NIEER an Informative Organization

Additional Investigation:

Once I really began to investigate the purpose and scope of NAECT (National Association of Early childhood Teacher Educators) (my first choice) I realized that this was not the organization for my beginning.  At first, I felt I wanted to research an organization that I could one day belong to, and NAECT could possibly be a program with depth and breath for a professional teacher.  However, I soon realized that NAECT was probably well beyond where I am now.  I ran across a small insert in their newsletter stating that they were an organization for early childhood professors who taught at four year institutions.  OK, I am not quite there. 

So, I spent this last week participating in deeper research from our list.  I began with the end in mind.  I knew I wanted an organization that not only aspired to leading individuals in the field to becoming professionals as well as providing information on current research and evidence of helpful words for professional teachers.  Therefore, I chose to change my venue to National Institute for Early Education Research.  I have listed their web site and online newsletter below. 

NIEER Focus:

The National Institute for Early Education Research is an organization dedicated to communicating current research data that will “support high quality, effective, early childhood education for all young children” (NIEER, 2012).   They provide information, guidance, and recommendations that is research-based to professionals such as; policy makers, journalists, researchers, and educators. 

They pride themselves on sustaining a vision for early childhood education that promotes excellence, is easily understood, and is valid for policy makers (NIEER, 2012). 

NIEER works together with policy makers at both the state and national level to pass along information supporting best practices, policies, and quality, develop strategies for research and communication to narrow the gaps in applying scientific knowledge to early education policy, form working partners with scholars and research institutions as they assign their staff to investigate new research and analysis, supply media agencies with “research-based perspective on breaking news”, strive to inspire national and state considerations on early education policies, and partner with other groups to working on collaborative inquiry plans and to make the public aware of  current policy and trends in early care and education (NIEER, 2012).

Hot Topic:

A topic that caught my attention was the idea of “kindergarten redshirting” which takes its name from college sports and has to do with parents choosing to hold their child back from kindergarten one year even though the child meets the birthday cutoff date in order for the child to have time to mature and be more ready before entering kindergarten (NIEER, 2012).    This news worthy report links you to a CBS’s 60 Minutes interview with Samuel Meisels (president of Erikson Institute) as well as staff members from 60 Minutes.  One interesting point made is the fact that demographics play a part in which children end up in “redshirting” with the majority being “Caucasian, male, and higher-income families” (NIEER, 2012).

Other Topics: 

Other news worthy issues addressed included, but were not limited to Education Reform: It Takes a Village (professionals from various states speak about the successes and challenges of educational reform), Third Grade Retention Laws Launch Debate (talks about literacy in the early grades is linked to later academic success of students), and Moving Past the No-Program Moniker? (discusses a bill in Indiana that would mandate state funded preschool (NIEER, 2012).

All are great topics and there are more.  I hope you will have time to visit the site.  It could be a great place for resources for this and other courses to come. 

National Institute for Early Education Research
http://nieer.org/
(Newsletter: http://nieer.org/resources/newsletter/index.php)

References

National Institute for Early Education Research. (2012). Mission statement. Retrieved from http://nieer.org/about/

National Institute for Early Education Research. (2012). Hot topics. In the news: Delaying children’s entry to kindergarten. Retrieved from http://nieer.org/newsletter/index.php?NewsletterID=212 

Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

This has been a fun and exciting exercise while at the same time being frustrating.

FRUSTRATING: I emailed over a dozen professionals listed on the NAEYC website: The Global Alliance of NAEYC has e-mail addresses for early childhood professionals worldwide: http://www.naeyc.org/resources/partnership/globalalliance and had most of them come back as undeliverable.

REWARDING: I found a website in Canada: http://teachers.net/mentors, which gives me access to childcare providers and early child professionals in Alberta, Canada. I was able to join their site and post a request for correspondence. I hope to hear from some of them soon. I will keep you appraised of any success I have. Please feel free to use their website, provided above, to contact them.

