Sensitive Interactions
What are they?
“Interactions with young children are profoundly important for supporting and extending their learning”.
(Interacting or Interfering, Fisher, 2016, p. 1)
In Realising the Ambition (Education Scotland, 2020), interactions are frequently discussed. For example, Maree Todd, the Minister for Children and Young People, states, “…the quality of the interactions that children have with adults who are caring for them fundamentally affects not only their enjoyment of early learning and childcare but also the contribution that this makes to their development” (p. 6).
“The key part of the environment for children is the human, social environment of positive nurturing interactions” (p. 15).
“Interactions are central and key to successful play pedagogy” (p. 46).
Key messages:
Practitioners who understand and can support:
- Attachment – can establish attachments and strong relationships with children.
- Spaces – can create communication-friendly spaces.
- Genuine, relaxed and responsive conversations with children.
- And value interactions with children and understand that they are central to high-quality practice.
- Are Role-Models – effective role models to support social, emotional & cognitive development.
- Wait, Watch, Wonder – tune in to the child-initiated activity and sensitively consider when and if to interact to extend children’s inquiry, problem-solving and thinking skills.
- Children’s interests and development – attune their interactions to children’s interests and developmental stages to support and challenge them in their thinking.
- Use the Keys to Communication to support children in each of the stages of their language development.
- Sustained, Shared Thinking – join the child’s thinking, work together with children to solve problems, clarify concepts and develop thinking using a range of communication and interaction strategies (making learning visible).
- Child-led – enable children to lead their own learning, including planning projects and solving their own problems.
Ways we can do this:
Attachments: Build close relationships with the children through:
- Knowing the children, their interests, their likes and dislikes
- Building trust
- Mutually enjoying their company
- Being “mind-minded” with them (being mind-minded is someone who thinks of children as having thoughts, feelings and plans that need to be responded to and respected)
Spaces: Create small nooks and spaces, indoors and out to support the listening and talking between adults and children. Consider features such as light, noise levels, position and stimulation in the environment when supporting children’s interactions.
(For additional information Elizabeth Jarman, 2021)
Genuine, relaxed and responsive: Have open body language, get down to the child’s level, be at ease in the company of children, be interested in and responsive to children. Use responsive listening to understand and respect children’s learning. Be non-assuming, avoid jumping in with an educational answer or question, and listen to what the child wants to talk about, not your preconceived ideas or needs.
Value interactions: Plan time and opportunities for interactions. Malaguzzi said conversation is like ‘passing a ball’, while Trevarthan said communication was like a ‘dance’. Never drop a ball you have been thrown by a child, and always pass it back, giving something more when they do, e.g. building additional complexity, vocabulary or ideas. Show that you understand that nothing matters more than stopping what you’re doing and listening.
Role Models: Be an effective role model to children through modelling:
- Using language to resolve disputes and name emotions to support children to resolve conflicts and name their own emotions
- Techniques and strategies to encourage new learning in children’s challenges
Children’s interests and development: Knowing and understanding the typical progression of child development is vital to having developmentally appropriate and quality interactions. Encourage children to make links between learning opportunities and their previous experiences.
Child-led: Support children to ask their own questions by providing exciting experiences and environments that support curiosity. Encourage children to discuss their learning, support their thinking, and extend learning through modelling language and questioning.
Make child planning a regular part of the day:
- Listen attentively to children
- Support, accept and extend all the ways they express and present their ideas
- Encourage them to elaborate
- Interpret and expand what children do and say
- Accept conflicting viewpoints and interpretations
- Comment on what you see children doing as they play and write down what children say
- Help children connect their plans and activities with their reflections
- Encourage children to carry over their activities to the next day
Do not be afraid to change your plans and take the lead from what the child does or says, then support them when needed. This is an essential aspect of being a responsive practitioner.
Linked Areas of Practice
Attachment
Children’s Rights
Emerging Literacy & English
Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC)
Keys to Communication
Lunch/snack times
Nurture
Observations
Self-Regulation
Sustained Shared Thinking
Wait, watch, wonder
Tools
Reflecting on Practice
SBC Guidance to support
National Guidance to support
Further Reading to support
Training to support
SBC Early Years Sensitive Interactions Training:
The SBC Early Years training for this page is currently being reviewed and updated. For SBC employees this can be found on the Schoolhouse Teams page.
Developing Quality Interactions
Chirnside Primary School Early Learning & Childcare, a Scottish Borders Council Nursery Hub, share their approach to developing Quality Interactions in their setting. Also on SBC Spotlight on Practice Portal page.
