Professional Hopes and Goals

A hope that I have when I think about working with children and their families who come from diverse backgrounds is that we can all be accepting of each other, our cultures and values.
A goal I would like to set would be for all the Early Childhood field to embrace the project of designing global citizens. We have to start somewhere and I believe starting with our youngest citizens is the best place to start.
I wish all my fellow students a successful journey, many rewards and much happiness. I has been my sincere pleasure working and learning with you all.
Thanks!
Deb

Welcoming Families From Around the World

I am working as a Child Life Specialist in a hospital where we are receiving victims from a major catastrophe in Guam. There was an earthquake in the Philippines, and that caused a tsunami in Guam. The island is so small, many people were swept away. It was a 12 foot wave. This particular family lost the mom and their little boy. They were walking to their car and the little girl fell down. The rushing water pulled her under a truck and she held onto the truck. The little boy was in a stroller with his mom pushing him. The water swept them both away. The girl was found hours later when the truck driver returned to his truck. The dad had already been looking for his family since the tsunami ended. This girl suffered abrasions to her hands and legs from holding onto the truck and the debri  that scraped her legs while she was holding onto the truck. Her major difficulty was emotional. She saw her mom and little brother get carried away in the water and is having nightmares about the screaming she heard.
They transferred this family to another Micronesian island, Palau. I am a CLS at the local hospital. the ED doctor wants to keep her for observation. I will ask dad to tell me about their extended family, their customs about family members passing away, their food choices, and any suggestions he has for comforting his daughter. I hope that by gathering this information, I can enable them to accept what has happened and to begin healing. I will do my best to offer hope and comfort to this family and encourage them to get to a place where healing can begin.

Life Lessons Learned

I have a memory of a movie I watched, called Nell. She experienced bias, prejudice and oppression. Nell was twin who grew up in the woods with her grandma who had a stroke. She and her sister had their own twin language and their language model was her grandmother whose speech was impaired from a stroke. The grandmother and sister passed away, so Nell was left alone. She was found sometime later and her "rescuer" was very nice to her, but obviously the people who evaluated her were biased because of her situation and she experienced prejudice from people who look at her outward characteristics. Nell was oppressed because of her situation. She had no control over things surrounding her growing up. Being poor, illiterate and alone were not choices Nell made.

This made me feel empathetic with Nell. She was wounded and alone with a long road to her recovery. I am not really sure she felt the need to "recover" as much as her rescuers did.

I believe that her rescuers would have to be more accepting of her cultural differences and get to know her as a person to help her determine the direction in which she wants to go. Equity would be greater because Nell would become an active participant in her own life.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

The example of microaggression I observed this week was at Walmart. Several people were in line for Customer Service returning items. There was a couple two people ahead of me who spoke limited English. I think they may have been they may have been of German or Polish descent. The person in front of me was extremely rude remarking that if they didn't want to learn English, they should have stayed wherever they were from. She was loud and boisterous. The couple obviously did not understand what she was saying and the customer service person did a great job trying to help them and make them feel comfortable. After they left, that person continued her little tirade and the clerk hurried her along as quickly as she could. Obviously to her, her behavior was amusing, because she laughed and carried on like she was at a party. No one else in line was laughing.

I personally, felt horrible for this couple who expressed no idea they even knew what she was talking about. I was also pleased to witness that no one else in that line agreed or participated with her. Perhaps, we are further along in our understanding of how microaggressions affect the people they target.

My perception of the way some people still react to non-English speaking people has widened to know that as many steps forward we make towards unity, there is always someone available to move us back 2 steps! Sad, but true. Being in the 21st century makes little difference to some people, who living in a small town like I do, do not get enough exposure to the real world!

3 Opinions on Culture and Diversity

The first person I questioned was my husband. His definition of culture is the work ethic ( you can't tell that is important to him, right??), mannerisms, and parental leanings (generational) you inherit from your family. Diversity is going out of the box to engage others without fear.
My second person was my eldest son, Michael. His definition of culture is the way you are raised, how you learned to socialize, and the methods you use to define yourself. Diversity is how people do everything differently and how you adjust to it.
And thirdly, I chose my manager at work. She said culture is the dynamics of anywhere you are. She also said that diversity is the differences you don't know.
The answers I received did include some examples of what I am learning in this course. I particularly liked my husband's answer about going out of the box and approaching others without fear. Diversity is all about how you relate to and adjust to others.
Examples of some omissions are really not evident to me. I think that they pretty well covered culture and diversity. I was actually proud of their responses.

