Time Well Spent

Final Farewell

There are so many things that I learned from my experience at Walden University. 
1) I have a new found appreciation for who I am culturally, and linguistically. 

2) I have a new understanding of how important it is to be an advocate for those in need.

3) I have learned the importance of the early childhood years and their impact on academic learning.

One long term goal is to incorporate diversity training in the local school staff in Kinston, NC.

I have truly enjoyed my time with all of you.  I wish you the best in all your future endeavors.  It has been a journey I have truly enjoyed. 

Education is the equalializer.  (Nelson Mandela)

Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community-Internationally

One organization I found to be interesting is ICF International.  This organization works on different aspects of improvement with different governments and commercial clients.  They work on research and different ways to improve the quality of life for different people.   They work with early childhood education programs in India. They also work with K-12 and beyond.  I like the idea that they care about the whole child by providing for a child's entire education not just a portion of it.  Their goal is to improve the lives of people through education. http://www.icf.com/markets/education

I have always liked World Vision.  They are a Christian organization but they help all peoples regardless of religous affiliation, or culture.  World Vision targets communities that live in poverty and seeks to improve their lives through education, health, and any other means that would improve their lives.  World Vision currently has dolls that are sold in Target called Heart to Heart dolls in which the proceeds received go to the area that the doll is from. I think this is  a great way to encourage young girls to help communities and learn about communities in need around the world. 
http://www.worldvision.org

Job/Roles in the EC Community: National/Federal

I have chosen the Robin Hood Foundation.  This is an organization that targets poverty in NYC.  100% of all their donations go to help communities in poverty.  I know of this organization because when I lived in NYC, this organization funded and built a beautiful state of the art library in our school.  Our school consisted of a 100+ year old building that used to be a hospital not a school.  We lacked a library and a gym.  A grant was written and Robin Hood Foundation responded.  They were a blessing to our school community and the library was used for so many community education programs.  This is an organization working to combat poverty in impactful way.
www.robinhood.org/

Also chosen, was the Save the Children Foundation. This organization helps American kids living in poverty.  I specifically focused on the fact that they have a focus on early childhood education.  For example, they launched Early Steps to School Success.  This program begins with expectant parents and they follow these families from birth to age 5.  I think with all that we have learned about making impacts early this is an organization that is actually doing it.  Of course, they also help children in other parts of the world and work on many levels.  This is a great organization.
www.savethechildren.org/

When targeting an issue like poverty, regardless of the angle you choose to approach it, hunger must be a part of it.  If a child is hungry you need to address that issue.  So I looked at Ample Harvest.  This is a group targeting farmers and local people who grow their own food and have excess produce.  This organization asks that these farmers and local people would donate their excess produce to local food pantries in their communities.  Their goal is to provide fresh fruits and vegetables to local food pantries.
www.ampleharvest.org/

Exploring Roles in the ECE Community: Local and State

I looked at the Southern Early Childhood Association.  Their position statements suggest they support arts and movement education, quality child care, supporting learning with technology and valuing diversity for young children.  SECA supports early childhood advocates in the South in keeping up with legislative changes and their impact.  A job opportunity that would interest me is that of administrator for North Carolina.  Currently, there is no affiliate for my state and I would like to create that.  I would need to be well-versed in the business aspect of education such as finance and marketing.
http://www.southernearlychildhood.org/


I also looked at North Carolina Early Childhood Association.  this organization advocates for the improvement of the work environment of the early childhood professionals.  They also work on legislation. One difference this group is making is their More at Four program which is NC's nationally acclaimed academic pre-K initiative for at-risk four year olds.  More at Four targets a specific population of 4 year olds from low-income families and with other defined risk factors that would not be served without this program.  A job opportunity that would interest me is evaluating the work environment.  I would be able to visit different locations and evaluate the program based on how they were meeting the needs of the educators and students.  As an evaluator I would have to get special training in what is required for successful programs in NC.
http://www.ncearlychildhoodassoc.com/

Lastly, I looked at Children of the City. This is a grassroots organization in the neighborhood I grew up in which is located in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.  The area is primarily made up of Latinos and is a poor area.  The group actually makes home visits and sees how it can meet the needs of the individual family. It was founded by Joyce Mattera, a pastor's wife.  I know this organization makes a big difference in the lives of families.  I would not seek a job here in this organization, I would actually volunteer my academic expertise.  I would tutor children in need. 
http://childrenofthecity.com/

Reflecting on Learning

My most passionate hope for my future as an early childhood professional and for the children and families I will work with is that I would be able to take everything I have learned and actually put it into practice.  I have learned so much about my own bias and misunderstandings.  I hope to promote awareness and equity in the classroom.  I also hope to create a classroom environment that accepts all families and cultures and celebrates them.  To all my colleagues, woo hoo we are almost at the end of this wonderful journey.  Thank you so much  for your insight, support, and encouragement.  It has been my pleasure to continue getting to know you.   

Impacts on Early Emotional Development

I selected Latin America and the Caribbean.  I am Latina and lived in the Caribbean for some time.  This area is diverse.  "Latin America and the Caribbean is considered the most unequal region in the world" ( Unicef, n.d.).  I was also interested in this region because of what is currently taking place in Brazil and the Kayapo tribe.  I was interested in looking at how indigenous children fare in this region.   

Some challenges that the children in this region of the world are confronting are many.  Some include chronic malnutrition due to "extreme poverty,  low education level of parents, and lack of access to basic services" (Unicef, n.d.).  Some education challenges include the fact that millions of children don't enter any school setting.  Children in this region need to be protected from violence, exploitation, and abuse.  Little girls are the most vulnerable. 

All of these experiences might have an effect on children's emotional wellbeing and development because not having access to basic services such as clean water affects their basic needs.  If basic needs aren't meet children cannot grow and develop appropriately. 

