From when I was old enough to watch my younger brothers I’ve been working with kids, from after-school babysitting to nannying in the summers to tutoring, almost every job I’ve had has been working with kids. When you spend that long working with kids, you start to learn a lot of truths about what it’s like working with them.

They’re just small people.

A lot of people can get scared or strange around kids. They think that kids aren’t smart, that they’re annoying, that they don’t know anything. Those people couldn’t be more wrong. One thing I’ve learned over all is that kids aren’t really that different from grown ups -- they have wants, likes, dislikes. They have their own unique personalities and are all different.

They learn from everything they see.

Kids are constantly learning, they’re watching everything and trying to learn how the world works. When a grown up does something, the child thinks that behavior becomes acceptable. When a grown up swears, the kid swears without knowing what it means except that it’s an insult. They also learn from each other, when one kid starts to act up, the other does as well. They often copy and help to escalate each other’s behavior.

Don’t wear your hair down.

It’s something to grab, it’s something to pull. If you’re around small children, I would be careful. I’ve had babies knot their hands into my hair that they ripped a lot out when I tried to put them down. I’ve also had kids take scissors and try to cut it while I wasn’t looking.

Don’t show special treatment within a group.

If you start doing something with one child in a group, the rest of them are going to want to join in. This can often lead to fighting and struggles with sharing so just be careful that you’re doing an activity that everyone can join.

Space is underestimated.

If a child won’t stop crying or if they’re not in the mood to talk, they may just need some space. For a kid, especially for one in a difficult situation or with a lot of siblings, alone time can be really hard to come by and so some space can really do them some good. Just some time to play by themselves, to calm down or to think can be really beneficial.

When you have fun, kids have fun.

Kids respond in kind when you're truly having fun with them. They like to interact with people that like to interact with them. If you have fun, engage with them and are genuinely enjoying spending time with them they’ll most likely enjoy spending time with you too. If you can be goofy, you’ll have fun.

Interest and one-on-one attention are way more important than anyone thinks.

This is a lesson that applies to almost any social interaction. Anyone who gets shown genuine interest and one-on-one attention from another person is going to react well. Just asking how a quiet kid’s day is going can really brighten them up and help to form a connection. Showing individual attention to a child can really make a difference, especially if the child is in a difficult situation and in need of some care.