Communication With Children And Young People Essay

People can or may be limited in the ways they communicate if for example they have speech, language, communication or sensory impairments. If they are not in a positive emotional state or have heightened anxiety this will have a huge impact on a persons ability to communicate effectively.
Language barriers are clearly difficult when trying to interact and communicate as are different cultures perceptions of normal behaviour, gestures and body language. Without support from experts in this area such as the SENCO or an EAL specialist you will not be able to have a positive relationship or good communication with the child you are working with or their families. If one person expects eye contact when talking and another, for cultural oe SEND

reasons can not do this it may appear rude and be misread.
With the methods of communication moving towards the technological era Emails and messaging has become the norm and can be misread or misinterpreted, as they have no influencing factors such a body language or tone of voice to support how the message is conveyed.
If a child is moving through the school their chronological age and developmental age can begin to separate and gaps can develop.

A child that I have been working with has a gap of 4 academic years and although he is in year 4 he is currently working on EYFS and some year 1 objectives. This had lead to changing many of the ways in which I and other members of staff communicate with him and how his peers interact with him. He needs more than simple differentiation and often has ELSA support to help him with his emotional state as this impacts heavily on his ability to communicate and prevents him developing further.

2a) Understand how to communicate with children, young people and adults.
Explain the skills need to communicate with children and young people.

To communicate effectively with children and young people you must demonstrate to them the skills you need and how to use them. If a child or young person feels their contribution to a conversation or situation is not valued or recognised it will effect the way in which the child develops their communication skills and the trust in that relationship as they will not feel valued.
Encourage pupils to talk and express themselves as often as possible as this may not be something that they have the opportunity to do, so may be lacking in experience and

confidence.
Make eye contact and actively listen when the child is talking to you as if are looking away or seem distracted they may feel you are not listening or interested in their issues or opinions.
Your body language and facial expressions are very important as you need to be approachable. If a child feels intimidated or worried by you they will not interact freely with you. Smiling and reacting in a positive way to what they are saying will help. However in turn you can also use your body language, facial expression and tone of voice to enforce boundaries and expectations. Doing this consistently is essential as this too is a way of developing positive relationships based on mutual respect. .Sometimes repeating back to a child will help if they have used incorrect language or not spoken clearly so that you are sure you understand what has been said.
By responding and questioning them you will be able to maintain conversation and give them the opportunity to experience the norms of conversation, many children do not have these experiences at home as speech language and communication skills are suffering as family dynamics change for example family meals are not eaten at the table but in front of the television, children are often sent to their rooms to play on their computer games and often parents do not put their children to bed with a proper bedtime routine.
Children should be relaxed and confident enough in school to ask question and put their ideas forward. By offering their own suggestions and ideas there will be a two way dialogue between adults and pupils instead of a one way flow of instructions.