Media Resources
Overview of Respectful Care™
Respectful Care™ brings a unique blend of traditional knowledge and cutting edge research to children and their families and caregivers.
The wisdom of generations has been distilled into many popular pedagogies, and many techniques from the Montessori method, Steiner/Waldorf Education®, Pikler®/RIE® and the Reggio Emilia approach match up well with current research in the field of developmental neuroscience.
Respectful Care™ brings these worlds together to benefit families with straightforward, personalized consults for parents and in-depth professional development training for nannies and newborn care specialists.
Fast Facts: about Respectful Care™
- Respectful Care™ as a teaching program was developed by Danielle McLellan-Bujnak in response to a need articulated in the nanny and newborn care specialist community, for a course to prepare professional caregivers to offer a higher level of care, blending current research in the neuroscience of human development with familiar, established programs and practices.
- The first course cohort met in Cancun, Mexico in January 2018 for a full day of teaching and learning, and this grew into the introductory course "Respectful Care™ for Newborns, Infants & Toddlers" which was filmed by Newborn Care Solutions in the summer of 2018 and is still available via video streaming on their site.
- Many professional caregivers wanted to take the course in person, so Ms. McLellan-Bujnak traveled to 13 cities to teach the full day course a total of 16 times with cohorts of local (and sometimes out-of-state) nannies and NCS. Some students flew across the country to take the course, and one course date was held in London, U.K. These cohorts also co-created a brand-new data set with Ms. McLellan-Bujnak for her Master's thesis project, compiling information about professional development in the nanny profession.
- At the end of these long and intensive days, students came up to Ms. McLellan-Bujnak asking for "more" and asking when there would be an "advanced course." In January 2021, the inaugural cohort of the Advanced Course in Respectful Care™ was launched, and the doors are currently open for registration for the first-ever Digital Cohort of the Advanced Course in Respectful Care™ which launches in August 2022.
- Contemporaneously with developing the introductory course, Ms. McLellan-Bujnak worked full-time as a nanny for a family with two children, and these clients were happy to hear about her work in educating nannies, but also lobbied hard for her to start reaching out to teach parents through courses and other "one-to-many" efforts. They complained that nobody else provides the type of advice and support that characterizes Respectful Care™, and they knew that many parents are looking for the same kind of advice they themselves had been looking for everywhere, and only received from Ms. McLellan-Bujnak.
- The University of Parenting™ series of courses for parents (launching in the summer of 2022) will, at long last, fulfill their passionate request for more accessible support for parents who want to provide a healthy and genuinely workable approach in raising their children.
- In the meantime, Ms. McLellan-Bujnak provides targeted advice and support to many families via remote consult (recorded via Zoom), and in-person support to select families as well.
Fast Facts: about Danielle McLellan-Bujnak
Danielle McLellan-Bujnak is an experienced and highly qualified early childhood educator, consultant, and professional development instructor, with many years of experience guiding and caring for infants and children and their families in a wide variety of settings, including individual family homes, home schooling, day cares, preschools, and Montessori, Reggio-inspired and Waldorf-based early childhood programs.
In addition to her graduate work in Early Childhood Education (specializing in Infant & Toddler Mental Health and following the constructivist approach), Ms. McLellan-Bujnak has also committed herself to intensive in-person training from the American Academy of Pediatrics in Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics and Pediatric Emergency Medicine, and she has pursued formal training in Nonviolent Crisis Prevention & Intervention (CPI), Positive Behaviour Intervention (PBI), Nonviolent/Collaborative Communication, Orton-Gillingham (Multi-Sensory Education), RIE® Foundations for Professionals. She has long-standing familiarity with the Montessori and Waldorf approaches to early childhood. She is also a licensed Emergency Medical Technician (E.M.T.) with specialized training for pediatric patients.
Ms. McLellan-Bujnak has completed a graduate-level certificate in early childhood, and achieved licensing by the state of California at the “Master Teacher” and “Site Supervisor” levels, permitting her to run a multi-classroom preschool or daycare for ages birth to 8 years, and to guide and mentor other teachers in best practices for these ages. After completing a graduate-level certificate in Early Childhood Education, Danielle is currently pursuing an MSc in Infant & Toddler Development following the Constructivist approach (inspired by Reggio Emilia).
Backgrounder: Danielle McLellan-Bujnak & Respectful Care™
What does she do, exactly?
Danielle McLellan-Bujnak is a Family Dynamics Specialist, bringing targeted and personalized support to families who are struggling with transitions, as well as the challenges of day-to-day family life.
Background:
Some are born with innate gifts that are cultivated through years of passionately devoted experience, and Danielle is one of these people. She was born with a clear vision of her life’s path: raising and nurturing children in a way that set them up for success in becoming happy, functional adults.
Her wealth of knowledge is unparalleled in this field. Her background in research and education allows her to provide cutting-edge support that leads children - and parents - to feel safe, heard, and deeply understood. In her three decades of experience in working with families, she has curated myriad bespoke solutions; time and again, she has been able to create a harmonious and productive household through the tools derived from her intuition, experience, and education.
Ms. McLellan-Bujnak sees that every child - and every parent - is a unique and unrepeatable human being, with unique needs and desires. Her superpower is regulation; she can understand the intricacies of an infant’s or child’s nervous system, and fine-tune the structures and actions of the household to create a space for that child to engage with the family in a positive way. Her ability to comprehend the inner dynamics of the minds of children is uncanny.
