“Fostering Connections with Children and Their Families” with Erin Weisman

Wednesday, November 16th

A Note From Your Instructor

Thank you all so much for joining me for our workshop on Forming Connections and Fostering Communication!

Together we focused on Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs as a reminder that only when our community members have their basic needs met (enough sleep, a full belly, etc.) can they push themselves to try something or hear something challenging. We also explored the idea that everyone comes to each situation “with their own noise”. We make decisions and have reactions based on our individual experiences both from our developmental and very recent pasts. As educators, we can use this information to help us from taking big negative reactions personally.

Connection Building Strategies we discussed include:

  1. Bug in a Rug – One participant is the guesser, one is the hider, and the rest offer clues about who is hiding.

  2. Where the Wind Blows – All participants stand in a circle. The teacher calls, “The wind blows where…” and lists something multiple students have in common.

  3. Translating Routine Songs into participants’ home languages

  4. Class MadLibs – Take a short story or synopsis of one and remove keywords. Invite participants to replace the words and read out the new silly version. This is an opportunity to create inside jokes.

  5. Breathing Rainbow – Draw or trace a rainbow. Breathe in as you move upwards and out as you come down the arch.

  6. Balance Breathing – Balance a small item on participants’ bellies. Encourage them to breathe in slowly to help the item balance.

Lastly, we discussed communication practices with our students’ home caregivers. It is important to share your pedagogical motivations and outcomes from child play. I encouraged you to set firm and consistent boundaries about how and when you are available to communicate with families. Your time is precious and deserves protection and your families will feel grateful for the opportunity to know what to expect 😊

If you have any questions, please feel free to let me know!

Thank you,
Erin Weisman

Resources

 

If you would like to follow up with Erin you can email her at weisman.erin@gmail.com.
Thank you again for your thoughtful participation!

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