Family input is about working together. It allows us to foster a sense of belonging for both the child and the parents. When parents and educators find a way to collaborate it strengthens the child’s identity and enhances their learning.
As educators, we have a meaningful role to play in strengthening the sense of belonging for children and families of diverse backgrounds. At Petit ELJ we believe in working together. We value family input and conversations that encourage effective communication.
By showing a genuine interest in a family’s culture, through ways of communicating and parenting, we promote a sense of security and belonging for the child. Working together with parents also creates smooth transitions between home life and childcare.
There are many different ways in which to encourage collaboration. At Petit ELJ, it begins with the very first contact we have with a parent. A tour of our centre provides families with the opportunity to speak directly with their child’s prospective educators.
Collaboration creates positive relationships, and we do this by:
- Acknowledging and supporting children’s family and culture
- Having conversations
- Sharing information with families in child care
- Inviting and actively listening to family input
- Respecting families’ culture and values
- Developing strategies that nurture partnerships.
Of particular note is our use of Storypark, an online communication app. We use it to share a child’s learning journey with their family. It also aides our educators in the development of a child’s portfolio and provides a way in which parents can give feedback.
How educators acknowledge and support children’s family and culture
Actively listening to families and incorporating their input into an early learning environment is one way an educator can acknowledge and support a child’s family and culture. Working in partnership with families builds trust, creates shared decision making, aims and goals.
Some of the ways that we can build partnerships include:
- Showing a genuine interest that gives a sense of welcome from our first interaction
- Encouraging family involvement by offering a variety of ways for families to interact
- Communicate with families in different ways such as verbal, written and electronic.
Conversations are one of the best ways to communicate with families
Sometimes our parents are too busy to have verbal conversations. They might be on their way to work, a job interview or a university lecture. Storypark is a useful app to download. The apps’ electronic conversations make conversing with busy parents easier.
Storypark ‘Conversations’ are private and secure discussions. We can use them to discuss aspects of our work as educators, but also to seek family input that remains separate from the child’s ‘Story’ or main learning journey.
Steph, Centre Director, Petit Early Learning Journey Kew, explains that Storypark is used extensively for daily communications with parents but also as a means for documenting educational programs, curriculums, assessments and evaluations.
‘It leaves no error for doubt. Everyone sees the same thing, one piece of consistent communication,’ says Steph. ‘We use it for daily writeups and observations, but also to let families know how their kids are going. It’s good for communicating big things that are going on.’
Steph particularly likes Storypark for the opportunity it provides to learn about stories through pictures. ‘When I started in the childcare industry, if something big happened, like a wow moment, we would take a photo, then take it to our director who would email it to the parent.’
‘Now, you take a photo on the iPad and straightaway it’s on Storypark. It’s a really nice way to give parents an instant snapshot.’ Recently, Steph used it record and communicate a successful practice fire drill to parents. Recording the drill also helped to grow the children’s confidence.
Storypark: Conversations from Storypark on Vimeo.
Sharing information with parents in child care
The Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF) discusses partnerships in Quality Area 6 – Collaborative Partnerships with Families and Communities. It stresses the importance of providing supportive relationships to enhance a child’s learning, inclusion and wellbeing.
Sharing information with parents in child care allows us to create smooth transitions between family life and the centre. At Petit ELJ, we value working together with families. It allows us to share information that provides each child with individual attention and care.
Regular discussions between educators and parents allows us to:
- Share concerns about a child’s physical or mental health
- Observe children and assess their individual needs
- Provide effective support
- Hear about special moments away from the centre.
At Petit ELJ, we view parents as the first and most important role model in a child’s life. Developing a strong partnership with families allows us to support parents in their parenting role and provide continuity of care between home and the centre.
As educators, we share a goal with parents to provide their child with a quality learning outcome.
Effective communication achieves this goal by opening a dialogue between educators and parents. We can also demonstrate this goal by learning from families’ experiences and using the information they share with us to support a child’s learning and wellbeing.
Strategies for involving family members in the service
Including families in our early education centres creates strong connections and meaningful learning experiences for children. It also helps us to build a sense of community by inviting families to participate in decision making, planning of quality outcomes and activities.
Collaboration goes further than providing strategies for involvement. It builds a partnership between the parents and us that focuses on a child’s development and learning. And in any partnership, active communication is essential.
Petit ELJ encourages and actively seeks family input and communication through the way we:
- Display information in our studios including our Family Information Board
- Invite discussion and participation in our activities, experiences and programs
- Document a child’s learning journey
- Share information through notices, emails, social media and newsletters
- Receive and act on valued family input such as the Parent Communication Book.
Though it’s not our only means of communication, Storypark strengthens family engagement. Purposeful documentation of a child’s experiences in a digital format shares information in real time. It communicates what is happening now.
It also encourages parents to share with us their photos and stories about their children outside of the centre. We can use this information to build on the child’s learning experiences and to help develop their interests.
Over time it creates a story of a child’s learning journey which parents, children and educators can reflect on. Reflection helps us to improve our learning environments and programs.
As well, Storypark also acts as a tool for inviting parents to participate in events, decision making and invaluable conversations that enhance our children’s personal development and learning.
By staying connected and respecting family input in the decision making of their child’s learning, we nurture a child’s sense of belonging in our Petit ELJ community.
Discover A Collaborative Work Environment at Petit Early Learning Journey
At Petit ELJ we not only value our collaboration and partnerships with parents but also our relationships with educators. Our educators work as part of a team within our centre community, sharing ideas and resources.
Effective communication, including active listening skills and the ability to work collaboratively with parents to forge valued partnerships that enhance a child’s learning experience, is essential.