Raised by a mother who was trained by a mentee of Dr. Maria Montessori, Ms. McLellan-Bujnak's early years were infused with the wisdom and values of that school of thought, which she credits for the resilience and confidence she developed throughout the course of her childhood. In this open-ended style of learning, children are encouraged to learn for themselves, rather than for others. This particular style is based on meeting the needs of the individual, and the approach has been proven successful in building independence and creativity.
Innovative Methods:
Ms. McLellan-Bujnak developed the Respectful Approach to Human Development, Education & Care™ as a combination of her own highly authentic Montessori upbringing with elements from Steiner/Waldorf Education®, RIE® and the Reggio Emilia approach, indexing these early childhood practices with current research in the neuroscience of human development.
Danielle’s introductory Respectful Care™ course has guided over 100 caregiving professionals in their teaching and learning journeys, and the Advanced Course in Respectful Care™ (also for professional caregivers) is currently launching its first-ever digital cohort.
As a trusted advisor and consultant for parents, Ms. McLellan-Bujnak's specialized plans consider the family as a whole; she integrates the needs of everyone in the household to promote a peaceful sanctuary for all involved. Every experience with Danielle is tailored to the dynamics of the home, and her priority is complete comfort with the implementation of any new structure. She understands that the family is a unit, and that each unique personality must be taken into consideration to create balance.
What she brings to families:
- When you work with Ms. McLellan-Bujnak, you have access to someone with the capability to design an environment for your child to thrive in ways that you’ve never imagined. She is endlessly empathetic, never judgmental, and she creates a safe space for you to be vulnerable in your communications with her.
- Ms. McLellan-Bujnak is a regulator; she works with children to elicit the ease in their nervous systems that they can't access themselves, and she guides parents in identifying and managing their own neuropsychological state as well as their child’s.
- An unregulated nervous system leads to a child who has difficulty understanding their feelings and controlling their impulses; once they are regulated, growth, learning, and evolution begins. She has an almost psychic ability to tune into your child and to understand what best serves them in every given moment, to create a space for them to feel safe and feel heard.
- In Ms. McLellan-Bujnak's work, each child - and each parent - is perfect just as they are; we all simply need certain things in our lives to flourish and excel. Her capacity to identify needs allows her to support each person as the unique and unrepeatable individual that they are.
- There are no cookie-cutter approaches in this work; no forcing children (or adults) into patterns that don’t fit. Her brilliant approach is specialized for each family, giving each family member space to grow into the mastery of who they truly are.
- Ms. McLellan-Bujnak is a catalyst for the evolution of the family as a whole, providing structure and meaning to the interactions of each member so that they can learn and grow as a cohesive unit.
Respectful Care™: Services Offered
- Respectful Care™ provides personalized consulting by Danielle McLellan-Bujnak (both remotely and in person) for families, and offers video-based professional development instruction for professional nannies and newborn care specialists.
- Book a sleep consult for parents: https://calendly.com/childmagic/sleepconsultation
- Book a behaviour support consult for parents: https://calendly.com/childmagic/parents
- The introductory course in Respectful Care™ for caregivers is offered through Newborn Care Solutions: https://learning.newborncaresolutions.com/courses/respectful-care-for-newborns-infants-toddlers
- The Advanced Course in Respectful Care™ for caregivers is currently open for registration for the first-ever Digital Cohort: https://respectfulapproach.com/digital-advanced-course
- BOOK AN INTERVIEW CALL with Danielle McLellan-Bujnak: for media inquiries: https://calendly.com/childmagic/interview
Contact information
"Nanny Magazine" columns on Respectful Care™
by Danielle McLellan-Bujnak
ABC: Acknowledgement, Beliefs & Biases, Connection
DEF: Dialogue, Environment, Freedom
GHI: Good Enough, Hundred Languages, Image of the Child
JKL: Jingle, Kindness, Listening & Limits & Love
MNO: Motivation & Moral Decision-Making, Narration, Open-ended
PQR: Predictability, Questions, Respectful and Relationship-Based Care
STU: Supported Struggle, Teaching & Learning, Unfolding Development
VWX: Validating, Waiting, eXtending the Learning
YZ: "Yes" Space, Zone of Proximal Development
Selected Media Coverage
8 Important Questions To Ask Teens, According To Experts (Romper)
Baby Vivian needs a stroller for her European vacation (San Diego Reader)
Irregular Schedule? 10 Tips to Get Your Sleep on Track (Healthline)
Shift work can disrupt your sleep patterns. These tips might help (Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
International Nanny Association: Nanny of the Year™ Nominee & Finalist (Video)
Gentle Giraffes: caregiver interview blog
What should parents consider before hiring a baby sleep consultant? (Tiny Transitions)
Video Interviews:
Ms. McLellan-Bujnak's Invited Workshop & Conference Presentations:
- interNational Nanny Training Day: Boston MetroWest MA, Denver CO, Southern California
- International Nanny Association Annual Conference: Tucson AZ & New Orleans LA
- Pacific All-Star Nanny Conference: Olympia WA
- Nannypalooza West conference: Santa Ana CA
- Nannypalooza East conference: Philadelphia PA
- Great British Nanny Conference: London UK