How to Reduce Teacher Stress and Support Children’s Development
Facilitating CHILDREN’S LEARNING…
HOW TO EMPOWER CHILDREN’S VOICES THROUGH DEVELOPING SELF-REGULATORY SKILLS
To understand the importance of your role as a teacher and leader, you need to see yourself in the mesosystem of a child’s life – that is, in the context of the early childhood (EC) setting.
EC settings along with teachers can either be a ‘protective’ source of support for children or a risk factor that adds to the risks already experienced by children.
To be a support for children, it has been found there are three main protective sources of support in EC settings that have a major positive influence on teacher stress. The reduction in teacher stress influencing, among other areas, class management and behaviour management.
On the other end, teacher stress is also a major contributing factor on children’s self-regulatory skills. When these skills are supported positively and effectively, it has long term effects on early school achievement and success.
Protective Factor 1: Teacher quality that translates to child-centred beliefs
Protective Factor 2: Engagement and Classroom Climate
Protective Factor 3: Teacher-Child Relationships
Protective Factor 1: Teacher quality that translates to child-centred beliefs
- Classroom decisions – Collaborative learning and child autonomy.
- Curriculum decisions – Promote literacy, intentional talk and conversations, and socio-dramatic play.
Protective Factor 2: Engagement and Classroom Climate
- Engagement with teachers, classroom activities, and the class.
- Classroom climate – Emotional and organisational support.
Protective Factor 3: Teacher-Child Relationships
- Is interrelated to the other two factors by influencing and being influenced by teacher quality and child-centred beliefs, as well as engagement and classroom climate.
When supporting children of higher self-regulatory processing skills, this will EMPOWER the ‘voices’ of the children, thereby BUILD a stronger emotional wellbeing, and SHAPE a confident identity.
If you want to know more “Contact Me” and I will email you my powerpoint presentation.
It will explain more about each of the points outlined above, including HOW TO promote and facilitate these practices.
© Tirzah Lim 2017