My Family Culture

A major catastrophe.............I am imagining all different types of scenarios. The three items I would choose to bring with me would be my bible, a family photo and the dog. I hold the bible dear to me and would explain it as my "rule book" to remind me how to live my life. I would bring a family photo so I can remember my family with love and be reminded of how dear to me they are. And lastly, I would bring our dog because he is a true reminder of the love we share. My children have always had a dog and although we have gone through a few over the years, they are always loved like family members and would be lost without us and us without them.

My feelings upon arrival if I was told I could only keep one item would be extreme devastation. I would probably experience the same feelings I had when I had to choose only three items in the aftermath of the major catastrophe. I would definitely feel lost and floundering. All three of the items I chose are integral parts of my life and who I am.

The insights I gained just from doing this exercise are enormous. It must be devastating to leave behind all you hold dear and then move to a place where you will never see any of your family or "things" again. Refugees are lucky to have their lives, but I am sure some of them feel like they were leaving their entire lives behind and had no idea of what direction they should go in. How easy it must have been to sweep them up and assimilate them into the dominant culture! If really thinking this through doesn't make you more culturally sensitive, nothing will!

When I think of Research....

The insights I have gained through this course are many. I have learned there are many ways in which research is classified, and I have only begun to understand a few of them. Many avenues have to be considered before beginning a research adventure.

I have changed my ideas about research because I had no idea research was such a complex endeavor. I am in awe of people who do this as a career.

The challenges I have encountered have been the complexity of dissecting a research method in order to better understand it. I believe the only ways available to meet it are to slow down and take it step by step.

My perceptions of an early childhood professional have been modified because I truly had no idea of the immensity of a research foundation. I understood it required much work, but perhaps not the magnitude of it!

I would like to thank my classmates for all the positive comments and support they have provided throughout such a challenging course. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Dr. Davis for enlightening us about such a necessary subject. She has truly showed us the light at the end of the tunnel! I wish blessings to all and good luck in your future endeavors!

Research Around the World

I was very interested in the Early Childhood Australia website. It is very similar to the NAEYC website. Some of the current international topics that I noticed were: Childhood Allergies are on the Rise; this interested me because it seems the same here in the United States. However, Australia is reporting the highest of any other country!
Workforce Strategy is in the news because each state and territory government have committed to develop implementations that outline steps to be taken to support people to join the Early Education and Care workforce and get the qualifications and skills they need to support children from diverse backgrounds and with differing needs.
Crisis in Syria is a report about how it is affecting children and families. At AlZaatari Camp there are 5000 children under the age of 4! How will this affect their futures?

Australians belive in the support of their youngest citizens. Something the United States could take lessons in.

I found the information on this website very noteworthy and I would definitely look here in the future to see what types of things are happening internationally and how Australia is dealing with problems that are similar to ours.

Research that benefits....

I started out with good intentions! I decided to talk about fluoride. Research done on fluoride showed it would be beneficial to our children's teeth, right? Well, in a Harvard study in July, has found that there is a relationship between fluoride and reduced IQs! The U.S. fluoridation proponents have continued their approach of forcing individuals, including children to ingest fluoride through tap water and food made with it. The United States in conventional risk assessment uses a default margin of safety that is ten times the levels that cause adverse effects. (Harvard study, 2012).
This truly was to be about how fluoride in the drinking water was good research to strengthen our children's teeth! Once I started looking for articles, however I ran across this one and it was over!
As the public is learning, there are deeply disturbing details that have been omitted from reports about fluoridating our water. Some children are at much greater risks than others. "A UNICEF-funded study (http://www.fluoridealer.org/uploads/lin-1991.pdf) for example, found that children with iodine deficiencies suffered reductions in IQ at low fluoride levels. (Harvard study, 2012). This situation is unnerving and very serious. Fluoride is toxic and the USDA has the public believing it is beneficial to us! How many children will suffer needless harm because of our government's inability to tell us the truth?
Thank you for letting me share this information with you. Please go to this website and read it for yourself!

Reference:
Harvard study, (2012), Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.fluoridealert.org/hsph_2012/.

