My support systems

When I think about my support system I feel encouraged.  Although, it is not a wide range of people it is enough to make me feel that if I am in need I will have somewhere to go.  Support to me means that you are able to assist, contribute, and provide a positive outlook on whatever situation arises.            Daily factors that I am supported by are: God.  I go to him in my time of need and when I just need to say thank you. -My husband.  He listens, helps, provides constructive criticism, and reminds me of what I need to do.-My colleagues help me by doing their part.  This makes my day easier because I don’t have to pick up the work of others but I can focus on my daily tasks.  They also help by giving ideas and creating an environment that is fun to work in.-Lists.  I write list to help me remember to by certain bills, what to get at the store, and what has to be done at home. -Friends are great because they listen.  They will provide me with the feedback that is both positive and negative.  Since I am not always right in all situations this is great for me. lol             Without these support systems I don’t think that I would be able to maintain.  I rely so much on having people and items around me that help me to make my life easier that if I didn’t have them I don’t think that I would quite know how to balance my life.  It is important to me to have things done on time, correct, and to know what is going to happen next.  I wouldn’t be able to do any of that if I didn’t have positive people around me.            The challenge that I thought of is having a child with a disability.  I currently have Multiple Sclerosis and I know how difficult that is for my family, friends, and colleagues.  I don’t know how I would be able to function without a support system if I had a child that had to be cared for in special ways.            I would definitely rely on my husband because I would need him to help with the physical and emotional support but also because he would want to be there.I would rely on community support to educate me, guide me, and understand where I was coming from in the situation.  Like with my disease, you feel better when you think that people understand your situation and when they respect what you are going through.I would most definitely depend on my friends to be there to listen and support me when I feel that times are tough.  I would also depend on them to be release for me.  I would like for them to take me away for a little while when I felt stressed.  Then I would most definitely rely on my lists to make sure that I was accomplishing my tasks and goals for the day.            If I didn’t have all of the above support systems (and probably more) I don’t think that I would be able to handle myself on a day to day basis.  I think that I am a support system to others but also, I have had to “learn” how to rely on people and the community in order to survive.  Sometimes I feel that I can handle anything on my own and that’s simply not true.  It is important to recognize and respect the support systems that you have so that you can build  positive relationships around you.

12

My connections to play

Quotes on children playing:

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

Fred Rogers:  American television personality.  Retrieved: Nov. 18, 2011.

A child loves his play, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard.

Benjamin Spock: American pediatrician.  Retrieved: Nov. 18,2011.

As a child I loved to play with dolls and I loved to pretend to teach.  I would curl my dolls hair with an old curling iron that my mom gave me.  My grandmom would watch me sit for hours playing with tea sets, curling irons, and drawing.  I had a standard size chalkboard in my bedroom and my mom said I would go in my room and line all my dolls on my bed and teach.  She said that one day I kept walking in and out of my room slamming the door.  She asked me why I was doing that and I told her that’s what my teacher did when she wanted us to listen.lol

I loved to color and draw.  This was something that I found relaxing.  I would sit and color and watch tv or lie on the floor and try to figure out how to draw certain pictures.  My daughter loves to draw now and she is so much better at it than I ever was. 

My family didn’t have much money when I was growing up but they always allowed and encouraged me to play.  I had lots of cousins around and we were all supposed to play and share together.  We would play tv shows.  They loved to play Batman and Robin or The Dukes of Hazard (they liked the car). 

Children today don’t play outside as much as we did.  With all of the technology they tend to stay inside.  My children love to ride their bikes or go for walks but to be honest; with the hustle and bustle of everything it’s hard to always get them out there.  That’s another tough situation…parents have to work or want to work more and they don’t plan for or can’t make time for children to do outside activities.

Role play for me was important because it gave me a chance to express myself and relax.  I think that children need the opportunity to release stress, learn how to express themselves, and enjoy time that is not always structured by adults.  This is an important way for them to figure things out and learn by what they have seen.

I would hope that children are given safe opportunities to play, grow and learn.  I know that there are many children who live in situations where it isn’t safe to play outside.  I would hope that these parents would make inside play fun and enjoyable for those children.  All children deserve the right to run, exercise, think, and have fun.  They have to grow up so quick.  As adults I think that we should make it our goal to make this happen.

