With Mother’s Day and Father’s Day right around the corner, it is a great time to reflect on our relationship with the parents in our care. Parents hold a uniquely important role as their child’s first and most important teacher. Our role, as early childhood educators, is to support the important work parents do. Many times parents will come to us to share their frustrations, sweet stories, or simply just to be listened to. There are several things we can do to ensure we fulfill our role well:
- Listen and withhold judgment when parents share a concern
- Use humor to make light of situations, when appropriate
- Allow parents to find their own way in the journey of parenting
- Affirm parents for making choices that work for them
Another way to help parents is to practice making nonjudgmental statements. For example, we may say to a parent: “It’s OK to be firm with your toddler”; “I am glad that putting your child to bed early works for you”; “Keep taking baby steps toward your goal.” Be sure parents are armed with resources to assist them. Blogs are a relatively new tool that provides support, assistance and a forum for parents to talk with other parents about child rearing.
Share these Parenting websites and enjoy them yourself:
Honor the mothers and fathers in your program today by reflecting on changes you can make in supporting their efforts. The most important knowledge for educators is that parenting is hard work and our support can make a difference!