An introduction to working with children Essay

Nurseries provide care and education for children under the age of five in my area by offering free learning and play sessions which take place in the mornings and afternoons. Instead of a nursery just being a place where your child plays, a nursery provides education by qualified staff and professionals who encourage a child to learn as well a play while still providing care. Holiday play schemes is a place where children over the age of five go and can participate in various different types of activities which are both educational and play sessions, the activities range from reading books and watching educational programmes/videos/DVD’s to children playing on game consoles. ‘The room is divided into areas of various types of play experiences. These areas include, large and small construction sets, imaginative play – dressing ups, home corner, mark making, Hama beads, dance mats, games machines, pool table, small world, football table. We also have two adjoining areas where children can access messy/art and craft activities and relax in the quiet area, reading books or watching various videos/DVD’s.’ http://brightbeginningschildcare.co.uk/playscheme 11.11.11 A Child-minder is a person who looks after a parents children in their own home, child-minders usually look after children under the age of five, they provide care and education by helping the child with school work such as homework, participating in educational games or activities with them or generally playing games with them, baking or watching programmes with them. Nurseries aim to support children and their families by building a strong partnership with parents/careers because the setting and the child’s guardian want what is best, and for the child to achieve. If a nursery did not have a good relationship with parents/careers then there isn’t any trust or respect so if an issue is raised for example the child is underachieving and the nursery thought it is best for that child to receive additional support, a parent/career could take offence to it and then the situation could escalate. But if the nursery had a good positive relationship with parents and careers then a discussion could take place about the child receiving additional support, because it is important that you include the parent or career in discussions about their child otherwise they could feel that they are not valued or respected, and it is also their right to make decisions about their child, so if a nursery overlooked a parent or career regarding a situation wi th their child the parent or career could feel disrespected. ‘It recognises that parents and carers need to be fully involved in discussions about their child’s additional support needs. Where necessary, they should be given support by their school or nursery to take part in meetings and be included fully in decisions that affect their child. Establishments and parents/carers may not always agree on what is in the best interest of the child, but by developing good relationships, and through good communication, it is expected that most problems and disagreements will be solved at school/nursery level.’ http://www.clacksweb.org.uk/learning/aslfamilies/ 18.11.11 Holiday play schemes offer children a wide range of different activities from rock climbing to extra-curricular lessons such as additional english, maths or science, but the way these extra-curricular lessons are integrated into the activities do not seem like they are lessons, but the children are subconsciously learning new things which would help them throughout school because they can relate back to these activities. This supports children because they are providing a safe and secure place where they can come and be happy, make new friends and learn new skills and play schemes provide for all children so every child is included, they are also supporting the child by teaching them new things or helping them with specific work by integrating it into an activity. Holiday play schemes support families by ensuring their child is in a safe, stimulating learning environment while they are unable to look after the child because they are at work etc. Play workers also can pick the child up from their school so the parent/career will not have to worry about transport for the child. ‘Holiday play schemes are run by play workers. Play workers are responsible for planning activities to help children learn, play and relax with their friends. Play workers will often pick up children from local schools.’ http://www.youngsouthampton.org/parentsandcarers/childcare-schoolaged/holiday -play-schemes.asp 12.12.11 Child-minders aim to support children and their families by providing a safe and stimulating for the child/children they are caring for, child-minders mainly care for a child in a domestic environment such as the child’s home. Child-minders become a valued member of a family because they pay such a big role in the child’s life. A child-minder usually takes the child on day trips to museums or animal parks such as zoo’s, they are usually educational day trips where the child can learn something. Arranging stimulating and therapeutic learning activities such as finger painting, cooking, reading, dress-up games or even celebrating cultural events which could include making Christmas or Eid cards or creating their own Easter egg. All these activities support children because they are learning new skills which they will need in life, they all acquire the child to use their fine and gross motor skills which will help them develop, and also their language and intellectual development. ‘They do this in a domestic setting (normally their own home) for payment†¦to ensure they provide a safe and stimulating environment for the children that they care for. Registered child-minders are usually self-employed and run their own business. Although every day will be different, a child-minder’s typical day may include: †¢visiting a park, museum, library or playgroup †¢arranging fun and stimulating learning activities, such as dressing-up, creative play, reading, and celebrating cultural events from around the world †¢providing meals and snacks for the children, involving them in food preparation and menu choices †¢taking children to and from school or clubs †¢working with other local child-minders to organise group activities.’ http://www.ncma.org.uk/childminders/become_a_childminder/what_childminders_do.aspx 12.12.11 The Human Rights Act 2000 This act ensures all children have a right to the protection of private and family life, this means in practice all children’s personal life is always kept private, this includes any information that is disclosed from parents or carers about a child, also anything that is revealed during placement. The right to education, this means that every single child has the right to have an education no matter of their race, gender, culture or background whether it is at a statutory or private sector. To discriminate against children because of their race, sex, culture, background etc is unlawful . ‘The enjoyment of the rights and freedoms set forth in this convention shall be secured without discrimination on any ground such as sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status.’ http://www.elc.org.uk/pages/lawarticleshra.htm#14 16.12.11 These are some of the ri ghts that The Human Rights Act 2000 allows children to have, this legislation overall supports the rights of children because it ensures children have the right to equality, dignity and to be respected. The Special Educational Needs and Disability Act 2001 This act supports the rights of children because it states that it is unlawful for educational providers such as teachers to discriminate against pupils with a special educational disability or need. It influences working practices in the setting because if a teacher discriminated a child which was physically disabled and in a wheel chair by not making sure they had access to everything they needed, additional care, help or support then they could be prosecuted because it is against the law. The Equality Act 2010 This act supports the rights of children because it states the legal responsibilities of public sectors such as schools to provide equal opportunities for everyone. This act influences working practices in the setting by trying to ensure that everyone is treated equally no matter what ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, religion etc. A staff member could not treat a child differently to the other children because of their religion, for example; during a seasonal period such as Christmas and the children are creating Christmas cards and one of the children is Muslim and their parents have asked the staff for their child not to take part in activities like that, the staff could not just isolate the child and give them nothing to do, the staff should either set a different piece of work of that child to do which does not involve Christmas activities or send them to a different class where they are doing a different activity so that child does not feel left out or isolated.