No Difference in Tooth Decay between F and NF countries. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.fluoridealert.org/issues/caries-data/

Many Children Now Exceed Recommended Daily Fluoride Intake From Toothpaste Alone. Retrieved September 20, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://S4780.sites.pressdns.com/issues/sol-toothpaste/

Personal Research Journey

My chosen topic for this simulation assignment is children's mental health or perhaps their emotional health. The experienc I had personally is listed below:

We gained custody of my stepson at the age of 4. He was badly damaged and it has been a long road back to health. With my passion for young children, seeing a child in these circumstances made my heart cry out and at that time, I wished for more knowledge. We followed different avenues to try to get a handle on what was happening, and looking back I can remember it was almost always a decision that was left up to me. As I look at him now, thirty years later, I am assured I chose paths that benefitted him. He is happily married with 2 sons. I just wish I would have had better answers for him and myself when we were both experiencing things on a trial and error basis.
 I do believe that in researching these topics, if I can help a family look to the proper sources for information, then my research will have been worthwhile. One of the most difficult things to do is to make those decisions while you are experiencing the problem. I can sympathize with these families and instead of jumping at the first offer of help, they can turn to the source that has been proven effective. This would make their journey just a little bit easier.
 Also, another reason would be to be able to obtain the proper type of education for young families that are seeing emerging difficulties due to a lack of knowledge of how regulation can assist separation anxiety. I see many parents and children who have a difficult time separating at child care centers and sometimes even with grandparents. To instill the knowledge in them about how assisting their children in regulating themselves can be invaluable to separation anxiety would be priceless. This needless suffering they go through on a daily basis can be eliminated. Of course, they must learn this in childbirth classrooms so we don’t wait until they have not achieved self-regulation to try to correct it.
 And lastly, the topic of child abuse which is very painful. My stepson had been abused by his mother and her new husband. Whatever I could do to try to eradicate this horrible plague would make it worthwhile. To look into a child’s eyes and see that terror is not something a parent should ever have to experience, nor should any child. I am adamantly committed to taking proper care of children, so it is very difficult for me to see someone use physical punishment to discipline a child.  I raised my stepson and my son without spanking them. If people teach children respect first and foremost, they will find it is unnecessary to spank them. It is a very difficult world to raise two fine young men with only a mother to care for them, but it can be done. I am not looking to commend myself, only stating that I know firsthand that it can be done! If I found it possible somehow to inform parents of the crucial roles they play in their children’s lives at birth or before then, I would make it my lifelong commitment to inform all people! I have always said that giving new parents a diaper bag at the hospital is a lovely gesture, but why not give them a parenting class that would greatly benefit them and their brand new babies much more than a bag! Our society is in dire need of radical changes to keep our children safe. I would like to be a part of it.

If anyone has any advice or insight in this that might help the process, I welcome it! It makes it easier and more difficult to research something so personal!

Final blog for EDUC 6162

3 Consequences and a Goal........

I am angry at the United States for being so negligent. How can we claim to be one of the greatest countries on earth and continue to neglect our children?
Next, I am so glad that there are many countries in this world are taking the time to properly educate their children without struggles, and teachers are supported by their administrations and the community. They are much further in becoming recognized as professionals.
Thirdly, the European Union recognizes the importance of early childhood education and care, especially in enhancing social cohesion by breaking the cycle of disadvantages and laying the foundation for lifelong learning as well as contributing to better educational outcomes. (Klein, 2012). And because of this and its outcome, our own country needs to look at this positive stride Europe is making and echo their systems so our children will have a fighting chance.

Reference:
Klein, J. (2012), Das Nachrichtenportal Rhein-Neckar, p. 15
(This reference was received by me from my German contact. I asked her to find me a quote pertaining to what I was writing about, and this is the one she sent me that seemed appropriate to me.)

Oops! I almost forgot to include my goal!
Actually, my goal is two part. First to stay current on worldwide events in the early childhood field. And to stay current with the innovative Harlem Children's Zone. Secondly, to do everything within my power to make sure high quality early childhood education and care is accessible to all children.

Thanks for reading!

International Contacts - Part 3

I have really had an enjoyable time getting to know my "teacher friend" from Germany! This assignment has been fun and depressing comparing what we know and are learning to Europe, who seems to have it a lot more together than our country does.

The issues regarding quality and early childhood professionals being discussed in Germany are that Europe has a life-long learning project called, "Precious Project". This project was based on efforts within European partner countries to increase the quality of training for early childhood professionals. Their statement of commitment highlights "highly qualified staff performs more efficiently and increases the prevention effect and therefore reduces the cost factor".

Teachers are encouraged to attend at least one yearly training event. Carolyn tells me they are all glad to go because it does not cost them anything and the weekend long training is held three times a year in Germany. The classes are fun, they learn incredible amounts of information and are fed breakfast and lunch. Maybe if it was done that way here, people would be more willing to go and get their training. She told me that teachers are more than willing to go, but also that the general public sees them as professional teachers and their pay is comparable to the school system.

