Wonders in the World

As I sat back and thought of my post for this week the devastating news of the Kindergarten children shot in Connecticut ran across my television. Not only was I appalled by the fact innocent children where taken away from there families. I was even more devastated that it happened at school a place where children should be safe. How could someone create such a selfish act and take these children away from their families , friends, schools and communities. I sit back and think of every thing that has been learned during this course and I wonder will UNICEF or The Global Children's Initiative be there to support these families in this dire time of need?

Harvard University’s “Global Children’s Initiative” website

On Harvard University’s “Global Children’s Initiative” website, There are many things being done to help children around the world. In Zambia the Early childhood education initiation is being launched along with UNICEF to help bring a greater early childhood experience. Brazil politicians, policymakers, public managers and civil-society leaders had come together for the first time because of an executive leadership course on early childhood development, which was hosted by the Center on the Developing Child. "... growing, interdisciplinary body of scientific research is already starting to transform the health and well-being of children in the highest-income countries and offers promising opportunity for other nations. Much work needs to be done, however, to successfully raise the commitment to an integrated approach to child development that would enable such breakthroughs to cross economic and national borders" (Harvard GCI, 2012).

http://developingchild.harvard.edu/topics/global_child_development/

My Supports

I know I've spoke of them before but I must say my greatest support is my family. There is never anything that I cannot count on them for. I look to them for insight and guidance when things are bothering me or hindering my growth and happiness. I love my family for all that they do for me and I just cant thank them enough.

Poverty Rising in the Recession creating Unfit Parents

Although UNICEF does a lot to help children around the world. They reality of poverty is right in our own back yard. After reading the article  The recession’s toll on children written by Novotney, A. in 2010. I felt a little bit of controversy arise in my thought process. In my opinion not only was the implication of the poor being unfit to educate their children but that the fact that those new to poverty have deemed their children to failure in life. I believe the reason why this struck a nerve in me was because I am not the most fortunate parent. However, education is something I provide in consistency to my child. I am also new to the world of single parenting so for the thought  of someone telling me I am now inadequate and have deemed my child to failure stuck a knife in my heart. With politicians being the decision makers and determining who receives funds, where, how and when; I see no other way but to make a way. With the turning of the economy and the recession continuing to rise it is survival of the fittest out here and I am a survivor.

EDUCATION in the DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

An issue spoke of from a teacher from the Dominican Republic is the fact that education is not as popular as in the United States. "Education is not a big of a deal there" she stated. continuing on to say "The students need to work harder over in the US, teachers require the students to do more work while teachers in DR are really strict; there is no opportunity for a second chance if you miss any work.". "The US educational system is valued as a tool to success."

UNICEF Helping Children Around the World

UNICEF is the United Nations International Children's Emergency Funds http://www.unicef.org/index.php

UNICEF advocates for children rights. They influence decision making and policies for children. UNICEF was created to work with others to overcome the obstacles that poverty, violence, disease and discrimination place in a child’s path. 

I first became interested in UNICEF for what it does to help children recognize a purpose in life to help overcome any struggles they are facing. UNICEF is there to help in any emergency and advocate for children all over the world. UNICEF travels from country to country making a difference in the lives of children.

OCTOBER 11th has been recognized as National Girl's Day! This is important to give young girls a sense pride and understanding of self worth as thbey enter into womanhood.

My Birthing Experience

    My birth with my daughter was a very memorable one. I did not have any of the hard labors that many women speak of. I had her naturally with no pain medications. I did not even know that I was in labor. I started to see blood which made me nervous when I reached the hospital they told me I was in labor. By the time I reached a room my water had broke and twenty three minutes later my daughter was born.
    China's one child policy was established by Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping in 1979 to limit communist China's population growth. Although designated a "temporary measure," it continues a quarter-century after its establishment. The policy limits couples to one child. Fines, pressures to abort a pregnancy, and even forced sterilization accompanied second or subsequent pregnancies. (Rosenburg, 2012, pg.1).
     I cant imagine the restriction of having one child. Life is an opportunity that should be granted at the women's discretion. The choice to create a family and determine the family size should be discussed amongst the man and woman not the country leader.

Rosenburg, M. (2012) China's One Child Policy retrieved at http://geography.about.com/od/populationgeography/a/onechild.htm

Our President talks about education

"And I’ve said this all across the country when I talk to parents about education, government has to fulfill its obligations to fund education, but parents have to do their job too. We’ve got to turn off the TV set, we’ve got to put away the video game, and we have to tell our children that session not a passive activity, you have to be actively engaged in it. If we encourage that attitude and our community is enforcing it, I have no doubt we can compete with anybody in the world".
             - Barack Obama
Source: 2007 Des Moines Register Democratic Debate Dec 13, 2007  

Children Choosing their Path

     
In my opinion there should be more research that helps children to choose their career path. Once children get to high school many of them have dropped out. Many times the reasons are schools being to general or the fact that many have families to care for at a young age. There are vocational and GED schools to help them get an education to prepare for life. However, the high school diploma should be made with the same criteria. For example I had a cousin that dropped out high school at the age of 16 she took her GED and was taking college courses by the time she was 17. When asked why she stated she was tired of High School and the structure. If we start children exploring early and gear them toward the path of choosing a future occupation they may be more acceptable to becoming a high school graduate.

"90 million females in India are non-literate But 20 per cent of children aged 6 to14 are still not in school and millions of women remain non-literate despite the spurt in female literacy in the 1990s" (UNICEF, 2001, p.1). India has more girls that drop out of school than boys. most of this has to with class and gender issues that arise from the caste. There is also child labor that still exists in many parts of the country. So the education of children are affected especially for girls.

Work Cited: UNICEF. (2001). Education. retrieved from http://www.unicef.org/india/children

Violence and Human Development

As a child I seen many forms of domestic violence. The greatest explanation of the way I grew up would be the old saying "Everything that glitters isn't gold". My family went to church every Sunday, we were dressed in the best of the best attire and we had more than any child could ever want growing up that included love. However, I watched my grandparents and my parents display physical, verbal and emotional abuse to each other. My bio social development was not effected I was well fed and had no developmental delays. However, my cognitive and psychosocial development were effected. as an adult I began to think this was the way a marriage displayed love. It took a new way of learning to communicate and use of better judgement to change my thoughts on relationships and how they should be handled.

Over in Uganda there is a different type of violence that children are experiencing. Many of them are being snatched from their homes and forced to participate in war. These children are stripped from their homes and taught to be killers. They are losing who they are and never having the opportunity to see family members again. The Bio social, Cognitive and psychosocial development of these children are effected in many different ways. To understand clearly what these children are going through please click on the following link and watch the video.   http://childrenofwarfilm.com/


Berger,K. (2009). The developing person through childhood. 5th ed. Worth publishers, New york,NY

Nutrition VS Malnutrition

   "Malnutrition is globally the most important risk factor for illness and death, contributing to more than half of deaths in children worldwide; child malnutrition was associated with 54% of deaths in children in developing countries in 2001"(Shashidar, 2011, p1).
Malnutrition can affect weight gain and behavioral changes. Behavioral changes that are impacted are irritability, fatigue and attention deficient.
    Children need proper nutrition to sat healthy and grow. Brains are affected by the lack of nutrition children receive. Students that become irritable and fatigue lack the ability to be able to focus and learn. Premature babies require a different nutritional need. It is important for parents to help their children eat healthy, exercise and stay fit. Obesity is on the rise and can cause greater health risk.

The Numerous Foundation. (2012). Nutrition and fitness center. Retrieved from http://kidshealth.org/parent/centers/fitness_nutrition_center.html
Shashidar, H. (2011, October). Malnutrition. MedScape Reference. Retrieved from http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/985140-overview

3 Ideas from NAEYC & DEC Codes of Ethics

Appreciate childhood as a unique and valuable stage of the human life cycle

Respect the dignity, worth, and uniqueness of each individual (child, family member, and colleague)

Recognize that children and adults achieve their full potential in the context of relationships that are based on trust and respect

We shall engage in ongoing and systematic reflective inquiry and self-assessment for the purpose of continuous improvement of professional performance and services to young children with disabilities and their families.

We shall continually be aware of issues challenging the field of early childhood special education and advocate for changes in laws, regulations, and policies leading to improved outcomes and services for young children with disabilities and their families.

We shall be responsible for maintaining the appropriate national, state, or other credential or licensure requirements for the services we provide while maintaining our competence in practice and research by ongoing participation in professional development and education activities.

http://www.naeyc.org/positionstatements/ethical_conduct

http://www.dec-sped.org

Early Childhood Resources

Weblinks 

• Wings for Kids

              www.wingsforkids.org

• Early Childhood News Articles

              www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/articles

Books

• Burns, S., Mason, G., & Johnson, R. (2012). Preschool education in today's world: Teaching children with diverse backgrounds and abilities. Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
• Wood, K. & Youcha, V. (2009). The ABC's of the ADA: Young early childhood program's guide to americans with disabilities act . Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
• Zaslaw, M., Martinez-Beck, I. (2005). Critical issues in early childhood professional development . Brookes Publishing Co., Inc.
  

  Position Statements and Influential Practices

• NAEYC. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/dap
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on child abuse prevention. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/ChildAbuseStand.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on school readiness. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Readiness.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on responding to linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf
• NAEYC. (2003). Early childhood curriculum, assessment, and program evaluation: Building an effective, accountable system in programs for children birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/pscape.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009, April). Early childhood inclusion: A summary. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/DEC_NAEYC_ECSummary_A.pdf
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families. (2010). Infant-toddler policy agenda. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://main.zerotothree.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ter_pub_infanttodller
• FPG Child Development Institute. (2006, September). Evidence-based practice empowers early childhood professionals and families. (FPG Snapshot, No. 33). Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~snapshots/snap33.pdf
• Turnbull, A., Zuna, N., Hong, J. Y., Hu, X., Kyzar, K., Obremski, S., et al. (2010). Knowledge-to-action guides. Teaching Exceptional Children, 42(3), 42-53.

•  Article: UNICEF (n.d.). Fact sheet: A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf

Websites:

• World Forum Foundation
  http://worldforumfoundation.org/wf/wp/about-us
• World Organization for Early Childhood Education
  http://www.omep-usnc.org/
• Association for Childhood Education International
  http://acei.org/

Selected Early Childhood Organizations

• 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/
• 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/

Professional Journals 

• 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

Aisha Davis & Hillary Clinton dedicated to Early Childhood Education

“The quality of care and education young children receive affects their subsequent development and learning” Aisha Ray (2004).

 “We’ve got to do more to give families the tools and the support that they should have so that they can be the best parents. They are a child’s first teachers... We also need more involvement from the community. We all have a role to play” Hillary Clinton (2008).

So many reasons to love ECH Education...

My favorite motto about children: "Children are the future leaders of America". They are our doctors, lawyers, politicians, sanitation workers, presidents, athletes and the list goes on & on.

My favorite children's book is Alexander and the Terrible Horrible No Good Very Bad Day. Everyone  has days like Alexander when you just want to move to Australia.

For along time I had been trying to get the students to grasp the concepts of feelings and using words. This one little girl just would not stand up for herself. No matter how much modeling and coaching I had done. Closer towards the end of the school year she broke out that shell and boy oh boy was she using her words! She began to stand up for herself. She was even directing other children on how to share. This was an amazing break through for her because she wouldn't even play with the other children or share thoughts during group time. It was a long hard struggle but we helped her out.

My class recently talked about the pond we talked about frogs, insects and even took a pretend camping trip where the children pretended to go fishing. The students made their own camp signs and camping rules also. Below are a few images of the students enjoying the activities.