Effective Communication

This week, we begin a new course on communicating and collaborating in the early childhood field.  We all know that it is important to be able to communicate ideas and information to our staff, families, community partners, and colleagues.  However, there is so much to communication that is subtle and intricate and it is our ability to identify those behaviors and characteristics that will determine the effectiveness of the exchange. 

When I think of good communicators in my personal and professional life, there is one person that stands out.  She is the facilitator of a work group I have recently joined in the community to discuss and plan for increased and improved social and emotional learning opportunities for children and families in our area.  The group consists of professionals from school districts, private organizations, and community partners, such as the local health nurse.  Rachel is organized in her approach to each meeting, where we have limited time to discuss all of the important information we have.  She actively listens to each member of the group, invites participation in engaging ways (like writing ideas on post its and having us post them on her larger easel paper on the wall), and summarizes each meeting with immense detail.  She has a way of interpreting what we are trying to say when we often have trouble saying it.  She asks questions in ways that allow for meaningful discussion and is very thoughtful about the process.  And did I mentioned the detailed summary!  It is generally a four page document with tables and charts that outline the work that we have done and the goals for the next meeting.  I am in awe of the ways she can extract information and interpret it in ways that I often don't see until I read the summary!  I would very much like to adopt her ability to take in large amounts of feedback and information and process it, then communicate it back to the group in an organized fashion.