Relationship Reflection

Relationships are important to me because I love people.  I am 40 years old, a wife, and mother of 2.  How can I not have relationships.  I grew up with a single young mom and no dad.  My family took care of me and I was raised to think that we are responsible for each other.  It is important to me to make sure that I have positive influences and people around me that I can lean on and that can lean on me. 

My most important relationship that I have other than God is my husband.  We have been together for over 16 years and I could not do some of the things that I do without him.  We learned how to love early but we also had to learn how to fight and argue using God as our guide.  He has been my rock and without this relationship I don't know if I would know how to care for others around me in the positive way that I do.

I also have relationships with other family members that mean so much to me.  My uncle has been a positive role model in my life since I was born.  He has guided me through college and even helped me see different lights when it came to friend relationships.  He has been like a father that I didn't have.

One thing that I recognize about myself is my quickness to remove people from my life when I feel that they have betrayed me.  I feel that if you are not with me you are against me.  This is not always true and I have had to learn to do better by listening and forgiving.  This is hard because growing up I always felt like I had to fight to be in relationships and it was not easy forgiving those that didn't treat me well.

The characteristics that make these relationships special is the honesty and the respect.  All of these people are open, honest, and loving to me.  They tell me what I need to hear and what I don't want to know.  They are always there for me and I love being there for them.

My grandmother was a caregiver in her home and she always taught me to love everybody.  This is special to me because it gives me strength when something is not going well at my job.  I remember that these children might have things going on at home that I might not know about.  I also remember that I have to be a leader and guide them into positive situations and that doing that by example is the best way for them to learn.

Early Childhood Development Week 8-Famous quotes about children

Dr. Seuss, author

"A person's a person, no matter how small."

African Proverb

“It takes a village to raise a child.”

I believe that we sometimes don't think of children as people.  Children think, feel, desire, and love just like adults do. We need to learn to respect children and care for them the way we would with any other person that we have to come in contact with on any given day.

I also like the quote about it taking a village to raise our children.  Without grandparents, teachers, doctors, and extended family how would some of us make it?  We have to honor and respect that our children are in need of having others to help care for them and we should be able to trust that those people will care for our children the way that we would. 

Testing for Intelligence

I think that when you look at the whole child you should do just that…look at the whole child when you are trying to assess them.  Look at where they are from, where they live, what their home background is and what type (if any) of education they have had.  All of these are factors as to how children learn, grow, and develop their social skills.  These factors are important when it comes to the child being able to receive proper education and how they will process it.  Even children that live in the best “financial” situations may have abusive home environments that will prevent them from learning and growing socially in a positive manner.

I read a story about children in Africa and their school situations (Africa Recovery.  Retrieved: Oct.11, 2011).  Of course school is a luxury to them and those that have it appreciate it.  Most of the teachers don’t appear to have the time or resources to assess the students. With the ratio of teacher to students often being 1to70 the teacher doesn’t have a lot of time to spend in the class because he/she will often have to leave to work in other areas in order to survive.  Although, there have been many efforts to try and fix the education problem there is still much to be done.  However, in a country that doesn’t have financial resources it is hard to consider education as a priority.

I think that assessments are very valuable when done the proper way.  They allow us to plan curriculums and school contexts that are beneficial to the students and their families.  Assessments help us to provide quality education and services to the children that are in our care.  They also help us to provide information to the government to let them know what type of help and assistance is needed.

References:

Africa Recovery/UN/14#2.Schools in Africa.  Retrieved: Oct.11, 2011.

www.un.org/ecosocdev/geninfo/afrec/vol14no2/educat.htm.

Consequences of Stress on Children’s Development

Children, like adults, deal with stress in different ways.  My child internalizes her stress.  She was very close to my mom and when my mom passed away suddenly she was devastated.  She didn't want to be left alone and she would not go to the bathroom alone.  When we took her to the doctor he said that she had so much "bm" in her that it was making her sick. 

I grew up in a home where my uncle was abusive to the women that he dated.  He was always angry and violent.  He never talked just yelled.  I say women that he abused and wondered why they put up with such a man.  Children in these situations often retreat within themselves and they often expect violence or react in violent ways.  I can't imagine my children being in that type of situation and shutter when I hear about those situations on tv.  I pray that women are strong and will leave situations like that but the reality is that you hear of more and more husbands and boyfriends committing violent acts on women and killing them now more than ever.  In most cases there are children around. 

