Quality Area 5: Relationships with children

Overview

Quality Area 5 of the National Quality Standard focuses on educators developing responsive, warm, trusting and respectful relationships with children that promote their wellbeing, self-esteem, sense of security and belonging. Relationships of this kind encourage children to explore the environment and engage in play and learning.

All children need a sense of connection with others to support the development of their identity and social and emotional competence. From birth, children begin to explore how the social world works. Exploring and learning to socialise appropriately with others, and to manage feelings, behaviours and responsibilities is a complex process. When educational leaders, co-ordinators and educators take a positive, strengths-based approach to guiding children’s behaviour, they ultimately empower children to regulate their own behaviour and develop the skills needed to interact and negotiate effectively with others.

Relationships with peers take on increasing importance for older children. Supportive relationships with educators enables older children to develop confidence in their ability to express themselves, work through differences, engage in new experiences and take calculated risks.

Standards, elements and concepts

Quality Area 5 has two Standards that focus on relationships between educators and children, and between children and their peers. These Standards are crucial to delivering quality outcomes for children under the National Quality Framework because supportive and respectful relationships enable children to:

• develop their confidence and a strong sense of identity
• develop effective communication skills and the ability to express themselves effectively
• participate in collaborative learning and build meaningful relationships with others
• regulate their own behaviour and learn to negotiate complex social situations and relationships.