[Aubrie Wall]

Spending time playing, talking, listening, and engaging with your child helps them develop important life skills, such as communication, problem-solving, thinking, physical coordination, and socializing with others. Playing together also strengthens your bond and deepens your relationship.

[azhar]

To establish a good relationship with children, be present and focused on what they are saying, and be a very good listener. Be curious about their activities and thoughts, respect their individuality, and use reinforcement to develop trust and confidence in children. Consistency, warmth, and making the setting sure and nonexclusive help children feel valued and supported.

[weiwei liu]

Get along and communicate with children, play and learn with them as if they were your own friends. When they are unhappy, we can say “I understand how you feel” to enhance our relationship with children.

[aliciaxoa]

What advice I’d give to other providers wanting to build connections with children is to make them feel heard.

[lindsey]

Use serve and return to really give the child your attention. Use special time or ask them to help you. Affirm the child’s emotions. Invite them to participate in group activities and make sure their input is included.

[Yesenia Castaneda]

Building strong connections with children is such a key part of creating a positive, supportive learning environment. Here’s some advice I would offer to other early learning providers:

1. Be Present and Attentive

• Give your full attention to children when they are speaking or trying to communicate. Whether it’s making eye contact, kneeling down to their level, or simply listening without distractions, children can sense when they have your full attention.

[Yesenia Castaneda]

Helping children recognize their emotions and control their responses is a key part of their social and emotional development. These are some effective strategies to support this:

1. Model Emotion Recognition and Regulation

• Label your own emotions: When you’re feeling upset, calm, or excited, express it in simple terms (e.g., “I’m feeling frustrated because this task is hard” or “I’m so happy we’re playing together!”).
• Use calm, steady tones: When responding to a child’s emotions, try to maintain a calm demeanor to show them how to regulate their own responses in emotional situations.
• Teach Deep Breathing or Relaxation Techniques
  • Breathing exercises like “blowing out the candle” or “smelling the flowers, blowing out the candles” can help children calm themselves down when they’re feeling overwhelmed.

[Breanna Kinstler-caropino]

meeting a childs emotional needs when they are sad by becoming a safe place for them as well as taking time to get on their level and play

[sky]

the importance of understanding the behaviors

[Safia Patman]

I would advise other early learning providers to actively listen to children, be present, and show empathy. Build trust by being consistent, offering positive reinforcement, and engaging in activities that allow for one-on-one interaction. Creating a welcoming, safe, and supportive environment will help foster strong connections with children.

[Lyndia Roberts]

What advice would you give to other Early learning Providers who want to build connections with children in their classroom?

I would say that one of the most important things are to listen. Listening to children gains more trust for them to be able to tell you different things.

[Rohina Hakimkhel]

I think building strong connections with children in an early learning environment is essential for their emotional, social, and cognitive development. Here are some important advices for providers: create a warm and welcoming environment, use positive communications, establish proper and active routine, respect each child, be supportive and caring.

[Dhofa]

Take time to get to know each child—what excites them, what makes them laugh, what challenges them—and meet them where they are. It’s not just about teaching them but also about listening to their thoughts and feelings, and giving them space to express themselves.

[Haylee Holznagel]

To build connections with children in your classroom you should practice active listening, create a fun and safe environment, get to know each child personally as well as their parents, show empathy and use play based learning

[Layla Zener]

I believe that constantly practicing serve-and-return is crucial in building positive relationships with children in the classroom. Just like in trying to build any friendship, it’s important to find out what interests the other person and to show interest in that very thing by asking questions and responding positively.