Responding to non-verbal
communication
 All children use non-verbal cues.
 Babies cry and older children use facial expressions
and body language.
 Cultural experiences will affect their non-verbal
communication as well as age and the type of
communication being used; such as formal or
informal.
Task
 Watch a children’s movie or television show on
Clickview (there are episodes of Playschool, etc).
 Turn down the volume, so you can’t hear what the
characters are saying.
 How much can you still understand about what is
happening, without hearing what the people are
saying?
Task
 At first you may not be able to understand much about
what is going on, but as you start to ‘tune-in’ to reading
the behaviour and facial expressions of the characters,
you should start to have a fairly good idea of what is
happening.
Example of positive non-verbal
cues
 Michael, aged eight, looks out of his classroom window
to see his carer, Mary, patiently waiting for him. She
has Susan in the stroller and Clive, who is three years
old, at her feet. Mary glances up at the window and
sees Michael looking at her. She smiles and waves at
him. Michael’s teacher opens the door to let the
children go out and meet the parents or carers. Michael
runs out to Mary.
 Mary gives Michael a big smile and says, ‘hello, we’ve
been waiting for you. Clive wants you to help him with
his train set and Susan has been saying your name all
afternoon’. Mary takes Michael’s bag from him and
hooks it on to the handle of the stroller. Michael give
Clive a quick hug and pees into the stroller to make a
funny face at Susan, who laughs happily and kicks her
legs in response to Michael’s face. Mary holds out her
hand for Michael and says, ‘Come one, let’s get into the
car, then we can talk about your day’.
Answer the following
 How do you think Michael felt when Mary smiled and
waved to him from outside?
 How does Mary make Michael feel wanted and cared
for?
 How do you think Michael behaved when he reached
Mary’s house?
To ensure that you are using non-verbal
communication effectively with children, you
must:
 Work at the child’s level, so they can see your body
language
 Be close enough to the child to gain their full attention
 Use eye contact or no eye contact depending on what is
appropriate
 Be open to providing physical touch, if needed; for
example, giving a hug.
Helping children to understand
their feelings.
 By actively listening to a child, you can help them
identify how they are feeling and provide the
opportunity to talk about their feelings. The more
words that you can use to describe your feelings, the
more accurately you can talk about them.
Task
 List 10-15 words that are used to describe feelings
 How many of these words do you use on a regular
basis?
 Do you think it would help other people who are close
to you to understand your feelings better if you used a
greater range of words to describe your feelings? How?
 How would it help children to understand your’s and
other people’s feelings if you used these words?
 Your positive communication with children is also
facilitated by how you interact with them. If you
interact with children frequently and do so in a caring
and respectful manner, children will feel more
comfortable talking to you, which helps you to help
them discover and communicate their feelings.
 Such interactions also help to create a caring and
comforting environment, which is important for
developing rapport and a good relationship with
children in your care.
Task
Identify how each child is feeling and explain
how you would respond in the following
scenarios.
 Mia, aged four, complains to her carer, ‘David’s not my
friend. He won’t let me in the cubby’.
 Tess, aged five, brings in her new doll to show
everyone. She wants everyone to look at it.
 Karen, aged eight, tells her carer, ‘I hate that bus
driver. He’s an idiot’.
 Sam tells 11-year-old Susan that she can’t go swimming
because her mum said she was just getting over a cold.
Susan responds, ‘My mum’s dumb, she makes me sick’.
 Two-year-old Simon gives up trying to fit the puzzle
together. He picks up the puzzle and drops it all over
the floor.
Answer the following:
 The way you communicate with children is important.
Explain why this is so?
 What can respectful communication facilitate with
children? Why is
Ensuring Non-Biased
Communication
Your role, when communicating is to encourage positive
communication with and about various cultures so
children learn that:
 Everyone is unique and worthwhile
 We are all valued for our contribution to the group
 We can all be trusted
You can do this by:
 Communicating the importance of cultural difference
 Modelling the expected appropriate behaviour of
children through language, interactions and programs
 Encouraging children to value others regardless of
differences and cultural backgrounds
 Discussing other cultures with a positive attitude
Adapt your communication to the person your are
communicating with, because this will ensure you take
into account the various backgrounds of children and
their families as well as personal beliefs and values.
Positives from this:
 People feel welcome;
 Will be more comfortable sharing information with
you;
 Shows to the client that you are interest in meeting
their needs
You should always be fair in your communication with
children, treat each child as an individual without bias
and encourage this through all interactions with them,
regardless of their backgrounds.
To encourage non-biased attitudes:
 Be a positive role model by accepting differences
 Use verbal and non-verbal communication
 Be open and answer questions honestly
 Avoid overreacting or making a fuss about children’s
comments
 Children often feel close emotional ties with their
carers; therefore, your attitudes have an influence on
their developing attitudes. So, you should eliminate
words and actions that encourage biased attitudes and
use non-stereotypical language and communication.
Practical tips to discourage
negative stereotypes
 Avoid categorising people into groups by saying, “All
girls are tidy”, or, “All men like football” as these
statements are not fair or true.
 Avoid labelling genders, for example instead of
announcing that only girls can use home corner,
identify a more random group; also when you are
dispersing children avoid groupings such as “All girls
go and wash your hands” unless you are working on
gender recognition.
 Use gender-inclusive terms, like police officer instead
of police man
 Encourage all children to use all types of play activities
available
 Use nonverbal communication, such as posters and
books, to show people of both genders in nonstereotyped roles; for example, men caring for infants
and women working in trades.
Answer the following:
 Why is it important to use non-biased communication
when communicating with children?
 In what ways can you communicate non-biased
communication to children?
 Positives that can come from changing your
communication style, includes…?
 What are some of the ways you, as a someone working
with children, can discourage negative stereotypes?