Article Link: http://exchangepress.com/article/family-referrals-a-tool-for-supporting-children-and-families/5017228/
When families enroll in an early childhood program, it’s usually the first time they’ve daily shared their child’s basic care with anyone outside of the family. Their most basic hope is that we will care for their child as we would our own. In return, we have the privilege �" and sometimes challenge �" of witnessing their child’s one and only childhood.As we nurture children, we will gradually learn a variety of details about families’ private lives. This will happen whether parents realize it or not. After all, early childhood staff becomes intimately acquainted with children’s development, and we also have daily ringside views into parents’ child-rearing skills and styles.
By sharing their children with us, parents take a huge leap of faith. It’s a faith we must prove professionally worthy of day in and day out. How we foster children’s development and how we help families achieve their childrearing hopes and dreams will determine if we deserve their trust �" or not.
There are many ways to nurture children and assist growing families. This article encourages you to use family referrals as one particular strategy. Early childhood staff is in a unique �" even critical �" position to ...