BEST WISHES

I just wanted to take the time to express my gratitude for all of the support I received throughout this course.  I have greatly benefited from every one's input.  I could not grow as a professional if it wasn't for all that you did.  Thank you and best wishes on journey through early childhood studies. 

Professional Responsibilities

National Association for the Education of Young Children

Ethical Responsibilities to Children

Ideal 1.1

To be familiar with the knowledge base of early childhood care and education and to stay informed through continuing education and training.

This is meaningful to me because I want to efficiently and effectively meet the individual needs of my students.  Furthering my education in this field will permit me to incorporate current research and methods into instruction.  Collaborating with other professionals is also a way to stay updated. 

Ethical Responsibilities to Families

Ideal 2.2

To develop relationships of mutual trust and create partnerships with the families we serve. 

This is interconnected with student success. 

Division of Early Childhood

Professional Practice: Professional and Interpersonal Behavior

5. We shall use individually appropriate assessment strategies including multiple sources of information such as observations, interview with significant caregivers, formal and informal assessments to determine children's learning styles, strengths, and challenges.

Using a differentiated approach of collecting data on children's strengths and developing areas is crucial to provide individualized and effective instruction.  This allows me identify which children need more practice or need to be challenged. 

Resources used:

NAEYC. (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment.  Retrieved on February 14, 2012, from: http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf

The Division for Early Childhood. (2009, August). Code of ethics. Retrieved on February 14, 2012, from: http://www.dec-sped.org/





Useful Early Childhood Resources



Part 1: Position Statements and Influential Practices

• NAEYC. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved February, 2, 2012, from http://sylvan.live.ecollege.com/ec/courses/78618/CRS-CW-6284754/educ6005_readings/naeyc_dap_position_statement.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on child abuse prevention. Retrieved February, 3, 2012, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/ChildAbuseStand.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on school readiness. Retrieved February, 3, 2012, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Readiness.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on responding to linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved February, 3, 2012, 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 February, 3, 2012, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/pscape.pdf
• NAEYC. (2009, April). Early childhood inclusion: A summary. Retrieved February, 3, 2012, 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 February, 3, 2012, 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 February, 3,2012, 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.
   

Part 2: 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 February 2, 2012, 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/
  • RAssociation for Childhood Education International
  • http://acei.org/about/

Part 3: 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/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/

Other Useful Resources:

By learning you will teach;
by teaching you will understand.
Latin Proverb

Word Way: Word Family Activities

http://www.wordway.us.com/

Young Children and the Environment by Julie M. Davis

Week 4- Inspirational and Motivational Words

Universal pre-kindergarten; and make family the best school Hillary Clinton

Source: 2007 Democratic primary debate on “This Week” Aug 19, 2007  "[We should be] particularly focusing on kids who come from disadvantaged backgrounds, I think you have to start with preschool, even before pre-kindergarten. I’ve advocated universal pre-kindergarten. I think you have to start even earlier to try to help the family be the best school and teaching opportunity for their own children."   

Project on Race,Class, and Culture in Early Childhood

 Aisha Ray, PhD

Erikson Institute

"Children from poor communities of color, poor children of immigrants, children for whom "standard school" English is a new language or a second dialect, and children with behavioral,psychological or medical challenges are at greater risk of school failure than their middle class, monolingual, able bodied White peers."  

The Passion for Early Childhood

Louise Derman-Sparks

Professor Emeritus

Pacific Oak College, CA

"The most enjoyful expericence where I felt everything in me was being called on to teach and also it was very rewarding.  It just made me feel whole.  It made me feel whole, it made me feel creative, and so it became my life long work with early childhood education.  And the passion to make sure that all children were taught in environments and in ways that truly nurtured their ability to grow and develop to their fullest ability." 

Week 3-Personal Childhood Web

My family members that cared for and nurtured me as a child were my mother, materinal grandmother, paternal grandmother, and two of my uncles. They all cared about my well-being and my furture.  Taking time to talk and listen to me show that they all cared about me.  They nurtured me by allowing me to explore the world around and to learn from my experiences.  I am influenced by them all to do my best in everything I do because I want to make them proud my accomplishments.   


My mother has influenced me as a child to be a caring, loving and responsible individual.  My mother nurtured my by making sure that all of my needs were met and by being loving, caring and supportive.  She always put my sister and I first.  She hoped that my sister and I were happy in whatever we chose to do.  She encouraged us to become productive members of our family and community by teaching us to be helpful, honest, respectful, and responsible.  She always wanted us to believe in ourselves. 

Mom-mom

Mom-mom is my father's mother.  I lived with Mom-mom  as a child, so I spent a lot of time with her.  She always encouraged me to be a polite young lady.  She cared for and nurtured me by talking to me, listening to me, and  allowing me to make mistakes and reassurring me that it would be okay.  She didn't get mad at me, instead she helped me learn from my mistakes. Mom-mom influenced me not to be afraid of making mistakes, but to learn from them.   

Grams


Grams is a very special person to me.  She is my mother's mother. Grams was the most gentle and loving person.  Staying with Grams was the best thing ever as a child. She let me explore and discover the world around me. It was all the little things that she did with me that make her so special to me. Grams influenced me to always do my best because I want her to be proud of me.



Uncle Dannie

Uncle Dannie is my mother's younger brother.  Uncle Dannie would do anything for me he could.  He always made sure I was taken care of. as an infant.  I have always looked up to him.  I can remember always wanting to do what he did.  Uncle Dannie has influenced me because he made sure that I knew I was special and loved.  
 


Uncle Don

Uncle Don is my father's older brother.  He was like a father to me.  He took care of me like I was one of his own daughters.  Uncle Don would talk to me about my educational goals.  He would tell me stories about when he was a student and what influenced him.  Uncle Don influced me to set goals and reach them. 

Favorite Children's Book

One of my favorite children's book is "The Way I Feel" by Janan Cain.

I particularly enjoy sharing this book with my students so that they are able to identify and recognize their feelings and the feelings of their peers.  Being able to identify and recognize different feelings is an important skill to build and keep meaningful relationships. 



picture from: http://www.janancain.com/

Meaningful Quote

Every student can learn,
just not on the same day, or the same way.
-George Evans