Staff improve interaction skills

The project was run by speech and language therapist Michelle Davies alongside a primary mental health worker and the manager of the Sure Start Children's Centre in Leigh Park, near Havant.

Staff were given specialist training in how adult-child interaction develops and the impact of verbal and non-verbal communication on children.

They were trained to analyse adult-child interaction and assess colleagues to give feedback on how communication between staff and children could be improved.

The project was evaluated by looking at children's language development, behaviour changes and through a questionnaire and assessment of staff.

Davies said: "Nursery nurses felt they had learned a variety of strategies from the project, with following the child's lead and the importance of specific praise being more common. These are all key features of the foundation curriculum."

She added: "Many nursery nurses more worryingly said that 'how to communicate with children' was 'new' to them. Perhaps this suggests that they reflected that how they were communicating before wasn't effective."

As a result of the project, nearly all children assessed made improvements in language development, and behavioural problems decreased.

Davies said: "Staff have placed a much-deserved value on the importance of high-quality adult-child interaction and realise they have the skills within themselves, rather than specific toys or resources, to enhance the children's language and behaviour."