WEBSITE I PLAN TO FOLLOW:

National Association of Early Childhood Teacher Educators
http://www.naecte.org/
(Newsletter: http://www.naecte.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=14&Itemid=29 )

I am looking forward to this assignment. This will be so much fun. I hope all my colleagues are having success and as much fun with this assignment as I am.  I hope to hear from all of you on your successes.

My Supports

What are my supports?  Let me count the ways. My supports come in various shapes, sizes, and personalities.  The first is a giant in my estimation.  Not because he stands at 6’ 2”, but because he is generous to a fault, strives to see the positive in people, and very gently keeps me on the straight and narrow path to success.  He is my loving husband, LaMar. 

The second and not far distance from the first is my sister Linda and her husband Tom. There is not anything they would do to make my life easier.  They are my cheerleaders as they resound to encourage me and help me to feel good about myself.  They truly are the “salt of the earth”. 

Third and close behind the second are the rest of my six sisters who assuredly are stalwart and are supportive by just being there.  I know that if need be and without hesitation, they would come to my defense. 

Then there is my wise and kind mentor, Jana.  I know that I can ask her anything and she will tell me how it really is and will be there to support and help me by sharing not only her wisdom but creative ideas for the classroom, and anything that will help me be a better teacher for my students.  She views her success by lifting all around her to the highest ground. 

I shudder to think about life without those supports.  They provide the very ingredients that overtime have created savor in my life.  In fact, I refuse to think of life without them.  I will not say that I cannot live without them for life always goes on, but I would not want to do so.  They are my examples of the many characteristics that I am striving to cultivate in my life. They assist me in my life’s work and striving as I trek to the top of “Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs” to self-actualization”. 

My imaginary life challenge would be contracting a debilitating and fatal disease.  Heaven forbid such a challenge, because I still have many goals and life work to fulfill.  This is a difficult assignment, as it really scares me.  However, here it goes.  My many supports would include those that I spoke of in my beginning remarks.  I would add physicians, health care professionals and those who would not only give me hope, but would not give up on me until my earthly end.  Faith, hope and charity would be those inner feelings and actions from me and my supports that would see all through in such a situation. 

Life would be null without such supports.  There would be no reason to fight for or have a reason to continue on in life.  Without genuine supports one might as well not exist. 

Ok, now it is time to end such melodrama, and proceed on a happy and more positive note.  I am thankful for and hope that I will never lose sight of the importance that each individual adds to my life.  They mean so much to me, and I hope I may add to their life even a small repayment that will bring joy and happiness to them. 

My Connections to Play

MY CHILDHOOD YEARS OF PLAY AND IMAGINATION

“The activities that are the easiest, cheapest, and most fun to do – such as singing, playing games, reading, storytelling, and just talking and listening – are also the best for child development.” By Jerome Singer (professor, Yale University)

“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.” Friedrich Froebel (founder of the concept of kindergarten)

“It is in playing, and only in playing, that the individual child or adult is able to be creative and to use the whole personality, and it is only in being creative that the individual discovers the self.” D.W. Winnicott (British pediatrician)                                                                           

My fondest memories of play are associated with my younger sister, Becky.  Living on a small dairy farm with cows, horses (Scamp and Duchess), chickens, Midnight and Snowball (pet rabbits), Tommy Cat (our quiet and ever present black Tom cat that would let us dress him up in baby doll clothes and pretend he was our baby), and our protector Freckles (part German Shepard and part we don’t know what dog) we had the best the world had to offer.  We would venture past our milk barn and over the hill to the pasture or sage brush and there was no limit to what we could do.  The big cottonwood tree in the pasture was just right for a tree house and it had the perfect stream of water that ran beside it in a small irrigation ditch.  Although it never ended up with a house built in it, it still provided a sanctuary for our imagination as we created never ending dramas from the latest television show or book.  Over the hill and through the sagebrush was the best ditch with high sides and shallow water that barely covered rocks.  It made the pebbles shine and they became gold as we used mom’s old pie tins to pan for the precious treasure.  Becky had a little red wagon.  We would load our dolls in it and play “Wagon Train” or pretend that we were escaping from a villain. 

