Mindful Child/Adult Interactions

Last month, we introduced you to our Education Quality Indicators (EQIs) and Purposeful Routines, the first of five areas that we will focus on to create an elevated early learning experience for your child.

By putting these daily practices into place, we hope to encourage positive growth for every member of our school community and foster collaborative relationships between children, families, and teachers.  

Our primary EQIs are: 

Child/Adult Interactions 

This month, we’re going to explore Child/Adult Interactions and how they’re beneficial in helping children develop positive social-emotional skills. These interactions influence how a child feels and how they learn. Quality interactions between students and teachers include positive: 

Words | Gestures | Eye Contact | Body Language 

This approach builds essential layers of trust and security. When your child feels supported and free to explore and be themselves, good things happen! Every moment of the day provides an opportunity, including arrival, morning meetings, mealtimes, and as they settle in for rest or play. 

Teachers will practice this effort in the classroom through: 

• Being responsive to a child’s cues 
• Acknowledging a child’s feelings 
• Being present and in the moment 
• Aligning activities to a child’s likes and interests 
• Encouraging peer relationships 
• Modeling positive communication
• Fostering safe, nurturing bonds
• Engaging in meaningful conversations
• Sharing joy throughout learning activities 

These same interactions can be modeled in the home between parents and children to further strengthen healthy relationships and outcomes within a family too. 

The Benefits 

Mindful Child/Adult Interactions build strong relationships that lead to positive behaviors and a mutual understanding of expectations. This supports the creation of a warm, encouraging learning environment for each child that extends far beyond the classroom. 

Good interactions model empathy, respect, and understanding. Through the voices, eyes, and faces of adults, children construct their self-worth, learn how to be loving in their actions, and show care. 

Children develop their interpretation of emotions, how to express their feelings, and ways to engage socially through every single interaction with an adult. The goal is to always support each child’s continuous growth and improvement in all areas and during every stage of early development. 

The result is confident, independent children who thrive, and grow to be lifelong learners!