When I Think of Child Development

When I Think of Child Development …

When I think of children and their development, I will take with me into my next course that children are resilient little people whom can and will overcome adversity with the support of a nurturing learning environment. I also learned that children’s opinions should be respected and welcomed.

The quote I found is a quote that I live by “All children can and will learn, they just learn differently”. The  second quote is a quote from my administrator  “Children have a PhD in manipulation”… what she means by that is to establish your rituals and routines early on so that child know what is expected of them, if not, they will “run” your class .

As I reflect on the way my colleagues have supported me throughout this course, I immediately began to think of the word growth. I thought of the word growth because I came in with a wealth of  knowledge, but I am humbled by listening and being open minded of the different perspectives of my pears and how I know longer look at various situations through one lens, but I know look at situations through the lens of a educator, parent, teacher and student. I have supported my colleagues throughout this course by showing respect of our differences in opinions while always providing them with “food for thought” so that they can think of various situations from another perspective.

I would like to thank Cari for her insight of birth and how we are both connected because we are mothers, but I value her and her husband’s concerns of the effects of children in single parent homes and also the fact that she gave a positive spin on pregnancy and child birth; I am thinking of having another child and her positive outlook is making my decision much easier. THANK YOU Cari!

I would also like to thank Curtis for giving a strong males perspective on early childhood and the many issues that surround this field. As a teacher and more specifically a kindergarten teacher, I do not see many male figures and it is nice to have a male’s outlook on childbirth, early child education, and how they interact with children; this was a nice change. THANK YOU Curtis!


Nicky

Testing for Intelligence?

Testing for Intelligence?

I believe children’s abilities should be measured so that all stakeholders  i.e., parents, students, administration, and the state, can track a child’s growth and find out what their strengths and weaknesses are so that the school can partner with families and develop strategies to “move” the child forward academically.

As a kindergarten teacher, we used to administer a Terra Nova (a state standardized test) and issue report cards, but stakeholders found that these tests did not inform one of a child’s true abilities and were are now comprising work samples which speaks directly to a child’s abilities. Personally I like the idea of conducting work samples because you have something concrete to support your findings of a child’s abilities, and parents/caregivers are able to have a better understanding of their child’s academic performance.

In Canada, it is common for families to interact with stakeholders to assess children between the ages of 4months and 60 months. The ASQ  is a series of 19 parent-completed questionnaires designed to screen the developmental performance of children in the areas of communication, gross motor skills, fine motor skills, problem solving, personal-social skills, and overall development across time. The age-appropriate scale is completed by the parent or caregiver. Research on this version has not yet been published. This form of assessment is often used by the following people:  Early childhood educators, social workers, nurses, pediatricians, and other early childhood professionals.

Reference:

http://www.cebc4cw.org/assessment-tool/ages-and-stages-questionnaire/

Nicky

Childbirth––In Your Life and Around the World

My birthing experience occurred 13 yrs ago when I gave birth to my handsome son whom I named LT. This event was life changing because I realized I was totally out of control of the way my son was developing while he was in my womb. In fact, the doctors told me that I need to prepare myself to raise a baby with down syndrome …this was because his kidneys were triple the size of what they should have been for this stage in my pregnancy; but I am a spiritual person and my faith was tested but also strengthen. I am proud to say by my 8^th month of pregnancy the doctors were in shock, in fact they called three other specialists to come and read the sonogram monitor which indicated my son’s kidney’s were the correct size for his age and that the fetus was healthy and that there were no signs of him having Down syndrome. I chose this event because it was life changing I realized that my life would no longer be my own but about the infant I birthed. I also felt that this was my testimony because there are others who are going through similar obstacles and I knew my faith did not lye in doctors because they only did what they could. Today, my son is healthy and drives me crazy (LOL) and I love every bit of it and him; he is my motivation to continue to strive for excellence!!

My thoughts regarding birth is such…I was sooooo emotionally drained from that experience, but I wouldn’t change it for the world. As a result, I am nervous about having another child but I would welcome should it happen. I love being a mother and I will always remember that jello like feeling when I knew my son was completely in the world.

I selected China as my country of choice and found out that women whom give birth in hospitals but are not encouraged to have epidurals or any pain relief during labor. I also learned that unlike U.S hospitals, many hospitals in China have communal birthing rooms, where women labor and give birth together in a big room.

Most hospitals seem to have communal birthing rooms, where women labor together and you can hear and see everything going on around you.

I found it to be insightful that doctors strongly frown against women using pain killers during labor and is encouraged here in the United States. In fact, I was against using pain killers when I was in labor, but once my contractions started kicking in, I opted for an epidural and my doctors gladly honored my request without hesitation.

Reference:

http://www.echinacities.com/expat-corner/you-re-having-him-where-giving-birth-in-kunming.html

Nicky