NAEYC

I-1.7—To use assessment information to understand and support children’s development and learning, to support instruction, and to identify children who may need additional services.

I have worked with children with special needs for three years.  I have learned a great deal about what to look for when trying to decide if they need additional services.  I have a better understanding of all of the many resources and options available to these children.  All children develop differently.  Some children cannot make certain connections and are not able to perform in the same ways as their peers. 

I-1.10—To ensure that each child’s culture, language, ethnicity, and family structure are recognized and valued in the program.

Every child is special in many different ways.  It is important to appreciate each child’s culture and background.  When I used to teach preschool, I would always incorporate the cultures of different students.  I would always celebrate Chinese New Year and Cinco de Mayo.  Acknowledging the different cultures made those children feel more welcome and appreciated.  It was also very beneficial in teaching the other students about new and different things. 

 I-2.2—To develop relationships of mutual trust and create partnerships with the families we serve.

As professionals, it is part of our job to communicate and involve families.  Children need a strong and positive support system.  Teachers and families can share sources and ideas.  The more those involved in a child’s life build a positive relationship, the more the child will succeed.  Families need to feel just as welcomed.  I am constantly in contact with the families of the children I am involved with.  I send home daily communication pages that tell about the student’s day and it there were any issues that came up that day.  Every parent has my personal email and cell phone number and are well aware that they can contact me at any time with questions or concerns. 

DEC

Responsive Family Centered Practices

6. We shall respect families’ rights to choose or refuse early childhood special education or related services.

This is another issue that is a significant part of my current professional position.  Special education can be very extensive or rather minimal.  I have seen how it affects children and their families.  Having a child that needs special education services can be very difficult for some families to accept.  Often times, it takes parents a lot of thinking and weighing pros and cons before committing one way or the other.  It is important to make families aware of the services that are available and give them all of the information they need to make the proper decision.  I need to be respectful of whatever decision they make and allow them room to change their minds if they are not happy with their decision.

References:

Article: NAEYC. (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from

http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf

Article: The Division for Early Childhood. (2000, August). Code of ethics. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from

http://www.dec-sped.org/

 

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://community.fpg.unc.edu/sites/community.fpg.unc.edu/files/imce/documents/FPG_Snapshot_N33_EvidenceBasedPractice_09-2006.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.

Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

Global Support for Children's Rights and Well-Being

•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

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/

•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/

•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.pewstates.org/projects/pre-k-now-328067

•Voices for America's Children

http://www.voices.org/

•The Erikson Institute

http://www.erikson.edu/

Selected Professional Journals Available in the Walden Library

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

Additional Resources

Boyse, Kayla.  (2013).  University of Michigan Health System. “Developmental Milestones”.  http://www.med.umich.edu/yourchild/topics/devmile.htm

(2014). Gulf Bend Center. “Child and Adolescent Development: Overview”. 
http://www.gulfbend.org/poc/view_doc.php?type=doc&id=7924

(2014). Tuesday’s Child. “Child Development”

http://www.tuesdayschildchicago.org/google/childdevelopment.htm

 

 Quote from Art Rolnick

“Results consistently show that high quality early childhood programs help kids enter kindergarten with the skills they need to learn and that those children continue to be successful in school and ultimately become contributing members of society. Most significantly, the crime rate among those who participate in these programs falls dramatically. The research shows that positive outcomes for at-risk children can be achieved and that the cost-benefit ratio and rates of return yield a high public return. This is in contrast to the 0% return on public subsidies to private businesses that I referred to earlier. Less crime and a well-educated workforce lead to the long-term payoff of economic growth and development” (Art Rolnick). 

 Quote From Stanley Greenspan

“Parents can make a dramatic difference in how children use their wonderfully different natural abilities. Children vary considerably in the ways they use their senses and bodies and the ways they respond to the world. For each unique pattern, however, parents can create experiences that promote flexibility. The capacity to love, to empathize with others, to be confident and assertive, and to think creatively are complex products of many of our traits; indeed, they are the results of our relationships and experiences over many years.

