How we communicate about the early years matters – for children, families and communities.
The Queensland Framing Champions Group – an initiative of Queensland Kids Partnership – has collaboratively created the following framed messaging based on their expertise and the latest mindsets and framing research (in the box below).
This resource has been collated to demonstrate well-framed messages and for use by anyone who wants to support productive conversations about the national Thriving Kids initiative.
While QKP is not directly linked with the national Thriving Kids initiative, we can all play our part in sharing information that is clear, reliable and framed in a way that supports understanding of what children need.
We invite you to:
– use the boxed text ‘Supporting every child to thrive’, as appropriate, for your communication needs
– share the messaging across your networks to help build consistency in how we communicate about children
– join us in learning more about framing and promoting a shared understanding of how we can support every child to thrive.
Messaging informed by framing evidence
Evidence shows that people do not simply respond to facts, but interpret issues through deep patterns of thinking about responsibility, community and change. Current mindset research points to the importance of strengthening a broader ‘village’ understanding: children and families do best when the relationships, services, policies and places around them are designed to support healthy development. It also helps position government as an essential partner in creating the conditions that enable families, communities and services to work together – rather than as a distant fixer or sole authority.
In this framing, the message is clear: what surrounds us shapes us, and when we strengthen the environments around children, we create more opportunities for every child to thrive. You will see this embedded in the shared message below.
Supporting every child to thrive
Every child can grow, learn, belong and participate in everyday life when the people who care for them have the relationships, information and practical help they need.
Children learn and develop through everyday interactions with parents, carers, siblings, family and other trusted people, and through the places and communities around them. The early years, from pregnancy to eight, are an important time for children’s health, learning and development. It’s natural to have questions about how a child is growing and developing. Having somewhere trusted to turn for clear information, reassurance or extra help can make a real difference.
Thriving Kids is a new Australian Government initiative designed to make it easier for families to find trusted information and advice, and to work out what to do next when questions arise.
By bringing families, educators, health workers, government and community organisations together, Thriving Kids strengthens the connections around children and families so they can get the information and help they need earlier. This gives every child more opportunities to grow, learn, belong and thrive – now and into the future.
Queensland Framing Champions Group
The Queensland Framing Champions Group is an initiative of Queensland Kids Partnership, bringing together people from across the early years and family sector who are committed to using evidence-informed framing to strengthen how we communicate about children, families and communities.
We know that our words, images and stories are powerful tools for creating understanding and building support for positive change. By using evidence-informed framing, we can communicate in ways that help families and the broader community understand the importance of early childhood and the role we all play in supporting children to thrive.
As advocates for the wellbeing and development of Queensland’s children, the Queensland Framing Champions recognise the transformative power of framing in fostering understanding, collaboration and action. By applying evidence-based framing strategies developed and tested for the early years in Australia, members of the Queensland Framing Champions Group are strengthening public understanding, building support for effective policy and practice, and engaging the broader community in creating the conditions for children to thrive across our organisations and networks.
SAMPLE SOCIAL MEDIA POST FOR SHARING THIS PAGE:
How we talk about the early years matters for children, families, communities.
That’s why the Queensland Framing Champions Group – an initiative of Queensland Kids Partnership – has collaboratively developed an example of well-framed messaging that we can all use to support productive conversations about the national Thriving Kids initiative.
The language is grounded in framing and mindset research and the message is simple: what surrounds us shapes us – and when we strengthen the environments around children, we create more opportunities for every child to thrive.
We can all play our part in sharing information that is clear, reliable and framed in a way that supports understanding of what children need.
You can help by:
· reflecting evidence-informed framing in our messaging when talking about all kids, their families and communities
· learning together more about framing via the QKP Framing for Change learning hub.
Explore more about framing:
Framing resources are available through Queensland Kids Partnership, and the Queensland Framing Champions Group stands ready to support organisations and partners to adopt this shared approach to communication.