Carolyn also gave me a reference if anyone would like to check out the details.

http://www.european-agency.org/agency-projects/early-childhood-intervention

Those are the only details given to me. I did check out the website and it is very informative!

Sharing Web Resources

Some of the links on the home page for the Harlem Children's Zone website lead to donations, more information about Harlem Children's Zone, Project Pipeline Information, Latest news and more news, and a business report to show how monies are being spent.

I chose to research the "Path to Sustainability" link on the website. President Obama is quoted as saying, "If we know it works, there's no reason this program should stop at the end of the blocks in Harlem. (Obama, 2008).
The Harlem Children's Zone has moved from an experiment to a success, and the final challenge is sustainability. Its clear what a nation such as ours needs to compete successfully in this global economy of the 21st century - a workforce that is ready and well-educated. (HCZ, 2012).

This project leads me to understand the wonderful job HCZ is doing and makes me believe that they will not have any problem sustaining their success. I hope it translates to other communities and becomes a national stereotype!

Reference:
Harlem Childrens Zone, Retrieved August 2, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://hcz.org

Getting to Know My International Contact..

My contact from Italy is on holiday and apparently that is for a 1 month duration. I did however receive information from my contact in Germany. She informs me that there is a European Council/Union that speaks for the majority of Europe. Carolyn had just read this information in the paper and shared it with me.
The German presidency of the European Council lays special emphasis on the topic of equitable access to high quality early childhood education and care for all. The European Union recognizes the importance of early childhood education and care, especially in enhancing social cohesion by breaking the cycle of disadvantage and laying the foundation for lifelong learning as well as contributing to better educational outcomes. (Klein, J., 2012)
Equitable and high quality early childhood education provide the best return in human capital development and a solid foundation for success. Evidence shows us that experiences in early years can have long-term impact on parenting and child development. (Bunting M., 2012)

The United Nations Convention on the Right of the Child and several European texts state what the ideal should be: that every child should have the right to primary health, development and education, first within the family and thereafter in services supported and regulated by the state. (Klein, J., 2012)

Carolyn tells me there was just a national convention that took place in Belgium a few weeks ago and this is the report she is gathering her information from.

The commitment of governments to this ideal is decisive for European children both in the present and the future. (Bennett, J., 2012)

Mounting evidence shows that investment in equitable and high quality early childhood education pays off. It lays the foundation for more effective lifelong learning and social well being. (Roseveare,D., 2012)

Reference:
Das Nachrichtenportal Rhein- Neckar, p.15, 2012)

Carolyn wrote down the reference, but I don't know if they use APA formatting there. I did mention it, but she didn't reply. I am only copying the reference from her email!

Sharing Web Resources

Whenever I explore the Harlem Children's Zone website or read the newsletter, I am amazed by the committment portrayed by the people who work there. They are attempting to establish a method to change generational poverty......helping to change the odds, if you will.

I love the Baby College they offer. It is a nine week parenting workshop for expectant parents and those raising a child up to three years old. The workshop promotes reading to children and verbal discipline instead of corporal punishment. In the two years since it started, 870 people have graduated from it.

They offer several programs geared toward early childhood success. There is the three year old journey, which promotes language and parenting skills. Parents must win the Promise Academy's school lottery to participate.

The "Get Ready for Pre-K" program that gets children ready for the Gem program. It is a six week summer session that gets future Gems ready to start that program in the fall.

Harlem Gems - is an all day pre-kindergarten with a four:one ratio that teaches English, Spanish and French at three sites serving a total of 200 children.

What I gained from exploring this website is that the people of Harlem are working as hard as the rest of us should be working to make sure the next generation of children succeed. To me, that means that Harlem Children's Zone is getting it right and the rest of our country needs to take notes!

My International Contacts

May I please introduce Carolyn Bunting from Heppenheim, Germany as one of my international contacts. She is originally from the UK, and now resides and teaches in Germany. My other international contact is Isabella Cacciari from Bologna, Italy. She is Italian and does not speak English. My questions and her answers are translated by her sister -in-law and my friend.

Isabella teaches public preschool (ages 3 - 5). In Europe, children attend their version of "public" school from ages 3 until 16. School is 9am - 5 pm to better accommodate parents. She says she has not worked around much poverty. She feels that the government stipends for families with children, child care assistance, and health care are the main reasons things are better there.

Carolyn has said much the same to me. Central Europe provides government stipends for families with children. Universal health care eliminates expensive health care premiums, childcare is subsidized and school ages have been arranged to eliminate the need for after school care. Parents have more time to spend with their children and things are made a bit easier for them financially because of the help of the government.