It's up to us as a community not to look the other way but to make sure to report situations like these and make sure that we follow through when we hear or see of anything that doesn't seem right.

I looked into the children of Hurricane Katrina.  I wanted to know how they dealt with such a disastrous situation.  What I read was that for the most part children are resilient and that they bounced back without long term psychological issues.  The children saw hope when their schools were rebuilt and they leaned upon the support system that they had around them.  These children had (for the most part) already been living in low income situations and this was just the one thing that could push them and their adult family members over the edge.  Although there were many situations that the children became depressed and had to live off of little or no sleep, for the most part they did better than anyone could have expected.

I don’t know how anyone, especially a child, could go through such a traumatic situation and then be expected to return into a “normal” way of life.  For most of them it is still not normal because they are still displaced and looking for a new home.  I just praise those that are helping and those that can be there for these children in an emotional way.  They need all the love and care they can get.

References:

Effects on Children from Hurricane Katrina. Retreived: Sept. 27, 2011.

            www.disabled-world.com/health/pediatric/katrina.php.  July 15, 2010.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding in Africa

I breastfed both of my children.  I decided that this was the best way for them to get nutrition and it was a great bonding time.  I must admit there were times when I didn’t want to expose myself in public or when I needed to be away from my children for more than two hours and couldn’t hurry back to feed them that it became harder to do.  My oldest child would not take a bottle.  Even after trying different bottles and allowing her to go hungry for awhile it didn’t work.  Breastfeeding was the only option.  Even beyond that… I wanted to make sure that they had all the care that my body could provide.  It was worth the sacrifice.

The women in Africa and Asia breastfeed because it is a normal way of life for them.  They are not embarrassed to feed their children in public.  In South Africa women will no longer have the option of formula for their children (allAfrica.com.  Retrieved: Sept. 14, 2011).  Their only option will be to breastfeed.  Although, I don’t agree with the fact that you should be forced to do this I do think that if the woman is healthy then this is best for the child. 

There are cultures who don’t believe in breastfeeding in public because of their religion.  In Iran women are taught to stay covered so breastfeeding in public places is not accepted (Breastfeeding in public…Retreived: Sept.14, 2011).

Women should do what they are comfortable with and what feels right to them.  In the future I will look at a persons’ history and see if this is something that they might be willing to embrace before I encourage breastfeeding.  I can offer resources that might help them make better educated decisions.

References:

  allAfrica.com: South Africa: Green Light for Breastfeeding Only

allafrica.com/stories/201108241403.html.  Retrieved: Sept. 14, 2011.

Breastfeeding in public around the world in different countries: Asia ...

www.007b.com/public-breastfeeding-world.php.  Retrieved: Sept. 14, 2011.

Birthing conditions in Africa

In Africa there are many women that suffer or die while in child birth.  They do not have the proper medical care that they need to carry and deliver babies full term without incident.  They are also living in poor a condition which further increases the risks of child birth. 

There is one situation there that is unbelievable to hear about.  A fistula is a condition where the baby is lodged in the woman’s birth canal.  If the baby is not removed the baby and mom could die.  There have been situations where the woman was walking around with the baby literally hanging out of her.  There aren’t enough doctors to care for the people that are there.  There is a medical procedure that could be done but not enough care to have it done.

When I had my son (which was my second child) I was in a high risk situation.  I was 5 months pregnant and my mother had a two heart attacks and a stroke within the matter of 3 weeks.  I am the only child and the burden of care fell on me.  I had great family support but trying to decided how to care for her and what steps needed to be taken was great.  She later went into a state where she had no brain activity for a year.  I delivered my child and 4 months later she passed away.

Everyone was so afraid of me having trauma while I was pregnant.  I was blessed and had a great husband, family support, and great doctors.  They monitored me and the baby closely.  I had my son without incident but the women in Africa weren’t as lucky. 

The difference between our situations is that they are in a live of such poverty and despair and I am in a country that has great health care.  I know that everyone doesn’t receive the care that they should here but hopefully that will change soon.  Those ladies deserve the same quality of life that we have here and it makes me sad that they have to suffer so much in their country.

