Frequently Used Approaches

This page contains information on some commonly used approaches within our service. An Educational Psychologist may suggest viewing this page before completing specific work within the setting.

PACE

PACE is a model that considers the way we think, feel and communicate with a child to build connection and for them to feel safe. PACE is an acronym of four crucial factors to embody when interacting with children

Playfulness

Playfulness is about creating and atmosphere of fun and interest when you communicate. This can involve, using different tones of voice, expressing joy, using a sense of humour, being silly, telling jokes, using light sarcasm or exploring playful and fun activities.

Being playful isn’t about always being funny, it is about helping children be more open to positive experiences. Being playful helps children understand more positive feelings that can sometimes be difficult to regulate, such as excitement, pride, elation and joy and gives children a way to express these feelings.

Being playful in day to day life can help diffuse tense or difficult situations, such as anger or defensiveness and allow behaviours to be seen in a different perspective.

Acceptance

For children to feel safe, it is important they understand that who they are is accepted unconditionally, regardless of their behaviour.

Acceptance is about communicating to the child that you accept their desires, thoughts, feelings, perceptions and urges that are often underneath their behaviours. This doesn’t mean accepting all behaviour, which may not always be appropriate. The adult may provide boundaries around behaviour but accept the causes that are underneath and guide more appropriate responses.

Through acceptance, children become confident within their own self worth and are able to see that their behaviour are not tied to their self-esteem and identity and does not dictate their relationships and whether others like them. Providing children a sense of unconditional positive regard, builds the sense that they are okay to just be themselves and will be loved regardless.

Curiosity

Exploring behaviour and thoughts with curiosity allows children to reflect upon  their inner selves without self criticism or judgment. Children often do not know why behaviours are inappropriate and may be reluctant to tell an adult.

Through using curiosity, adults are conveying that they simply want to understand why they are behaving, thinking or feeling a certain way, not to convey that the child is wrong.

Curiosity involves a quiet, accepting tone that conveys a simple desire to understand the child: “What do you think was going on? What do you think that was about?” or “I wonder what…?”

Empathy

Empathy lets the child feel the adult’s compassion for her. Being empathic means the adult actively showing the child that the child’s inner life is important to the adult and he or she wants to be with the child in her hard times.

With empathy, when the child is sad or in distress the adult is feeling the sadness and distress with her and lets the child know that.

The adult is demonstrating that he or she knows how difficult an experience is for the child. The adult is telling the child that she will not have to deal with the distress alone.

For more information about PACE, click here.