My insights from all this has told me that Europe is a good place to have children because the European governments recognize children as important resources worth investing in. I am angry that the United States fails to acknowledge our children as the important resource they are. Where is the support that Europe offers? Why don't we have a similar program in place? We are trillions of dollars in debt, and have a large population living in poverty! Europe is broke too, but there doesn't seem to be the poverty that is prevalent in the United States!

My Choices for diversity issues

Harlem Childdren's Zone  www.hcz.org

All programs offered are free to the children and families who live in Harlem. It began in 1970, as a truancy prevention program. Today, it serves more than 10,000 children and 7,400 adults. It has grown along with the needs of the community. Throughout drug epidemics and many other safety issues, the HCZ has perpetuated its "whatever it takes" attitude.

UNICEF   www.unicef.org

Unicef offers many programs related to children. The organization is determined to save lives. They believe that the chance to survive is a right owed to every child. Unicef and its partners are leading the global effort to end preventable child deaths. In the past twenty years, child mortality has fallen by thirty five percent around the world. By 2015, the Millenium Development Goal (MDG) is to reduce child mortality. Unicef is concerned it needs to accelerate its progress in order to reach these goals.

Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

The steps I took to locate and contact two professionals were a bit unconventional, but more personal. Friends of mine live in Bologna, Italy and Heppenheim, Germany. Both of them have preschool sons. So, I contacted them and asked them to contact their children's schools to see if any of them would be interested in participating in this exercise with me. To date, the teacher who is interested in corresponding with me does speak English and I am just waiting to hear from her. The school in Italy does not seem to have any teachers who are proficient in English enough to feel comfortable corresponding with me. So, I am back to square one with that one.
I am interested in finding out more about UNICEF and the Harlem Children's Zone. The website for the Harlem Children's Zone was unavailable when I attempted to access it.

My Support Systems

My Support Systems
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Posted by Deborah Thompson at Saturday, June 9, 2012 12:46:32 PM EDT

I need support to get out of bed in the morning and for that I turn to my savior, Jesus Christ! I start out every morning opening my eyes and thanking Him for the ability to put my feet on the floor!
    My support systems at home begin with my sweet husband. He is always very supportive of me and my efforts. And then, there is "the village". We are a group of families who have joined together because we have much in common and we support each other in everything we do from building a house to babysitting. We provide moral,emotional and sometimes even financial support to one another. We have all been together for about 15 years now. We are all transplanted to NC and we have formed our own family group, "the village". Choosing your family is great! We have helped each other move, put in patios, hardwood floors, gardens, celebrated birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, births and deaths just to name a few!
At work, I am supported by my co-teacher, my manager, and my director, not to mention the rest of the outstanding staff I work with. We all have each others' backs! We work together, we walk together (Komen race) and we have fun together. I could not have chosen a finer group of women to work with.
The benefits of a support system like these are many. We never wonder how we'll be able to accomplish something. One family had a deployment to deal with last year.  We took turns babysitting, (a girl,7 and boy, 11), cutting the grass, buying groceries, celebrating birthdays, taking them out for pizza and just being there if the family had any needs. We sent care packages to dad in Kuwait, emailed and skyped. They were very thankful for it all and dad did not have to worry about leaving his family because they were never alone. They had "the village" to take care of them!

My Connections to Play

Life must be lived as play.
                                    -Plato

In our play, we reveal what kind of people we are.
                                                                        - Ovid

Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning.
                                                                                         - Fred Rogers

Those three quotes broadly describe my feelings about play and my childhood play. I don't have any pictures of my favorite play things. My mother loved to throw things out just as soon as she could! I can describe them though. The very first thing I can remember playing with was a small stuffed white elephant with red velvet ears. I slept with it all the time and then one day it was just gone! Growing older, I loved to play with Barbie dolls. My grandmother used to sew clothes for them all the time and I was very happy. I loved to play with my grandmother also. She would always let me help her in the kitchen and it holds many happy memories for me. She supported me and my play during my childhood.

Play today seems to be very different to me. When I was growing up, we had lots of time for free play and it was much safer to play outside too. We could stay outside all day and not have to come inside until the street lights came on. We did not require direct supervision and could take the time we needed to play free choice activities with our own rules and made up all by ourselves. In the neighborhood, our favorite game was kickball.

I still love to play with  my "kids". It is the most enjoyable part of the day, and they often request me to play with them! I thoroughly enjoyed playing with my boys and my grandsons too! I don't think I will ever be too old to play! At least I hope not!