The mental damage that it must do to those women is unfair.  We are learning about different ways to protect our bodies and our babies.  It should be that all women have access to the same care.  Children that are born in those conditions have to suffer mentally and physically.  They don't have access to food, water, shelter, or education.  This is such an awful way to live.

References:

SHARON LaFRANIERE .  Nightmare for African Women: Birthing Injury and Little Help.   Published: September 28, 2005.  Retrieved:  Sept. 9, 2011.

Examining Codes of Ethics

These are the three codes of ethics that I feel best express my feelings when it comes to being a quality teacher.  It is always important that we remember to treat each child as an individual and to embrace their lifestyles.  This will only help the child to feel more comfortable in the learning environment and encourage a positive learning experience.

By recognizing that children are raised by their villages, we recognize the importance of having family and community involvement in each child’s life.  We can help the student connect with family and also be a resource that will help bring the family and community together to better help with the growth and development of the student.

When I began to understand that I was not a babysitter but a teacher, I was able to embrace my job in a new light that lead me to want to do and learn more.  I now know how important it is to stay up to date on new developments and changes within my career.  This will help me to make educated and informed decisions regarding teaching, connecting to the community, and helping the parents of the children that I care for.

Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable stage

of the human life cycle( NAEYC.  Retrieved: Aug.10, 2011).

Recognize that children are best understood and

supported in the context of family, culture, community,

and society( NAEYC.  Retrieved: Aug.10, 2011). .

We shall strive for the highest level of personal and professional competence by seeking and using new evidence based information to improve our practices while also responding openly to the suggestions of others ( DEC.  Retrieved:Aug.10, 2011).

References:

The Division for Early Childhood. (2000, August). Code of ethics. Retrieved Aug. 11, 2011, from http://www.dec-sped.org/

NAEYC. (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved Aug. 10, 2011, from
http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf.

Growing a collection of resources

Blog Assignment Week 5

Resource Information

Websites:

• National Association for the Education of Young Children
  http://www.naeyc.org/
• The Division for Early Childhood
  http://www.dec-sped.org/
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
  http://www.zerotothree.org/
• WESTED
  http://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm
• Harvard Education Letter
  http://www.hepg.org/hel/topic/85
• FPG Child Development Institute
  http://www.fpg.unc.edu/main/about.cfm
• Administration for Children and Families Headstart’s National Research Conference
  http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hsrc/
• HighScope
  http://www.highscope.org/ 
• Children’s Defense Fund
  http://www.childrensdefense.org/
• Center for Child Care Workforce
  http://www.ccw.org/
• Council for Exceptional Children
  http://www.cec.sped.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home
• Institute for Women’s Policy Research
  http://www.iwpr.org/index.cfm
• National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education
  http://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/
• National Child Care Association
  http://www.nccanet.org/
• National Institute for Early Education Research
  http://nieer.org/
• Pre[K]Now
  http://www.preknow.org/
• Voices for America’s Children
  http://www.voices.org/
• The Erikson Institute
  http://www.erikson.edu/

Journals and Articles

YC Young Children

• Childhood
• Journal of Child & Family Studies
• Child Study Journal
• Multicultural Education
• Early Childhood Education Journal
• Journal of Early Childhood Research
• International Journal of Early Childhood
• Early Childhood Research Quarterly
• Developmental Psychology
• Social Studies
• Maternal & Child Health Journal
• International Journal of Early Years Education

Three additional resources:

1. Division of Child Development's

ncchildcare.dhhs.state.nc.us/

       2.  Child Care WAGE$® Project- North Carolina - Child Care Services .

www.childcareservices.org/ps/wage.html

3. Everything Preschool Lesson Plans

www.everythingpreschool.com/lessonplans/

Words of Inspiration

This week in our discussion board I discussed Susan Bredakamp and Hillary Clinton.  In week two I enjoyed reading about Louise Derman-Sparks.  Susan is a person that I have folllowed throughout my educational career (Dorothy S. Strickland, Lesley Mandel Morrow.  Retrieved: July 21,2011).  I often read about her when she is discussing classroom management and NAEYC.  One thing that I really liked that Susan said was that when it comes to teaching children how to read it is best to keep it simple.  She said that having short and meaningful meetings with the children were better than long settings where they often lost sight of what was going on.

