Question
What are paraphrase reflections?
Answer
Paraphrase reflections are very similar to behavior reflections, except instead of directing our comment to a child based on the behavior that we see, these are restatements that we are directing to a child in response to something that they have said to us. Paraphrase reflections:
- Are restatements
- Allow an adult to restate a child’s original message in different words
- Allow a child to know he/she is being listened to
- Acknowledge the child’s efforts to converse
- Assist listener in being more focused on the child’s words
- Emphasize what the child’s message and meaning
- Place control for the direction of the conversation with the child
- Allow the child to elaborate and expand
- Context can help adult rephrase the child’s message
You can use a paraphrase reflection anytime a child says something to you. It allows a child to hear what they have just said but in your words. It gives you a chance to restate what they said instead of correcting it in a punitive way. Back to the example of the child who said, “Mrs. T I brunj you some flowers.” To restate what they said you could say, "Oh, you brought me some flowers." By restating it so that the child heard it, they knew that I acknowledged that they brought the flowers to me. This lets children know that they are being listened to. They understand better that we heard what they said. There are many times where a child says something to you and you truly do not know what they said. Sometimes we restate what we think that child said, and then they try to help us by saying it again.
A paraphrase reflection can ultimately help you decipher what a child is trying to say to you. Sometimes we say, "Now, what are you trying to say?" If you do that often enough, children eventually give up and think, "Okay, she cannot figure out what I need. I am going to just stop this conversation." We do not want that to happen. We want to use what the child says to let them know, "Hey, I heard you, I am trying to understand what you are saying, and I need you to help me." Again, it acknowledges the child's efforts in the conversation.
Paraphrase reflections assist the learner or the listener and make sure that we truly are focused on what the child has to say. This also helps focus our listening. If we know that we are going to paraphrase and say something back to a child, we are going to listen a little more closely to make sure that we truly are hearing what that child says. Again, it helps us make sure that we understand the child's message and meaning. When we restate something back to a child, it puts the control of the conversation back to the child so that they can say something else. We may not have a question and we may not have an answer related to what they say, but if we direct a restatement back to them, then the ball is in their court, and they are able to serve that conversation back to us.
When we use paraphrase reflections, it might help a child be able to elaborate and expand on something that they are saying. A restatement may give the child more language that may help them elaborate on what they have said the next time they say something to us. I recently listened to a conversation between one of our preschool children and one of our practicum students. The preschool child said, "My birthday's when it snows." Without hesitation, the practicum student said, "Your birthday's in the winter?" She made it a question, but also more of a statement to help that child understand. Then she said, "Okay, well, when it snows, that is typically called the winter. That is when my birthday is. My birthday is when it snows. That means my birthday's in the winter." This child's birthday was in November. Everything was accurate but allowing that child to hear some other words may have helped expand their vocabulary and expand their conversation attempts.
It also helps if we understand the context of the situation. It is important not only to listen with our ears but to be very aware of what is happening in a situation. That can help us in rephrasing a child's message.
You can use paraphrase reflections anytime a child says something to you. You can simply restate or have a couple of restatements to help that child understand that you heard what they said and that you understand what they are trying to get across. It should not be worded as a question, because we are not questioning what the child said. We are trying to let the child know, I understand what you are saying.
One example of paraphrase reflections is when a child points to some vegetables on their plate at a meal and says, "This yucky." You might say, "You do not like the vegetables,” or, “You do not like carrots," or, “This tastes bad to you.” There are so many different ways to try to decipher what this child is saying and many ways to restate "this yucky." It is giving that child some other words to fill in the blanks for, "This is yucky. I do not like it."
Another example is when you have a child that is excitedly carrying a puppy and says, "We got a new Spot." Using the context of seeing a puppy, hearing that something is named Spot and what you have is new you can determine the child has a new puppy named Spot. You can say, “You have a new puppy named Spot.” That is a simple restatement to let a child know that you understand they are trying to tell you that their puppy's name is Spot. Maybe they had an old dog named Spot, and now this is a new dog named Spot.
Use clues to help you better understand what a child is trying to get across to you. I encourage you to use some paraphrase reflections but try not to overuse them. You do not want to repeat everything that a child says to you because that will certainly stop a conversation. It is not a mimicking type of strategy and we do not want to parrot everything back to that child.