Relationship Reflections

I feel like I have many relationships, so I have chosen the most important ones in my life!
First and foremost would be my relationship with Jesus Christ. I am a Christian, and I believe that God sent His son, Jesus to die for my sins (and everyone else's) so we may have eternal life. This relationship is most important to me because He is always with me. He gives me strength, peace, encouragement and guidance. I can always count on Him to be there for me. He loves me unconditionally!

My husband, Dwight is my solid rock. We will be married 3 years in September and we have known each other for 6 years. I never thought of re-marriage until he asked me. He is a God fearing man of integrity who tries hard to always get it right. He is a balance of logic for my emotions, loyal and dedicated, and I love him dearly. He has embraced me and my life and accepts all of it. He showed me that unequivocally when he partnered with me in caring of my 88 year old mother for 2 years before she entered a nursing facility.

My sons are my joy! My oldest, Michael, 33 has a family of his own, but still never hangs up the phone or leaves a room without saying, "I love you Mom."

My youngest, Jacob is 26 and getting ready to deploy on May 15th~to someplace "classified" for at least 9 months~ He is an EOD tech (Explosive Ordinance Demolition). So, right now, and for the immediate future, my positive thoughts, energies and prayers will be with him. Before he left, I bought him a children's book, "My Love Will Always Find You..." by Nancy Tillman to take with him.


And of course, there is my relationship with all my children at work over the years. There would be just too many pictures! I have been a preschool teacher for 32 years now and I have loved and cared for each one of the children entrusted into my care to the best of my abilities. They are too numerous to mention, and while I have given them all that I could, they gave me an awesome amount of love right back and taught me patience and persistence pays off!

When I Think of Child Development...

"Education is a natural process carried out by the child and is not acquired by listening to words but by experiences in the environment."                                       Maria Montessori





I would like to take this opportunity to thank Tory for all her support and her willingness to share information with us. Thanks Tory!

Also, a note of thanks to Julie! She always seemed to know which questions to ask that would spark further research of the topic! Way to keep us thinking outside of the box!

Intelligence??

A commitment to the "whole child" does not need as assessment. A child's development is as individual as the child, and as long as major milestones have been met, the rest is truly not relevant. I want to reference a video I watched about preschool in Sweden. There is no formal curriculum. There is a continuum of care and children are encouraged to play. Our western culture would frown upon such things, but Sweden has no intention of changing what is working and has been for years. Mandatory school age is seven, and that is the child's first venture into formal education. Statistically, by the age of ten, they have some of the highest reading scores in Europe. Is it because there was no pressure to learn before they were ready to?

The children stay together in a group (1-6) for their entire time in preschool. The younger ones learning from the older ones and the older ones being entrusted to do as much as they can. They help with meal times, cleaning, and caring for the younger members of their class. The teacher is truly a facilitator encouraging their independence. They seem to function much as members of a family would. The children develop confidence in their own abilities. They spend approximately 1/2 the day outside, regardless of the weather. They are dressed appropriately and become quickly acclimated to the weather.

The additional comments I would make are in reference to why our western culture wants three and four year olds to become "little adults". Perhaps we should look at other cultures who allow their children to be children before they are "forced" into formal education. Seven seems like the proper age. The NAEYC claims a child is not ready to track letters on paper until between the ages of six and eight.

Reference:

How the do it in Sweden(video, 2011), Retrieved April 1, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/how-they-do-it-in-Sweden-preschool

How Racism Affects Development

It is critical that we follow a child's racial concept, from preschool years to at least middle adolescence to become aware of the major changes in the child's awareness. Data suggests that a sophisticated concept of race, in multifaceted manifestation, is not realized until adolescence.

"The reality of races as biological entities....is to be found in the human conviction that they exist...They are real because people believe they are..."(Williams and Moreland, 1976) I use this quote because I find the entire topic of race unfounded. We are all of the "human race", and that is really the only "race" I acknowledge. We are of many ethnicities, but only one race. How unfortunate children are forced by society to learn racism.

There are cultural stereotypes that children struggle with daily to overcome. Let's look at Trayvon Martin who was just assassinated in Sanford, Florida by a neighborhood watch captain who says he was only defending himself against a black teenager wearing a hoodie and NOT carrying a weapon while he was!

Comparisons are often made about self-esteem and the self-concept of ability. We are presently engaged in a struggle over the control of the minds(and the future) of our children.

References:
Allen, W.R., Brookins, G.K., Spencer, M.B., The Beginnings of Social and Affective Development of Children, 1985, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., Hillsdale, N.Y.

