Working with kids in an educational environment can be challenging and requires a variety of skills and competence from a person. In kindergarten, specifically, working with children can be difficult as they are often unable to express their thoughts freely or communicate at a sufficient level using words. Children are only learning to grasp the basics of the language, sentence structure, and vocabulary, which makes their ability to state their needs far more limited than kids of an older age. It is the educator’s job to create an environment where kids can learn, feel fulfilled and be able to find optimal ways of expression. While many may rely on teaching language, rules, or inference, these methods are not always able to fully capture the meaning behind a kid’s behavior. This issue, however, can be solved through the use of pictures and non-verbal communication. As it is described on the Early Childhood Knowledge and Learning Center’s website, visual support can be used in the classroom environment to better enable the communication between the teacher and children, as well as among themselves (Classroom Visuals & Supports). Visual aids such as printed out pictures, words, or phrases can be used by children with developmental issues, disabilities, and other factors that make communication more complicated than it usually is. I can use the pictures and visual assistance in the classroom setting to help kids in developing ways of interacting that do not always involve words, encourage better communication, and build trust between me and the children.
Works Cited
“Classroom Visuals & Supports.” ECLKC. 2018. Web.