369: Are You Really Preparing Your Early Childhood Staff or Just Checking Boxes?

In this episode of Childcare Conversations, Kate Woodward Young drops some serious truth bombs about why handing a new hire a handbook and saying "let us know if you have questions" just doesn't cut it. She breaks down the real difference between orientation, training, and onboarding, and why completing a training checklist doesn't automatically mean someone is competent. Kate walks you through a practical 90-day onboarding framework and reminds us that great staff doesn't rise to the role alone: they need modeling, practice, feedback, and genuine support.

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Transcript

Childcare Conversations 0:00

Welcome to Child Care Conversations, the podcast where early childhood leaders like you get real-world strategies, honest talk, and a whole lot of support. Whether you're running one center or many, we're here to help you lead with confidence and clarity. This episode is brought to you by this quarter's sponsor, Playground, the all-in-one child care management software. We're all about managing monkeys and saving you time at your center. With this platform, you can. We're proud to partner with a team that's as committed to your success as we are. Learn more at tryplayground.com. Now, let's get into today's conversation. One we think you're really going to love.

Kate Woodward Young 0:47

Welcome back to Childcare Conversations. I'm Kate Woodward Young, and well, today is another soapbox episode. And hopefully you will be able to take away just a couple of tips. I'd go grab some paper and pencil because we are going to talk about one of my favorite subjects. And well, a signed handbook does not prove someone knows what to do when a child is unsafe, a parent is upset, a coworker is frustrated, or a classroom is falling apart at 4:45 on a Friday. A handbook is not a training plan. Now, I want you to think of this pattern because it is a common pattern, and I see it all of the time. Someone is hired, and after they're hired, and they're maybe told a little bit about how to do a background check or fingerprinting or some of those logistics, it still comes back to paperwork. And then they're told about the policies and maybe some online manuals. Possibly they will shadow a shift. And my favorite line of all is let us know if you have any questions. Now, sometimes, and we've all been here, we don't even know what questions we might ask. And I've actually heard directors and owners call that orientation. But you know what? Just because you've sent them through orientation doesn't mean you've actually prepared them for the job. I want you to think about this. I'm going to make three distinctions, okay? Orientation tells people where things are and what rules exist. Training teaches them how to do the work. Onboarding helps them become a part of the program over time. For example, a policy says active supervision matters. Now, training shows them what active supervision looks like in a real toddler room. Onboarding helps a new teacher show no. Completing the training does not equal competence. I'm going to repeat that because I really want you to hear that. Completion is not competence. Just because they have marked the box doesn't mean they know how to do it. All right, directors, you're not going to like this because I'm all about standard operating procedures and policies. Part of the reason this keeps happening is that directors, you're overwhelmed, and I get that. You're covering classrooms, and I get that. You inherited systems that you thought worked. You were never actually taught how to train adults. You never were taught how they learn. You have compliance pressure and a little bit of time. And then we think, well, we told them, and somehow we told them means they know it. Now, if this was the case, we wouldn't have a need for middle school, for high school, or for any college, right? Because think about how many things you've been told in your lifetime that by the time you're 21, you don't remember. Most directors are not failing because they do not care. You do, you care, you care about the adults that work with you. You might need you might even know exactly the different learning styles for adults. You might know your learning style. However, an adult learning lens is different than understanding a learning style. Designing intentionally training for the adults is very similar to what you do when you intentionally design coursework learning opportunities for toddlers. Because that looks very different than intentionally designing the same topic or lesson for a three, four, or eight-year-old. When I first became a CPR instructor at the age of 16 and a trainer of trainers at 17, nobody handed me a manual and said, good luck teaching this. I had to know the material. I had to watch somebody teach the material. I had to do the teaching in front of somebody else twice with check marks, with observation, with feedback, before I ever taught a course on my own. The expectation was model the skill. Explain why it mattered. Do you realize how many things that happen every single day that might be classified into unconscious competence? In other words, we don't actually explain why it matters. Why does it matter to the teacher that all of the kids wash their hands before they eat? When's the last time you actually explained the why, instead of assume that they understand? So you're going to model the skill, you're going to explain why it matters, you're going to let people practice, you're going to correct the mistakes, have them practice again. Observe the readiness, right? Are they coachable? And then you're going to repeat and you're going to reinforce. This is not a one-time training. If somebody has to know what to do under pressure, you do not train them once and hope they remember. You build practice into the process. There is a reason. Let's think about the annual training. There are some topics that every single year we have to know. Why do you think that is? Why is there some training that you have to be taught every single year? It's because if you don't build that practice into the process, then, and if you never use it, you lose it, right? We've heard that phrase before. So as you are starting to think through the conversations that I've just said, I want you to pull out your piece of paper and your pencil. Because what your actual staff need is an onboarding sequence before day one, before they show up for their first day of work. Make sure that they are very clear on their role. Make sure they're very clear on their schedule, the expectations, what to wear, what to bring, and who