Our mother was our greatest supporter.  It didn’t matter how much of a mess we made, only that we were safe and happy.  It seems like we played and played some more.  Such freedom has carried through with me today.  I think that is why I love play any kind of game, love to travel, and enjoy experimenting with different food recipes.

Play then and now presents many differences.  When I was young, we played outdoors as much as we could and today children play mostly indoors with video games and X-Boxes.  The cost of play when I was young was minimal as we played dress-up in our parent’s and older sister’s clothes.  Also, we used cardboard boxes, twine from the barnyard, and other materials that were uncommon to a store.  Our essential play props and toys consisted of dolls, homemade doll clothes, a dramatic set (cupboard, table and chairs) made by our grandfather which was our mother’s when she was a little girl.  Today almost all toys are purchased from a vendor.  We did not have imagination painted for us on a computer, iPod, or video game.  We had to make up our own stories which usually came from stories our mother told us, from books she read to us, or from very few television shows we were able to watch.  My hope for children of today is for them to experience the outdoors as I did, to be excited by the little things such as an old cottonwood tree and a dog named Freckles, to learn how to roll down a hill, to run barefoot through the grass, to be supported as they use their creativity, but mostly to feel and be safe.   

When one learns how to play as a child, one will know how to play as an adult.  As a youngster, life wasn’t all play, we had responsibilities such as feeding and watering our animals, keeping our rooms clean, helping our mom with meals, gardening, canning, laundry to name a few.  I think children need to feel the joy of responsibility in order to know the pleasure that comes from play.  Work gives us the drive to enjoy and to look forward to playing.  Play is innate to a child, but becomes something we have to remember to take time for as an adult. 

It is my hope that all adults remember how wonderful it was to play and imagine and pass that on to their children responsibly. Our creative minds come from the play we enjoy as children. When we lose that we lose our innocence.

Relationship Reflection

Relationships are what make the world go around.  Without the many connections (lasting and/or momentarily) we make there would be no motivation to improve the quality life.  Of my many associations that I have developed throughout my life, I can say without a doubt my existence would be unimportant had I never taken the time to get to know their memorable characteristics.  As I continue to forge my relationships, I have to acknowledge the interdependence that comes with the alliance is what supports my being as I grow and develop into someone who values life. 

The current and lasting people in my life include my husband (LaMar), my sisters (Vicki, Sheryl, Deanna, Linda, Becky, and Shawna) and there spouses, all my extended family, my mentor teacher (Jana), the people that I work with, and many friends in Idaho and Utah.  The interesting fact about all those relationships is they each deal with children in one way or another.  They all care for, love, and work with children and families in various ways. 

Each relationship gives positives in many ways, but two stand out as the foundations for which all others are supported, trust and unconditional love.  I can say without reservation that each is a trusted family, friend, and/or colleague, and each offer unconditional support and love.  At difficult times in my life, relationships have been my saving grace.  Depending on the struggles I have faced, I knew that someone close would be there to lift and walk with me through each unique tribulation.  One such test I face now is making it through my courses and Walden and at the same time teaching a fifth grade classroom of twenty-nine (29) students.  The torment was that I added the classroom of fifth graders in the second quarter, because their first teacher had the unfortunate malady of having to retire due to Multiple Sclerosis.  I really didn’t know what I was thinking when I said that I would change from my ELL (English Language Learners) position to teaching fifth graders other than the challenge.  It has truly been a challenge, but because of supportive individuals like LaMar, Linda and Tom, Jana, Vera, parents of children in my class, and other family and co-workers, I would not be able to see the “light at the end of the tunnel”.  They have been my saving grace as I have worked, studied, and prayed for guidance and help.

