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Respond with curiosity “If two children are fighting over a scooter in the playground, it needs an adult to come in and say, ‘Now, what’s going on here? Ah, this is a really difficult situation…’ rather than, ‘You’ve had it for five minutes, so now you…’ etc. We should show a genuine level of curiosity and enquiry: ‘What are we going to do? We’ve got a problem here, haven’t we…’” 5 Show empathy “Young children come to us with quite potent, sharp emotions,” Laverne says. “When you’re faced with difficult behaviour, think, what does that remind me of? How does it make me feel? If it’s making me feel like that, how is it making the child feel? I don’t believe children want to be distressed and lashing out, but sometimes they feel like there’s nowhere else to go.” that some of the things we see in children, though they’re difficult, are quite ordinary,” she says. “Similarly, sometimes children’s language skills will seem ahead of the mark, but then they might slow down or go back a bit. We don’t need to panic straight away because other things will be happening. It’s about tracking development around the area of concern, and asking, ‘Well, are other things going in the right direction?’ “I always look to tantrums as an example,” she adds. “We have to remember that this is a really important developmental stage; it’s not to be written off or got rid of, because children need to learn how to manage frustration. These stages become the templates of how they manage as they move through nursery, then school. They’re the building blocks of resilience.” It’s what psychology can tell us about development in the round, as well as how we as adults observe and interact with children, that makes having a grasp of its principles so valuable for educators at every level. “For those thinking about what place psychology has in their role, it’s really in helping them to think about their experience of working with children,” Laverne explains. “It’s about understanding the different facets of their learning. What I’ve seen working well is when nurseries put a real emphasis on the psychological aspects of learning – they talk about children in a way that helps bring to the fore the many characteristics we need to keep in mind. They have key workers focusing on small groups of children, and the communication between staff is good, so everyone can keep abreast of these things. “Don’t be scared to take your learning forward in this area,” she concludes. “There are many brilliant professionals working in nursery settings who I think would be further empowered by doing so.” 4 Extending your knowledge of child development can be a huge benefit to your practice… Professionals from a range of sectors train with The Tavistock and Portman Trust, which is celebrating its 100th year in 2020. “Early years staff that are interested in looking more deeply at what’s going on for their children should really think about coming on the courses that are available,” says Laverne, who herself provides supervision for the Tavistock’s educational psychology doctorate. “I met somebody the other day who does voluntary work with very young children; she joined one of our introductory courses, ‘The emotional care of babies, children, and young people and families’ (EC1), and it’s given her a new way of thinking about, and appreciating, what it’s like for young children in their development. “I think we have a lot to offer educators who are thinking, I wonder what that means? How does that translate? or Why do I feel like that in relation to this? And that’s what I remember being critical about my learning: what something made me feel and how I relate to it has been the guiding light through my work in this field.” To find out more about courses available, or to join an open day, visit tavistockandportman.nhs.uk/ training TRAINING WITH THE TAVISTOCK Teachearlyyears.com 31