NAEYC. (2005, April). Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment. Retrieved May 26, 2010, fromhttp://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf
1. To create and maintain safe and healthy settingsthat foster children’s social, emotional, cognitive, and physical development and that respect their dignity and their contributions.
2. To share information about each child's education and development with families and to help them
understand and appreciate the current knowledge
base of the early childhood profession.
3. To develop relationships of mutual trust and
create partnerships with the families we serve.
Ideal number 1 is important because I am constantly evaluating my environment to make sure it is ideal for the children in my care. I also feel children need as much respect and dignity that we can give them to make them feel secure.
Ideal number 2 is important to me so that families realize the importance of being a part of their child's educaiton while in my care and in the future. I also pass alot of the information I have discovered in this class onto my families and colleagues.
Ideal number 3 is important to me so the families feel comfortable confiding in me and asking me about their child's education and development while in my care and in the future.
"My Connections to Play"
Two quotes:
Vygotsky - "Children use private speech in play to regulate behavior"
"Creative play is a central activity in the lives of healthy children."
Almon, K. (2002) The vital role of play in early childhood
education. Gateways, 43.
My family, especially my mom, was very supportive of play. She recognized its importance. My sister and I loved to play with our friends. She would take us to the community pool and parks and we would play all day. When we got a little older we got a trampoline and jumped on it for much of the day. We had a playroom above our garage in Tennessee and we played there for many hours even though it got very hot at times. My sister and I loved to play with dolls. My mom always said she would be my best friend and as we got older did not encourage many outside friendships. I think that hurt our social skills a little. Now we talk every once in a while, have very different lives and see each other about 2-3 times per year. Even though we are still very close and had many years of play as children, we have drifted apart. My dad was really good at playing with us also. He took us on our boat all the time and encouraged more of the rough and tumble type of play. Both my mom and taught us to be resourceful and take care of ourselves, almost to a fault.
As I attempt to write my blog assignement I feel play has changed a great deal since when we were younger. We would go all day without seeing the inside of our house and find things to play with. All three of my boys are sitting around my table asking me questions and saying they are bored. I live about 2 blocks from one of the most beautiful lakes and beaches in the country and 1 block from an elementary school playground. There are children all over this neighborhood to play with and they are asking me what they can do. Where have I gone wrong in this scenario? They have come to rely on me as their "social director" and I have probably enabled that. Play is very different. I am going to cancel cable and hide the playstation and nintendo ds's for the summer. My kids are older and possibly beyond help. I hope that young children will be pulled away from the computers, tv and other electronic devices. I hope they will be in a safe place to be able to venture out and make friends. Parents need to be more confident in their childrens ability and need to become independent players. I think sometimes parents protect their children and don't let them make mistakes at an early age.
I have included pictures of my boys below at the beach. This is what we love to do these days. This was on a spring break vacation. My youngest sons favorite toy was a palm branch he found the first day. Again, an item from nature that I didn't have to purchase that entertained him. Nice!!
My Favorites
- Scott
- Boating
- Summer in Northern Michigan
- Elk Rapids Public Schools
- Ice cream
- My horses
- My family
- Preschool children
- My 3 sons
- My 2 dogs
This is me with one of my preschoolers who has been with me 5 days a week for the past 2 years. He is moving to Ohio. It is difficult when they leave. Good news is he will be back in 2 years. He is also one of my favorites.
I too love educating parents and being resource for them. Sometimes, early childhood educators forget that family/parent education is as valuable as child development. To change the world, we need to focus not only on the child, but their families/environments as well. I choose to examine the DEC code of ethics for my blog, but I am very versed in NAEYC's code of ethics. Thank you for your post!
ReplyDeletep.s. I agree that this course/Walden has been worth its weight in gold. I am really enjoying this journey!
Hi Tracy:
ReplyDeleteI also selected the NAEYC ideal to create and maintain a safe and healthy environment to foster all developmental domains. I appreciate that it lists every area of development. I believe we cannot stress the importance of one over another. Daniel Goleman (1996) shared the equal importance of emotional intelligence with cognitive intelligence. Just think of a past supervisor who got promoted because of their talents but did not have the social skills to lead other adults. They lack the ability to develop trust or other needed components of a working relationship. It may be a lack of emotional intelligence.
Goleman, D. (1996). Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ. Bantam Books.
P.S. I love the Daily Puppy that runs at the top of your blog. There are always the cutest dogs pictured!
Tracy:
ReplyDeleteI have thoroughly enjoyed being a part of this Foundations course with you. It was a pleasure learning about you and your family.
Thank you for contributing to my discussion posts. You have helped me think about the topics in a deeper manner.
Good luck in your future courses. I will continue to follow your blog and offer support, if I can.
LouAnn Rhodes
Tracy,
ReplyDeleteThank you for all your posts, it has been fun watching everyones blogs come to life with such great information. the dog is so cute! Good luck with your future courses. Thank you for your insight on my blog, I enjoy getting the emails that show someone has read what I put on there. Good luck.
Chris