Wraparound service providers in the early years, know the importance of supporting centres and educators as they work with children with complex needs. They have access to groundbreaking research, innovative strategies, and proven techniques that can make a real difference. Yet, at times efforts to engage early childhood services are met with hesitation, resistance, or simply silence.
Recently, while working with an early educational leadership team—who support preschools and long day care services—we encountered this challenge firsthand. Despite the clear benefits of wraparound support, many services remain stuck—acknowledging the challenges but reluctant to fully engage with the expertise and resources available. Referrals aren’t flowing, and even when resources are shared, they often go unread. Strategies are discussed but not adopted. Educators continue to struggle, navigating complex situations while the solutions they need remain just out of reach.
What’s Getting in the Way?
From the perspective of an early childhood educator, the reality is overwhelming. The day-to-day demands of the classroom leave little room for professional development, let alone for absorbing new strategies and implementing change. Staffing shortages mean educators are stretched thin, with little time for reflection or collaboration.
The need is clear—children with complex needs require tailored support, yet educators often feel isolated, lacking the tools and confidence to navigate these challenges effectively. When external support does arrive, it can feel like more work—more paperwork, more advice. Rather than feeling empowered, educators feel burdened. The result? A cycle of disengagement and feeling stuck.
Shifting the Approach: From Advice to Coaching
Traditional professional development often follows a top-down model—experts provide information, educators are expected to implement it. But this approach is flawed. Educators don’t need more advice; they need someone to sit alongside them, listen deeply, and co-create solutions tailored to their unique challenges.
This is where coaching comes in. Coaching is more than a soft skill; it’s a power skill—a transformative approach that shifts the dynamic from instruction to collaboration. Instead of giving advice and telling educators what to do, coaching empowers them to discover solutions through adaptive listening, powerful questioning, and guided reflection.
A Real-World Example: Coaching in Action
Recently, a workshop was held with a team of early childhood field officers who were keen to further build their coaching capabilities. The focus? Adaptive listening and questioning techniques—two core coaching skills that help leaders move beyond surface-level problem-solving and into deeper, more meaningful engagement.
Rather than prescribing solutions, participants practiced listening without judgment, asking open-ended questions, and co-creating strategies that felt practical and achievable. The impact was immediate. They left the workshop with a renewed sense of confidence and a clear pathway to supporting both centres and their educational leaders.
The Power of Coaching in Early Childhood Education
When educators feel empowered, change happens. Coaching fosters a culture of shared responsibility, where solutions are developed collaboratively rather than imposed externally. It shifts the focus from ‘doing more’ to ‘doing differently’—working smarter, not harder.
For wrap around support leaders, the key to unlocking change lies not in more advice, but in deeper connection. By embedding coaching practices into everyday interactions, they can transform not just how educators approach challenges, but how they see themselves—as capable, confident professionals equipped to make a real difference in the early years.
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