Such dedicated individuals deserve reciprocal behavior from me which includes unconditional love, support, positive affirmations and whatever I can give they may stand in need of.  Let me add that I want to do what I can to assist, help, and lift them, because they are my true confidant.  When one has genuine caring relationships, one yearns to grow, develop, and succeed academically, personally, and within the work place. 

LaMar is dedicated to stopping by my classroom after he has completed his day of working with delinquent students each day and helps me correct papers, input grades, discuss issues for the day and plan remedies, and is my proof reader for my Walden coursework.  Linda volunteers in my classroom and has also helped in correcting papers and disseminated great ideas for working with students that need extra motivation.  Tom supports Linda in her giving of her time to help me.  Jana shares her great ideas for making learning valuable, gives me positive affirmations about my work with students, and keeps me on the straight and narrow concerning requirements and rules.  Vera strives to make me feel part of the team and aids me in making sure I understand and implement required daily duties, and always has time to answer my questions with a smile and positive confirmations that I am doing what I am supposed to be doing.  Wow!  How wouldn’t someone thrive with all that encouragement?  It is their consistent help that spurs me on in making my work with children valuable and rewarding. 

While doing this assignment it was refreshing to review and remind myself of all the positive influences I have in my life.  Sometimes we tend to dwell on the negatives, but when we review the positives we realize how much influence for good we have in our lives.  It also makes us realize that we must take the time to identify and thank those who are influential in our lives.  I have so much for which to be thankful, “my cup runneth over”. 

All About Children

"The soul is healed by being with children"   English Proverb

Early Learning Brain Development and Lifelong Outcomes
This 5:15 minute video features Dr. Jack Shonkoff from the Center for the Developing Child at Harvard University talking about brain research and opportunities that early learning present for children. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qb3DXY_7fU&feature=related


The Greatest Love of All
I love to listen and watch this video from YouTube.  While listening to Whitney Houston sing The Greatest Love of All you can view pictures of children in different stages of development as they do what they do best, being a child. 

 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mZWHxw9ylk

References

Bloomingproud. (Uploader). (2008, February 5). The Greatest Love of All [music video]. Whitney Houston (Artist). Retrieved December 23, 2011 from  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3mZWHxw9ylk

Compassion International. (2002-2011). Releasing children in poverty. Retrieved from http://www.compassion.com/child-advocacy/find-your-voice/famous-quotes/default.htm

Pennsylvania's Promise for Children (Producer). (2009, June 18) Early learning brain development and lifelong outcomes [Video podcast]. Retrieved December 23, 2011 from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7Qb3DXY_7fU&feature=related

Educating the Whole Child

Assessments used correctly and for the purpose of understanding children’s developmental levels can be useful, but all too often, we end up using them to help us teach to the test. What that leads to is excessive testing.  A change I would like to see in gauging children’s grasp of ideas is to view all aspects of their functionability.  Where do the emotional, spiritual, physical, and social aspects fit into the picture of how to help children succeed?  Attention to all the domains makes for a well -rounded child who will be an able individual in society.  I feel as if we are educating children to be half of who they can be.  We need to integrate all the senses to come full circle in learning.  That is how we can ensure a better chance for individuals to be fulfilled.    

How does Japan assess their school age children?

In my research, I found that from kindergarten up to twelve years of age, Japan provides an awesome environment of learning for their children.  Japanese children are happy learners.  The teachers are caring and provide their students with curriculum that engages them in creativity.  However, after that, the future is paved towards testing form hell.  A Japanese child’s education from then on becomes “test based”.  For more information on Japan’s education system you can visit http://www.japantoday.com/category/commentary/view/japan-and-its-standardized-test-based-education-system

            I want to help children appreciate their own emotional, physical, social, spiritual, and other parts of their being. Those are the foundations for their intellect to grow exponentially.  I have observed more than once, a child who understands the academic realm and can pass any intellectual test put before them, but oft time they are the ones who cannot seem to function socially or really understand what would make their life meaningful.