Hillary Clinton I have admired for awhile.  She has worked on encorporating healthcare into the education field.  She feels that when a child is healthy they can learn better("It Takes A Village To Raise A Child".  Retrieved: July 21, 2011).  She also has used the quote that"It takes a village to raise a child", which is one of my favorites.  By making sure that the child is whole inside and out the child has a better opportunity to succeed.

Louise Derman-Sparks(“The Passion for Early Childhood".  Retrieved: July 21, 2011) is a professor that we discussed in week two's assignment.  She talked about how as a girl she didn't play dolls she played school.  I was the same way.  I had a huge chalkboard in my room and would line my dolls us to teach. 

All 3 of these women were inspirational to me because they use the entire world to help educate our children.  They use parents, teachers, doctors, community workers, and anyone else that might be involved in the child's life to help the child become successful and I love it.


References:

Beginning reading and writing By Dorothy S. Strickland, Lesley Mandel Morrow

 

Hillary Clinton's Speech On -- "It Takes A Village To Raise A Child"

        www.happinessonline.org/LoveAndHelpChildren/p12.htm

Video Program: “The Passion for Early Childhood”.  Retrieved: July 21, 2011.

Personal Childhood Web

DeWana Smith

                                 Alethia Burnette(Mom)                                Helen Burnette(Grand mom)

                                            '                                                                        '

                                Brenda Johnson( Alethia's Sister)                   Argie Burnette(Alethia's Brother)

-My mom was a single mom and in that day she was treated badly because of having a child out of wedlock.  Her mother and other family members helped her care for me and they cared for her in a society that was not looking at either one of us in a kind light.

-My grand mom was the rock of our family.  She took care of everyone that entered in and never looked down on anyone.  She was the one that gave me my spiritual background and encouraged my family involvement.

-My aunt was truly a traditional woman, in the sense that she tried to things the right way.  She married and had her first child and we were raised as brother and sister.  She also taught me about church and how to treat other people. 

-My uncle was not that much older than me but he was the one that taught me about my African American history.  He taught me how to swim, drive, and even gave me a job.  He was the only one that had attended college and he made me think that college was not a choice.

Each person listed above made me think I was special because they cared for me in different ways.  They were tough on me when I needed it but showed me love and respect at the same time.  I was not treated differently in anyway and I always thought that I belonged.

Since I had such a strong family support system, I feel compelled to pass that on to others including my children.  I know that there are children that do not have the same support that I have and I want them to know that there is someone who cares.  My family introduced me to love, caring, and respect that can never be taken away.

I do not have pictures to upload but I can give you a mental visual to help you think of us in a special way.

My grandmother lived in the projects but we were taught that we lived in the projects not of the projects.  This meant that we would work together to have better things, we would keep our place clean, and that we always stood tall as a family.  On Christmas everyone came to her house and even though it was cramped and sometimes hot, we laughed, played, and ate together.  We shared stories and embarrassed each other about the past.  This is something that I will never forget and hope to pass it along to my children.

                             





Blog assignment week 2

One of my favorite quotes about children is:
"It takes a village to raise a child."  This is an old African Proverb that means that everyone that is involved in a child's life has to take responsibility to help care for that child and to guide that child in the right direction.

One of my favorite books is called Mufaro's Beautiful Daughters by John Steptoe.  I love this book because it was one of the first books that I saw that was about African American girls.  For many years I didn't get to see books that related to my culture.  I also did not get to see African American girls depicted as beautiful.  This book allowed me to experience this in a wonderful way.

One of my most favorite stories about one of my students is:
This little boy had left to start kindergarten.  His new teacher was impressed about how much he new and how prepared he was.  The teacher was discussing with his mother how she wanted to move him into a more advanced reading group and maybe even put him in 1st grade.  The little boy's mother stated that she wanted to think about it and check with his preschool teacher 1st and the little boy stated how he was that smart because of Ms. DeWana.  The fact that the mother wanted my opinion on how her son would do even after he had left my class and that the little boy credited his success to me was amazing.  I knew then my value to the entire family and vowed to always remember that what seeds you plant will continue to grow if they are cared for.