Williams, A., and Moreland, R.L., Modification of children's racial attitude, Developmental Psychology, Volume 14 (5), Sept. 1976, 447-461.doi , Retrieved March 23, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://psycnet.apa.org/journals/dev/14/5/447

South African children face serious threats to health and development as a consequence of poverty, racism, violence and residual social inequality. There are contrasting conditions of hope and peril. "Our deepest fear is not that we are inadequate, Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. It is our light, not our darkness, that most frightens us. We ask ourselves, who am I to be brilliant, gorgeous, talented, and fabulous? (Barbarin, Richter, 2001) That is the contrast. Children in South Africa today know what they are told growing up is sometimes directly the opposite of what they are seeing.

There are two nations in South Africa. One black, one white. The second nation is black and poor and lives under conditions of a grossly underdeveloped economy. Given this gap, the challenge to equalize things for children is great. It is consistently the black children who struggle. They are poor, malnourished, in need of health care, with little or no access to child care or preschool. More than 2/3 of the 6th graders in South Africa perform below the level expected of them. Only 12 percent scored "achieved" or "outstanding". Only four of 100 are reading at grade level. (Barbarin, Richter, 2001) Children are often "stunted" because they lack good dietary habits. They are seldom given protein, dairy products or eggs.

Reference:
Barbarin, O.A., Richter, L. M., (2001), Mandela's Children: growing up in post-apartheid South Africa, Psychology Press, Routledge, NewYork and London.

Access to Healthy Water

 I chose this topic because so many of us take clean water for granted. We feel it is a right to have clean water to drink and shower daily. Water quality affects us all. Access to clean, reliable water is essential to our health and well being, and is a foundation of a thriving community. (Skidegate, 2010)

The lack of access to safe water is directly related to poverty, personally and often times because that government does not have the ability to finance satisfactory water systems. The direct human cost is enormous! Widespread health problems, walking for miles just to get the water, and severe limitations for economic development. Polluted water is estimated to affect the health of more than 1.2 billion people, and contribute to the death of an average 15 million children every year. (Vital, 2005).

The world is on track to meet the United Nations Millenium Developmental Goal (MDG) drinking water target to halve the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water by 2015. (CDC, 2009).

In Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, nearly 1 billion people in rural areas have no access to improved water supplies. Throughout Africa, rural water services lag far behind urban services. Bottled water is not considered improved due to limitations in the potential quantity, not quality of the water.

References:
Assessing Access to Water and Sanitation, (2009), (CDC) Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, Retrieved March 5, 2012 from the World Wide Web; http://cdc.gov/healthywater/global assessing.html

Skidegate,A., Access to Clean, Reliable Water, Essential to Healthy Nations, 2010, WHO, UNICEF, New York, N.Y.

Vital, W., Inequity in Access to Clean Water, 2005, Unicef, New York, N.Y.

My Birthing Experience...

The birth experience I have chosen to write about is the birth of my youngest son. We had a difficult time getting pregnant, and then staying pregnant, so it was a joyous time in our household! I remember telling my husband to leave the plastic on the brand new mattress we bought when I was about 8 months pregnant. He looked at me strangely, but decided to humor me! Good thing, as my water broke in the bed about 3 weeks later! Must have been a pregnancy premonition. This happened about 3:00am, and by 5:00am, we were at the hospital.

It went pretty smoothly for a few hours, but my contractions were very slow. They gave me Pitocin three times to increase my contractions, and by that time, I scarcely had time to take a breath in between them! I dilated, effaced, and moved along according to plan until pushing time came! My son (and we didn't know the sex of the child)was definitely strong willed, and had decided he needed to see where he was going! The doctor would push his head back down and he would pop it right back up. After a couple off hours of that, I was informed I would be having a C-section. Well, I became a little panicked because when we had gone to childbirth classes; on the C-section day, the nurse giving the class was sick. My husband also tried not to come with me, but I was adamant that if he could gut a deer, he could certainly come with me! So, he did, and I received a spinal anesthetic and was totally awake during the procedure. However, intervention is not always best for the mother and child. In general, cesareans are easier on the fetus, and quicker for the doctor and the mother, but can increase the rate of birth complications in later pregnancies. (Berger, 2009).

My husband was giving me a play by play and my son was born shortly afterward. He looked huge to me! The doctors were joking about his size and said that he must weigh 10 or 11 lbs. My OB said he could not pick up a 10 lb. baby with one hand! So, his father took him to the nursery with the promise he would come right back and tell the doctors what his exact weight was. His official weight was 9lbs, 8.5 oz. He looked like a 3 month old baby to me!