they're going to meet. During that first week, talk about safety, talk about routines, explain the why behind the safety and the routines. Understand the communication, the internal communication amongst staff, the communication between that adult and the children, the communication between that teacher, that adult, and the parents. They should not know how to do any of this independently. This is their first week. At the end of the first week, there's probably very little that they are truly competent to do. Doesn't mean you haven't trained them, but are they competent? Over the course of that first 30 days, support the practice of those conversations between two staff. Support the conversations between staff and parents. Support the active supervision. Support the engagement with the children. Support the classroom rhythm. Give them feedback. Build that relationship. Over the next 30 days, so from day 30 to day 60, this is where they're going to start to grow their independence. Look at the different skills. And are you coaching them on those skills during that first 30, 60 days? And those skills can include things like sanitizing toys, sweeping the floor, cleaning the bathroom, do they understand how to know how to make play-doh? How much fun do they have when they are engaged with the children, doing activities in the classroom? Yes, that's a skill. Some people, they learn that skill, they love that skill, it's why they're there. Other people, they may like kids, but maybe they've never been around a child that age and they don't really know, or maybe they have a cousin that age. Then over the next, in other words, from day 60 to day 90, strengthen the gaps. Identify the gaps. Because here we're putting together their future training plan, the training plan for the rest of the year. Every single staff person needs to have their own training plan. You need to have your own training plan. It needs to identify where you are right now and where do you want to go? Do you personally know what things you don't do very well? Or do you grab, like a lot of us do, that professional development around the things you want to learn, the things you like? Or do you go to the workshops around the topics that make you a little uncomfortable? Yeah, like compliance. I did a workshop this weekend on compliance. It was amazing. It should have had every single person in the conference should have been in that workshop. But you know what? It wasn't. Compliance is a topic that makes people go icky. Right? You don't really want to be there. Part of that onboarding sequence also is is that person a good fit for that role? Are they a good fit for your culture? Are you sitting here going, yeah, they're gonna be with us for a long time? Or are you like, well, I don't know about this one. It's kind of it's gonna be kind of like throwing darts. We'll have to see. New staff should never have to guess what good looks like. Now, here's what I want you to do, okay? I want you to think about your current, your most recent hire, your current hire. And I want you to think about your onboarding process, the way you currently have it written. Who owns the launch of this person? What must they know before they are independent in a classroom? What can they read versus practice? And what happens if they aren't a reader? Do you have other options for that learning? Can they watch it on a video? Somebody reading it to them? Can they do an auditory version of it? Remember, not everybody learns the same way. You need the different components, the different touch points. Okay. When and by whom do they receive feedback? Hmm. So do you have a staff person who has started, who worked with a mentor teacher, but then got their feedback from you, and maybe you actually never saw them in a classroom? That you took the notes from the from the master teacher who trained them? Well, that's just tacky. Okay? So I'm just gonna call a spade a spade, right? No, you should not be giving feedback to somebody if you didn't observe it. Okay? Now, yes, I know your master teachers are busy and I get that. So work with them together to provide the feedback, especially if they're not comfortable with it. Your master teachers need to learn how to have uncomfortable conversations just like you do. And if all of this only occurs in your head, then you know what? There's no onboarding system. That means that you can't delegate, share the load of this responsibility. Now, don't get me wrong, handbooks and policies absolutely 100% matter because compliance matters. Remember when I've talked, you've heard me talk about in other episodes about lifeguarding, about healthcare, nursing, certified nursing assistance. You've also heard me talk about working at, you know, restaurants and hospitality. Do you know what? Every single one of them, they have compliance. They have health inspections, they have safety inspections. Guess what we have in childcare? Safety inspections, health inspections, compliance matters. Nobody on your staff is going to become a capable adult because they signed the handbook. Nobody's going to become a competent adult in the role of early educator if all you're doing is giving them a couple of videos to watch. Even if you've upgraded your training program and now it's an interactive little video, a little reading, a little answering questions, maybe there's a situation for them to think through. They become capable because somebody shows them, lets them practice, gives them feedback, answers their questions, stays close enough to learn so that they can become confident. We cannot build a stronger childcare profession by helping people rise to the role. We have to create intentional ways for people to enter, learn, grow, and stay. What are you doing at your program to create an intentional entry path? Intentional learning and professional development. How is your retention intentional? I am so excited that you joined us for today's episode. We will be back in a couple of days with our guest for next week, and we hope that you come and hear all of the amazing things that our guests had to say. Have a great day.

Childcare Conversations 14:52

Thanks for tuning in. We love bringing you real talk and fresh insight from the world of early childhood education. Be sure to follow us on social media to stay connected and catch all of the latest episodes. And if you're planning a conference, training, or special event, Kate and Carrie would love to speak to your audience. You can learn more about their keynote sessions and workshops at kateandcary.com. If you learned something today, share the show and leave us a review below. We'll see you next time on Child Care Conversations.