Are you familiar with the Storypark app? If you believe in creating communities and a sense of belonging through collaborative family input and communication, then we’d love to hear from you.
Learn more about a career with Petit ELJ.
Early childhood is the time when children first become aware of differences among people and start to form opinions and attitudes about these differences.
Young children are naturally curious about differencesOne of the ways they make sense of their world is to sort things into different categories and focus on one thing at a time – for example, whether another child has the same or different skin colour to them. Children do this to organise their experiences.
Awareness of differences also means young children are sensitive to experiences of racism and prejudice. This can impact on their social and emotional wellbeing, their learning and their social relationships. Their ideas about and responses to diversity are influenced by what they see and hear around them.
Helping all children and young people understand difference encourages them to feel good about who they are, where they fit in the world and appreciate diversity in others. It helps to build strong, inclusive communities where everyone enjoys a sense of being valued and belonging, which supports positive mental health.
Learn more about cultural diversity and mental health.
-
When children develop positive relationships with other children and educators, it helps them to feel that they belong. This early learning about themselves and others lays the foundation for their future health and wellbeing.
- provide opportunities for children to listen to people from a range of backgrounds and their perspectives
- respect individual differences and acknowledge that membership of a particular group doesn’t mean everyone from that group has the same values, beliefs, rituals and needs
- promote and model inclusive behaviour – such as having notices or information available in a number of relevant languages for families
- expand children’s awareness of difference through social events, books, songs or play materials
- research biographical stories of local people and people from around the world and introduce these stories to children
- encourage children to recognise and appreciate people for the things that make them unique and special
- encourage children to view differences as something that makes a person interesting
- support children to understand that just because somebody looks or sounds different, or does things in a different way, doesn’t mean that this person is any less worthy of respect or friendship
- support all children to develop the skills necessary to form positive friendships regardless of differences in practices, languages and ethnic backgrounds.
-
- provide opportunities for young people to listen to people from a range of backgrounds and their perspectives
- promote and model inclusive behaviour – such as having notices or information available in a number of relevant languages for families
- expand young people’s awareness of differences through curriculum material – this can provide young people with evidence that people who look or sound different to them are, at their core, really just like them
- encourage discussion through such curriculum material
- respect and understand that young people come from diverse backgrounds and have different cultural identities (including specific expectations of behaviour and communication)
- respect individual differences and acknowledge that membership of a particular group doesn’t mean everyone from that group has the same values, beliefs, rituals and needs
- encourage young people to recognise and appreciate people for the things that make them unique and special
- teach young people about multicultural role models from various ethnicities, genders and fields
- discuss the positives of differences and the way they can complement and enhance each other
- role-model inclusive and respectful behaviour
- support all young people to develop the social and emotional skills necessary to form positive friendships regardless of differences in practices, languages and ethnic backgrounds
- be prepared to discuss diversity any time.
Be You Professional Learning
Check out tips for building mentally healthy learning communities in the module Understand, and how to promote inclusion and diversity within your learning community in the module Include.
-
You can also promote a whole-service or whole-school culture of appreciation for difference in all children and young people, regardless of their cultural background.
Every family is different – you can ask families what’s important to them. Getting to know families at your service or school means there’s less chance of assumptions being made about backgrounds, cultures or practices. When you understand the experiences of families and their cultures, you’re better able to support children and young people’s development and learning.
You can support children, young people and families from culturally diverse backgrounds by:- being welcoming and approachable
- being accepting of differences and able to respect multiple ways of being
- developing positive relationships with families – which can help you understand each other and work together and can help families build a sense of belonging and inclusion.
- being open to different types of families – they can be small or large, may or may not be biologically related, and may include several generations.
- encouraging opportunities for families and educators to develop connections with each other and opportunities to observe each other’s strengths and contributions
- inviting diversity into the service or school and encouraging everyone to contribute their skills and interests to the service or school.
- providing a range of opportunities for children, young people and their families to share their personal stories – to create an atmosphere of cultural respect and acknowledgement of diversity
- creating community connections – families are better able to support their children and young people when they’re informed about and are connected to their community (for example, support services and social networks.
- linking families with appropriate local services to provide support and assistance – some families may have experienced significant trauma and disruption in the process of moving to or settling in Australia
- discussing possible differences in parenting with families, to avoid misunderstandings between families and educators, and confusion for children.
- When spoken or written English is a barrier, interpreters or translated material can help you communicate with families.
- When working face-to-face with interpreters, always remember to talk with the family not to the interpreter.
- Ask questions to ensure families understand what’s been said. Be mindful of the messages your environment sends about diversity. Respect for diversity is also communicated by what you have on display and the resources you have available.
You can do this by promoting positive attitudes and practices regarding diversity among individuals and organisations. This includes identifying and challenging the kinds of practices that disadvantage or discriminate against those of different racial or cultural backgrounds and promoting inclusive practices in their place.
You can also support families who have experienced racism by engaging in thoughtful conversations, demonstrating empathy and support, challenging prejudices, stereotypes and discriminatory behaviour, reviewing policies and practices to promote inclusion, increasing knowledge of accurate information to counter or dispel false beliefs regarding minority groups, and providing information about support services.
-
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2017). Media release: Census reveals a fast changing, culturally diverse nation. Canberra: ABS. Retrieved from //www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/lookup/Media%20Release3.
Australian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) (2018). Valuing multiculturalism. Canberra: AHRC. Retrieved from //www.humanrights.gov.au/education/students/hot-topics/aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islanders-australia-s-first-peoples.
Last updated: November, 2019