Final post

I am so excited to be finishing up the semester! I have one more class and I will be a masters graduate! This semester has been a little rough for me! I finally became a full lead teacher! My dad has been in and out of hospital with cancer treatments! I know I was not really able to put my all into this class which really makes me sad because I love these classes! My hope coming into this class was to learn more strategies for working with children with diversity. I work with at risk children and it seems that every year we get a tougher group of children. This year I have 13 ESL children and 5 English! I have 3 African American and 2 Caucasian. Five of my children have IEP's and 6 see a behavior specialist! I have never seen a regular preschool class get hit as hard as I have this year with behavior issues! My hopes are to get as much as I can from these classes as I can to become a better teacher!

Impacts on Early Emotional Development

This week I chose to explore the country of Brazil. Brazil faces many different challenges every day. Many of the main reasons for mortality in Brazil are issues of living in poverty, malnutrition, HIV/AIDS, and lack of quality education. Food insecurity creates cognitive and psychological challenges that impact development for a lifetime and is not just limited to childhood. I would have to say that I feel that children are not able to thrive due to not having the basic needs met. Many children are hungry and are dehydrated.   I couldn’t imagine being dehydrated due to malnutrition.

References

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/brazil_39672.html

The Sexualization of Early Childhood

I have worked in the early childhood setting for about 10 years. I have seen a lot of things. Every year I am surprised by the circumstances that I see. I have had children that joke all the time that they have boy friends or girl friends. My take on that is you are too young to be thinking about that. Then some children talk about how mommy and daddy where kissing in the bedroom. You would think at four that these are issues that wouldn’t be found in preschool. It never fails that children try to play the game if you show me yours I’ll show you mine. Keeping a very close eye on children in all areas is very important. I have also had children kiss their friends. When I explained to them that we don’t kiss our friends. They say well my parent kiss their friends. I know in some homes that might be true but in school we don’t do that.

I also never thought I would see children wearing make up in preschool. I was shocked when a little girl came in her first day of school covered in make-up and wears really tight provocative clothing. I was a little thrown back. I have to say that there were a lot of other parents that were as well.  I understood better when the mom came in wearing clothes twice as tight and had about the same amount of make up on. “Children growing up today are bombarded from a very early age with graphic messages about sex and sexiness in the media and popular culture” (Levin & Kilbourne, 2009, p.2).

Children seem to see things on TV and think that this is how things are social accepted. For instance my daughter dresses like her favorite Disney show girls. I catch her mix matching her clothes and then saying oh but it’s in style now. Mom catch up the girls on Disney do it. I feel lost because I see children all the time and don’t see some of the styles she tries to pull off. Over all I feel that there are so many things that children see either on television, in their environments, and through media that they seem to feel are socially acceptable.

Resources

Katch, H., & Katch, J. (2010). Voices inside schools: When boys won't be boys: Discussing gender with young children. Harvard Educational Review, 80(3), 379-390. Retrieved from the Walden Library using the Education Research Complete database: http://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=http://proquest.umi.com.ezp.waldenulibrary.org/pqdweb?did=2155578791&sid=1&Fmt=3&clientId=70192&RQT=309&VName=PQD

Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf

Wardle, F. (2011). Responding to racial and ethnic diversity in early childhood programs. Exchange (01648527), 198, 68-71. Retrieved from the Walden Library using the Education Research Complete database: http://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=59177263&site=ehost-live&scope=site

Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

As an early childhood professional we are often the people that see each of these children for the majority of the day. We influence their life with each and every step that we do in each day. We build each child up and know their weaknesses and their strong points. We know what makes them laugh, what makes them cry, and what helps them learn. We have been trained to study their behaviors and build on what they already know. We have a strong relationship with each and every child because we comfort them, protect them, and keep them safe.

               I had a child tell me one time, “Ms. Ellis you must love me!” I looked puzzled I’m sure because I know I love each and every child but for her to say it the way she did just brought all kinds of questions in my mind. I said, “Why yes dear I love you very much! What made you feel that way?” She smiled with her big huge smile and said, “Well you make sure I am all warm and zipped up like my mommy does before I go outside. You tie my shoes so I don’t trip. You help me put my mittens on, you snap my hat and every time you get me all bundled up you kiss the top of my head and say you’re all ready now! My mommy does that because she says she loves me. So you must love me too!” I never noticed how nurturing I was to each and every child. I have a five year old as well and often have the over protective motherly instinct to make sure that they have clean washed faces when they leave! That they are all bundled up with coats, mittens, hats, and tied shoes. I know that I would want my child to come home with the same protection so I do the same for my class. I often see other classes come out shoes untied, coats in their bags or not zipped, and the hats and gloves are nowhere to be found. I know that as a teacher we are often too busy to make sure the small things are done but when you put yourself in their mother’s shoes you may have a different perspective. After two week of insuring that each child is bundled up and totally ready to go home I have found that they are very proficient in doing this on their own.  They may ask for help from their friends but it is so sweet to see them imitating what they see their teacher do. I caught a little girl dressing her friend one day when she finished and had him all bundled up she kissed her head and said now you’re ready. I found it to be totally heart touching! I feel that this has influenced a lot of the biases.

               To me I feel that children only have biases if they observe it. I feel that children imitate almost everything that they hear or see. My son is in this faze where he sayings he is copying what he sees so he can learn new moves. He copies karate, writing, talking, and almost every annoying thing that you could perceive. It is annoying but it reminds me why it is important to limit what they watch, hear, and take in. I have learned so much about biases and how to treat others. I learn more from my children than I do from school.

Observing Communication

I observed a preschool classroom at my school for this project. The teachers worked together they read each others ques to move around the room and effectively help the classroom. The room that I observed was an exception needs classroom. They have 8 children and 3 teachers. The teachers asked open ended question in which they rarely obtained responses to. This class is a self contained classroom. They have to do a lot of one on one with theses children. They don't always play with each other they kind of do a parallel play. The teachers sat in different areas of the classroom on the floor they practiced rolling a ball or tossing a ball to each other. The children were able to roam freely and play as they wished. The teachers would play where the children where interesting in playing and assist them. The teachers themselves communicated clearly with each other. They rotated appropriately to meet the needs of all the children. I don't know if I could add anything to the way that they communicated or taught the children because I have never taught a self contained classroom. They spend an hour of our playground time outside with us. I know how difficult this hour is with them I can only imagine the classroom experience. I feel that the teachers did a wonderful job communicating and interacting with the children.

Creating Affirming Environments

Creating Affirming Environments: This week we were asked to imagine that we were opening up our own family daycare. We are suppose describe how we would create a welcoming environment. 

I would have welcome signs welcoming all cultures. I would have posters of children and families from all sorts of cultures. In dramatic play I would include multicultural foods, dolls, clothes, and musical instruments. I would add multicultural books and puppets to reading. I would add multicultural art supplies, people for blocks, and music. I would also make sure to have books that are in Spanish.   

 

Resources
Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: Welcome to an anti-bias learning community. Baltimore, MD: