MY SUPPORTS

I have found as I grow older (age in years not in spirit) the various supports in my life change.  These supports can be social/emotional in nature; practical; physical or just daily things needed to help with the multiple of hats I wear each day (as so many of us do).  These supports also can change minute by minute; daily; etc… all dependent on how the day is going.

An example of social/emotional supports would be when I need to vent or ask advice and know that my friends and family are there for me.  The best example of this would be when my husband passed away in a motor vehicle accident.  It seemed as if everyone we knew came out to lend their support in some way or form.  These are also the same individuals which I know I can still count on for support no matter what is happening.

Examples of practical supports/physical supports on a daily basis can range anywhere from my day planner; computer working correctly; support from my peers; hoping I get paid by all the parents for the weeks’ childcare so I can pay my own bills; to support from my children such as taking the air conditioners out, etc…; my grocery list; and curriculum plans for the week.

There are plenty more supports in which I receive/need/or supply to others on a daily basis but these were a few examples of them.  When I imagine having all my supports taken away, it is not a pleasant thought at all.  Life would definitely be much harder if the supports I have come to rely on just disappeared.  I will admit that I am spoiled by technology and extremely fortunate to have great children and friends which allow me to keep my little part of the world on a pretty even level for the most part.  Though these supports may not be needed each day, it is always great to know they are here when they are needed.

So a great big THANK YOU for all the supports I have in my life!



MY CONNECTION TO PLAY

“Play is the highest expression of

human development in childhood,

for it alone is the free expression of

what is in a child’s soul.”

                                                                   ~ Fredrick Froebel

I found this quote quite a few years ago in one of my favorite books, titled Tumbling Over the Edge – A Rant for Child’s Play, written by Bev Bos and Jenny Chapman.  I refer to this quote quite often in my course assignments over the years as it sums up my philosophy of early childhood education and the importance of play in a child’s development.

As a child care provider, comments have been made repeatedly over the last twenty-two years such as “You don’t work, you play all day.” or “One day you will need to get a real job.”  I,  in turn, educate them on how lucky I am to have had the opportunity to play for the last twenty-two years while operating a licensed family child care program.

Reference

Bos, B. J., & Chapman, J. (2005). Tumbling over the edge: a rant for children's play. Roseville, CA: Turn the Page Press.

"Play is often talked about as if it were a relief

from serious learning. But for children play is

serious learning. Play is really the work of childhood."

                                                                   ~ Fred Rogers

Play, according to developmentalists, is the most productive and enjoyable activity in which children undertake.  Play is considered universal since it is apparent in every part of the world and has been for thousands of years (Berger, 2009). 

Child-initiated play lays the foundations of learning.  Through play, children learn to interact with others, to recognize and solve problems, and to feel the sense of mastery that results.  Basically, play helps children make sense of and find their own place in the physical and social world (Alliance for Childhood, 2005).

Play is closely linked to children’s intellectual, social, emotional, and physical progress.  Decades of research has demonstrated that active childhood play boosts healthy development across a broad spectrum of critical areas.  The benefits are so impressive that every day of childhood should be a day for play (Alliance for Childhood, 2005).

References

Berger, K. S. (2009). In The developing person through childhood. New York: Worth.

Alliance for Childhood, C. D. (2005). Time for play, every day: It's Fun – and fundamental. Alliance for Childhood.

Thinking back to when I was younger, I remember there not really being a choice – if it was sunny out – we were outside for the day involved in some type of activity with our friends during the school vacation times.  We were each called in for lunch and snacks and then off we went again until dinner time.  When we were in school this was the case as well once homework was completed.  Of course, this was in the 70’s when there was not 100’s of television stations, computers, Internet, cell phones, or video game systems.  I remember on days when the weather was not good and we were inside making tents, forts, playing school with all my dolls, or just relaxing and reading.  I remember puddle jumping in the rain when the weather was warm enough and being outside in the snow building snowmen, snow forts, and making snow angels. We were encouraged to use our imaginations to their fullest potential.  Each of our friends homes were also like our homes and we all took turns going from house to house depending on what we were doing that particular day.

The difference I see today is that children are not allowed to just be children.  Play has now become a structured activity coordinated to provide the ultimate education for the children.  I take a lot of criticism for allowing the children to have at least two parts of the day when they can just play.  They have their choices of what they want to do and as long as they are safe and happy, the toys, books, blankets, pillows, etc. are there for them.  I make sure I limit movies and television as well.  I believe with all the technology that is now available as well as all the toys that are out there, it is our job as educators, parents, guardians, etc… to make sure there is a healthy balance for the children.

Relationship Reflection

Social contact is a very essential part of human development and has direct effects on our health and emotional well-being.  Each relationship/partnership for me is very different.  Each of these relationships is different because of the role I play in each of the relationships.  As most of us do, I wear many hats (i.e. mom, sister, friend, aunt, advocate, child care provider, Miss Robin to the children I take care of).  The list is quite extensive.

To my own children I am mom.  I am also mom to most of the exchange students I have hosted over the years. In regards to my sister’s children, I am “Auntie the greatest aunt in the world.”  Some relationships take longer to develop, others are pretty much instantaneous.  I have so many positive relationships that I do not know where I would even begin.  I do believe that each relationship is unique and the older I get the more I understand the special aspects of each relationship/partnership. 

Each of my relationships is based on different bonds with each specific individual.  Some bonds are stronger than others but the bonds are there just the same.  By understanding these differences, it makes me a more effective early childhood professional.

The memory that really seems to belong under this heading is an incident after my husband was killed.  We were in the middle of remodeling the kitchen, dining room, and hallway of our home.  We had just finished plastering two days prior to his accident and all of our friends and even those I did not know all came to help finish the job.  In some ways I think it was a blessing for them as it gave them something to do while grieving.  I always tell people that I may have lost my husband but I gained about 500 of the best big/little brothers and sisters I could ever ask for.  During this time the courts decided that I needed to prove myself capable of finishing raising our three children.  When the lawyer the courts appointed came out to the house and was looking over all my receipts (I had to prove where all monies had been spent since the day of the accident) he looked at the Home Depot, etc… receipts and asked why there were so many and I explained the situation.  He then asked me where the receipts were for the contractor and other workers.  I told him there were none because all the work was completed by friends.  He looked at me and said no one has friends that good.  I replied “Yes I do, and I am very lucky to have them all.”  In one way that conversation saddened me as it made me realize even though I was grieving, how lucky in so many ways I still was.  Here was this lawyer who could not even imagine having friends as great as mine.

Favorite Child Development Quote

". . . if we trust the capacity of the human individual for developing his own potential, then we can permit him the opportunity to choose his own way in his learning."

~ Carl R. Rogers

This quote is one of my favorites because it brings to light that each person is an individual with their own way of learning.  This does not make any one method right or wrong, it just gives everyone the opportunity to choose their own way in which they learn best regardless of abilities.

Testing for Intelligence

Since the beginning of my educational journey in the summer of 2005, I was made aware of the ongoing debate which involved finding the most effective method to measure children’s minds and abilities.  As a licensed day care owner/provider part of my job is to complete assessments and evaluations on the children in my care.  The areas that are required to be covered are:  communication; gross motor; fine motor; problem solving; personal-social; as well as social-emotional.  I agree that these areas should be assessed (especially at the ages I work with); since any sign of needed help means assistance will be given sooner rather than later.  Often times, I see nothing being done until the child(ren) enter into the public/private school system.

The most frequent forms of assessment used with students with learning disabilities, according to Heward (2006), are:  standardized tests; criterion-referenced tests; informal reading inventories; curriculum-based measurement; and direct daily measurement. (Heward, 2006). 

Standardized intelligence and achievement tests are widely used with children with learning disabilities.  This is because, according to Heward (2006), a discrepancy between intellectual ability and achievement is the primary factor in determining eligibility for special education services (Heward, 2006).  I personally do not like standardized tests.  In my state we have the MCAS tests and every student regardless of their abilities/disabilities have to take these tests at specific times in order to be eligible for graduation.  One reason I do not like standardized tests is because students with diverse backgrounds and skill levels are expected to answer questions that are more or less written for the white, abled majority.  English language learners take tests in English before they have been able to master the language.  Special education students take the same tests as all the other children (receiving few of the accommodations usually provided to them as part of their IEPs (Individualized Education Plans) (standardizedtests.pro.com. org).

Criterion-referenced tests differ from norm-referenced tests since a child’s score on a criterion-referenced test is compared with a predetermined criterion rather than with normed scores of other students (Heward, 2006).  These tests are helpful in identifying the specific skills the child has already learned and the skills that require further instruction (Heward, 2006).

Informal reading inventories usually consist of a series of progressively more difficult sentences and paragraphs that a student is asked to read aloud.  Direct observation/recording aspects of the child’s reading skills (i.e. mispronounced vowels, consonants, omissions, reversals, substitutions, and comprehension) the teacher can determine the level of reading material that is most suitable for the child as well as the specific reading skills that require remediation (Heward, 2006).

Curriculum-based measurement involves frequent assessment of a child’s progress in learning the objectives that make up the curriculum in which the child is participating in (Heward, 2006).

Direct daily measurement basically means observing and recording a child’s performance on the specific skill being taught each day as it is taught.  One advantage to this method is that it gives information about the child’s performance on the skill under instruction.  Another advantage is this information is available on a continuous basis so that the teacher/instructor can modify instruction in accordance with changing/unchanging performance (Heward, 2006).

An example of how performance testing is done in other areas of the world is the Primary Schools Baseline Assessment (PIP-BLA).  This example is discussed in an article by Helen Wildy and Irene Styles (2011) and Western Australia is the region discussed.  The PIPS BLA was developed by the CEM Center and is administered within the first six weeks of a child starting compulsory education on an individual basis.  The test takes approximately 20 minutes per child.  The content is based on areas of children’s development which have been shown to be the best predictors of later success or difficulty at school (Tymms, et., al., (2004).

References

2002, M. (n.d.). Standardized Tests - ProCon.org.

     Retrieved August 06, 2011, from

     http://standardizedtests.procon.org/#pro_con

Heward, W. L. (2006). Exceptional children: an introduction to

     special education. Upper Saddle River, NJ:

     Pearson Education/Merrill/Prentice Hall.

Tymms, P., Merrell, C., & Jones, P. (2004). Using baseline assessment

     data to make international comparisons. British Educational Research

     Journal, 30(5), 673-689. doi:10.1080/0141192042000234647

Wildy, H., & Styles, I. (2011). Measuring What High-achieving

     Students Know and Can Do on Entry to School: PIPS 2002-2008.

     Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 36(2), 51.

Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

In the past, chaos in children’s lives reflected large-scale as well as economic upheavals in American society.  A child’s home was usually viewed as a safe haven for them in a world that was considered harsh and chaotic.  Today, however, much of the world may be a safer place for children (meaning the benefits from better health and government safety net).  These benefits, however, may be offset by increasing chaos brought about by marital instability and lack of regularity in the home.  Moreover, chaos in the child’s home may have less to do with economic shocks or other society-wide economic transformations than with the growing freedom of choice (both good and bad) that parents have concerning issues such as marriage, childbearing, and work, as well as how their choices affect their children’s lives (Lichter, et., al., 2010).

Environmental chaos typically refers to disruptions in multiple domains, which include but are not limited to, sensory overload, physical crowding, and routine family life.  When routines are diminished in frequency and family life is disorganized, questions about how the group works together collectively to promote and sustain healthy development are raised (Fiese & Winter).

In my own case my sister and I never knew what we were going to walk into after school or after being out with friends.  From the age of approximately eleven our home was in constant chaos with arguments as the normal environment we lived in.  Once our parents divorced, there were other circumstances that are still very painful to recount that I know had negative repercussions on our development in many areas.  I chose to use babysitting on an almost constant basis in order to totally avoid being in my home except to sleep.  Unfortunately, due to the stress involved with our household my grades began to slip and I needed to get them back up in a hurry or I would not be permitted to babysit any longer.  Sadly, at this time, this is the reason I chose to work even harder at school work.  I believe I still have residual effects from my childhood that will more than likely never fully be put to rest. 

References

Lichter, D. T., & Wethington, E. (2010). Chaos and the diverging fortunes of American children: A historical perspective. In G. W. Evans, T. D. Wachs, G. W. Evans, T. D. Wachs (Eds.), Chaos and its influence on children's development: An ecological perspective (pp. 15-32). Washington, DC US: American Psychological Association. doi:10.1037/12057-002

Research Study - Growing Pains: The Impact of Disaster-Related and Daily Stressors on the Psychological and Psychosocial FUntioning of Youth in Sri Lanka

Developmental psychology, supported by nearly four decades of research, has shown that children’s development is influenced by multiple factors at multiple levels.  These range from intrapersonal variables (both biological and psychological) to factors operating at the level of the family, community, and society (Ferando, et., al., 2010). 

In an effort to understand the impact of stressful events and contexts (parental divorce and poverty) on children’s emotional, cognitive, and social well-being, researchers have begun to look to identify and understand mediating and moderating factors at multiple levels of influence that might explain or influence the relation between stressors and children’s mental health (Ferando., et., al., 2010).

Daily stressors may mediate the relation between exposure to disaster-related stressors and psychological and psychosocial distress among youth in disaster-affected countries (Ferando, et., al., 2010).  In this study a sample of 427 Sri Lankan Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim youth with a mean age of 14.5 years) completed a survey with measures of exposure to disaster-related stressors and daily stressors, psychological distress (which included posttraumatic stress, depression, and anxiety), and psychosocial distress.  The results of the study indicated that daily stressors significantly mediated relations between war and tsunani-related stressors and psychological and psychosocial distress.  Some of the daily stressors which were not directly related to disaster also predicted functioning.  Therefore, these results seem to point to the need for policies and interventions that focus on reducing proximal daily stressors that are salient to Sri Lankan youth exposed to disasters (Ferando, et., al., 2010).

The above-mentioned research study was really interesting to read and I would recommend it to anyone who would like to learn more about this type of stressors.

References

Fernando, G., Miller, K., & Berger, D. (2010). Growing pains: the impact of disaster-related and daily stressors on the psychological and psychosocial functioning of youth in Sri Lanka. Child Development, 81(4), 1192-1210.

Fiese B, Winter M. The dynamics of family chaos and its relation to children's socioemotional well-being. Chaos and its influence on children's development: An ecological perspective [e-book]. Washington, DC US: American Psychological Association; 2010:49-66. Available from: PsycINFO, Ipswich, MA. Accessed July 23, 2011.