A child's personality is a product of the unique and continuous interplay between nature and nurture. And this interplay happens in your relationship with your child. Your child brings his or her "nature", and you bring warmth and love wrapped up in a particular pattern of caring. It operates like a lock and a key. Finding the right key creates new patterns of interactions. Out of this new relationship, a child can often develop the warmth and confidence he or she needs.

For each stage of development there is a special "key". I believe that this knowledge about how to find the "keys" that will help any child, even those with difficult challenges, needs to be in the hands of each and every caregiver and parent.

Stanley Greenspan, 1995. The Challenging Child.

Personal Childhood Web

Susan- Sister (in the blue)

Susan is a sibling that I could always relate to.  She is my best friend and 4 years older than me.  We have similar personalities that allow us to get along very well.  She has always been there for me.  She used her personal life experiences to help me through some difficult times in my life.  I can call her any time day or night and she would drop anything if I needed her.  She has always believed in me and given me strength at the most critical times.  I live in Illinois and she lives in Texas.  Her moving was very hard on me, but she still remains my best friend and who I can turn to for anything.


Michelle-Sister (in yellow)

 Michelle is my oldest sibling, still only 5 years older than me.  She was always a little different than the rest of us.  She is very proper, conservative and organized.  Most importantly, she speaks her mind! She never held back telling me that maybe I was making the wrong choice and I should consider other options on certain things.  She is extremely smart with a Master's in Education.  I have learned a lot about teaching children and having patience  She is very patient and understanding with children, speaking to them with respect as they deserve.  She is firm, but kind.  She gets her point across in a manner that I have never seen before.  I turn to her for many topics of advice: finances, teaching, parenting, the work force, and my education. 

Mother (in Purple) 

My mother has been my friend, counselor, nurse, psychiatrist and most of all, role model.  She has always been there for me.  Took me to softball and basketball practices and supported anything I chose to do.  She let me make mistakes and learn from them.  When i made bad choices, she was always there to pick up the pieces.  She always gave me a shoulder to cry on, no matter how big or small by problem was.  I went through an extremely tough time while I was pregnant with my son and still have a very challenging time.  His father is an alcoholic and treated me very badly.  She was always there at all hours to help.  Being a single mom is the most difficult thing I can imagine and she has helped me through every step of the way.  I would be very lost without her.  She always goes out of her way to help people, never expecting anything in return.  She has taught me that it is important to be a genuine good person and to forgive.  I learn from her every day more ways to be a positive person who doesn't sweat the small things and has fun in life





Father (with my son :) )

 
My dad has always been a very important part of my life.  He was strict with us, but not abusive or condescending.  We went to Catholic School our entire upbringing.  He is a Dentist and minored in in Child Psychology.  He has given me a lot of advice on papers I have written for classes and ideas for things to do for my job.  He is very knowledgeable and expects the best out of his children.  He taught me to be respectful and have manners.  Failure was never an option with him.  He was my motivation to go back to school and work hard to be the best I can be, especially being a single mom.  Disappointing him was something I feared deeply.  He is the BEST Grandpa a kid could have!  He always gets excited to play with the kids.  It is unique watching him with them because he lets them do their own things.  He is all about letting them explore and be curious.  That is a major thing I have learned from him that I use in my field of work.  Children are meant to get dirty, be messy and explore their surroundings.  

The last person that has made a significant impact on my life is Ann Wagenecht.  She was my second grade teacher and Girl Scout troop leader.  She was also a good family friend.  She was a very good teacher.  She always treated everyone equally and was always fair.  She was always willing to take extra time to help when I didn't understand things.  She spoke to her students with respect and was always very positive.  She always had a positive attitude and was very creative and fun.  She truly loved her job and showed it in many ways.  She is the reason I chose to work with children.