I chose this example because it is still so clear in my mind, and it happened  26 years ago!

My thoughts regarding birth and child development are that I believe certain characteristics are evident from the very beginning! And long lasting too. He was strong willed (stubborn) at birth and that characteristic has served him well for the past 26 years too. I am sure it is with him to stay!

References:
Berger, K. S. (2009). The developing person through childhood (5th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.

Ideals from DEC and NAEYC ethics...

Professional and Interpersonal Behavior (DEC)
"We shall build relationships with individual children and families while individualizing the curricula and learning environment to facilitate young children's development and learning." Trusting and caring relationships are foundational to what we do. This is a perfect summary.

(NAEYC) "Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable stage of the human life cycle."  Childhood is such an important stage of life. It sets the foundation for the rest of your life!

(NAEYC) " Respect the dignity, worth and uniqueness in each individual (child, family member, and colleague)."
This speaks loudly because everyone is created differently and should be treated with dignity especially if expressing an opinion you don't agree with.

Reference:
The Division of Early Childhood (2000, August). Code of ethics. Retrieved Feb. 15, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://www.dec-sped.org/
NAEYC (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved Feb. 15, 2012 from the World Wide Web: http://naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf

Course References

NAEYC: http://www.naeyc.org

DEC: http://www.dec.org

Frank Porter Graham: http://www.fpg.unc.edu

Touchpoints: http://touchpointsbook.com

Montessori: http://www.montessori.org.au

Brazelton: http://www.brazeltontouchpoints.org

CLASP: http://clasp.org

Developmental Psychology: http://apa.developmental.com

Wisdom, Motivation and Lessons

The word education must not be understood in the sense of teaching, but of assisting the psychological development of a child. - Maria Montessori

I love the way she explains the development of the "whole" child. Facilitating is a much more appropriate word than teach is anyway.

It is not enough for the teacher to love the child. She must first love and understand the universe. She must prepare herself, and truly work at it. - Maria Montessori

A teacher must be aware of what she is trying to facilitate and I believe that is what Montessori is saying. It is not enough just to love the child. You must be able to lead their learning in the right direction.

When we strengthen families, we ultimately strengthen the community. Our goal is that parents everywhere work with positive providers, feel confident in their parenting role, and form strong resilient attachments with their children. - T. Berry Brazelton

Our true goal should be in forming strong and supportive families.

After a brief time out, pick up the child to love him afterward. This is hard to do, but critical. As you rock him and hold him, tell him you're sorry that its so hard to learn self-control. I love you, but I can't let you behave this way. When you learn to stop yourself, I won't have to stop you anymore. - T. Berry Brazelton

This is such important advice for so many parents who are so reluctant to exert any authority. It should be printed on diaper bags and billboards!

Personal Childhood Web

In reference to my personal childhood web.......I know it is not what was expected, but it is all I have. There was only ONE person who took care of me while I was young. My grandmother. I don't have any pictures of her except in my head! She will always feel like she is a part of me. A very important part of me!

Personal Childhood Web

I wish there were five people I could name that nurtured or cared about me when I was a child....

The first and really only person who comes to my mind is my grandmother. She raised me and cared for me until she passed away when I was 11 years old. She was sweet, loving, caring and nurturing. I was devastated when she left my life. But, no one comforted me or explained anything to me. I just knew she was gone. She made me feel special and always had time just for me and would take me on shopping trips on the bus with her. It made me feel very important. She walked me to school when I started school, and would come to walk back home with me when I was in kindergarten. I could always depend on her. She never disappointed me. She taught me how to crochet and how to cook, iron and lots of domestic "duties" I would need later in my life.
I think that my favorite memory of her was sitting on her lap while she was rocking me in her chair. I know she truly impacted me and my life because I am nothing like my mother, but I hope I embody my grandmother's good qualities that she impressed on my from an early age. I spent LOTS of time with my boys. I tried to always be there for them and attend all their important life events.

Love You Forever by Robert Munsch

I posted this last night and don't know where in cyberspace it is! This is a book I read to my boys as they were growing up.....it mimicked the dynamics of our lives pretty much at that time. I gave each boy a copy of the book for their 18th birthdays.

Got to love Magic Johnson!

"All kids need is a little help, a little hope and somebody who belives in them."- Earvin "Magic" Johnson






I "borrowed" this quote from Katara because I love it! It speaks volumes to me! Thanks Katara!

First Post...

For the sheer delight of doing this...................I am doing it!