an effort to be welcoming and whenever I would talk to the children I would get down to their level so we were equals instead of me overpowering them. When I first introduced myself to the children, I said "Hi I'm Rebekah, can I watch you play your game/activity?" and if they accepted I would sit and watch or if not I would move to the next group of children. If the children said they wanted me to sit with them, I would watch them play for awhile and eventually ask them little questions about what they were doing, leading up to introducing myself again and asking for their names. I found this to be a very effective strategy because I did not just intrude on the children's game, I asked and they let me in. The children would also ask me questions and this helped the initial building of our relationships. To maintain my relationships with children I always make an effort to be enthusiastic and take special time to understand the interests of each child. This is very important in maintaining successful relationships because I can provide activities and observations that I know the children will really enjoy and they get a sense of belonging because I know what matters most to them.
THINK
I believe that I have been very successful in establishing and maintaining relationships with the children at my centre. I can say this because whenever I am at the centre, the children are happy to see me and are enthusiastic about trying the activities I put out for them. Because I know that the children trust me and like me being a part of their centre, it has given me a sense of belonging because they are welcoming me into what is essentially their territory. The children open up to me and I know that if they didn't do that, I would not feel very comfortable in my centre because no one would trust me. I have learnt so much from the children, and in relation to relationships, I have learnt that children are very kind and trusting human beings. They do not judge you and they make relationships so exciting and loving. With children you can definately form close relationships in a short space of time.
CHANGE
I would not change any of the above strategies when establishing and maintaining relationships with children in the future, because I believe they were successful. However, in Te Whariki it states "There should be plenty of opportunities for one-to-one communication between adults and children". (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.73) Most of my strategies for establishing relationships occur in a group setting, so in future, I may try introducing myself to children individually. This could be beneficial because I would get to learn more about one child at a time, and so they will feel appreciated because I am taking the time to get to know them on closer terms.
Ministry of Education (1996). Te Whāriki: He Whāriki Mātauranga mō ngā Mokopuna o Aotearoa: Early Childhood Curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
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