Looking at the statistics present made me more aware of what a  particular group of children that come into my classroom setting might have had as challenges.  For example, having children from this region might mean they were malnourished.  I have to then think about how this might affect their academic growth.  Also, they might have been victims of sexual abuse or have had family members die of AIDS.  All these challenges affect their emotional development.  I would have to be patient and sensitive to the adjustment period  these children will go through adjusting to our school environment.

http://www.unicef.org/lac/english_4842.htm


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Sexualization of Early Childhood

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The sexualization of early childhood is certainly prevalent in the media and in the consumer market.  My daughter is 34 months  old and I am increasingly aware of messages that she receives from the media.  I watch what she watches and limit her exposure to television and videos.  Right now I stay home with her and it is easy for me to monitor these things.  I am shocked though at the shows that are in the media right now.  Shows like Toddlers and Tiaras, which shows little girls putting on make-up and prancing around in two-piece bathing suits dancing around a stage and blowing kisses to the judges.  It makes little girls seem older than they actually are and makes them dress in inappropriate ways.  I think though that little girls are beginning their menstruation a lot earlier and we have 8 and 9 year old girls with breasts, small waists, and hips.  I remember when I started teaching second grade in an urban area.  I had young girls menstruating in the second grade.  These young girls were as tall as me, and their bodies were developing way ahead of their little girl minds.  I remember the boys wanting to touch their breasts and I had to do lots of lessons on respecting each others' bodies and personal space.  The sexualization of young children did not help the situation.  The boys thought she was 'sexy' and they didn't care. 

This can definitely impact childrens' healthy development.   Children need to develop socially and emotionally in normal ways.  Sexualization that is too early limits this and pushes them into emotions that they are not ready for.  As an early childhood professional I think the best way to respond is to have an environment of respect for each child and high standards for dress and appropriate behavior.   I think children need to learn to respect their bodies, have respect for others, and be made aware of messages that the media gives them.  

Being aware of the sexualization of early childhood has been influenced by studying the topic this week by making me more aware of how I can deal with these things in the classroom.  My role as a classroom teacher has been clearer.  I realize each day how much influence I can have.

Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

Unfortunately, there is much bias and prejudice that I am being faced with.  Currently, I face alot of racism.  I am a Puerto Rican living in North Carolina.  I have lived in NYC all of my life and for the first time am living down South.  People have made racist remarks to me thinking I am Mexican.  I have been so disgusted with people's ignorance especially because PR is a commonwealth of the USA.  All Puerto Ricans are American citizens.   Yet, I have been treated like an illegal in my own country.  Also, I am experiencing classism.  My husband is a doctor and we have struggled to come to this point in our lives.  My hubby grew up in the projects of Bklyn, NY and has worked his way to his current success.  But somehow the media and current thinking makes it seem that because we are successful either we don't deserve it or we should pay more money because we made good choices.  I think your life is a product of the choices that you make.  Even though my husband was raised by a single mom in the projects, he stayed focus and studied.  Why people think they deserve a handout I don't know?  But it is more complicated than just that because the dominant culture doesn't know what to make of us because we are educated and Latino.  In their eyes, I think they see us as the exception to the rule.   And our Latino people think we owe them something.  It gets very frustrating. 

I find that I have become more aware and sensitive to others' perceptions of me.  In my professional practice, I don't want to be hired because I will be the token Latino and a quota needs to be met.      

Observing Communication

I was able to observe my daughter, Arianna with her daddy.  Daddy was pulling weeds and Ari was with him in the garden.  Daddy was bent over showing Arianna which items were weeds and which ones were plants.  He explained he wanted the weeds pulled but not the plants which would later become flowers.  He asked if Ari wanted to help him.  With an enthusiastic YES, Daddy put gardening gloves on Ari and and weeding began.  Ari would ask, "Is this a weed?" Daddy would go over, say yes and help her pull it out.  He would show her where the mint leaves were beginning to grow on the root.  They continued like that and when weeds were pulled Ari would clap and say, "YES!" 

There were ways that communication could have been more effective.  For example, Daddy could have asked more questions of Arianna so she could have shown what she was learning.   Arianna learned a lot with Daddy and self-worth was increased by celebrating a goal getting accomplished. 

I learned a lot about watching Daddy with Arianna.  I, in my impatience would probably have rushed the weeding to hurry it along.  Daddy was very patient and took his time.  I could learn to be more patient especially when children are learning something they haven't done before. 

Creating Affirming Environments

At Joyful Rainbow, we will celebrate families.  I would like to adopt some of Adrianna Castillo's ideas.  Some of the ideas I would incorporate include a communication binder where parents can sign in and talk about how the child slept the night before and how their morning was.  This would be incorporated into our Welcome Center where parents can find additional information such as daily schedules, monthly calendars, photo binder of activities completed, and general resources.  The Welcome Center will also have a calendar where parents can sign up to come participate in our day to volunteer or just observe.  We will have photos of our families to foster community.  I think having a nap room is wonderful.  It will be  a place where children can cry or sleep when they come in.  I think Adrianna's belief that she lets the children cry and lets them deal with their emotions is a wonderful idea.  Helping children make their own transition is a positive aspect of the day.

The classroom environment will be rich in color and diversity.  Children will see themselves in their classroom.  The people in their community will also be visible along with people from various groups, and ability groupings ( Derman-Sparks, & Edward, 2011, p. 43).  Our classroom will be filled with puzzles in our puzzle corner.  These puzzles will be hand-made to reflect our families by taking enlarged photos, matting them on manila folders and cutting them into age-appropriate sizes and number of pieces.  Our classroom will be filled with toys, specifically dolls that represent the students in the class.  There  will be a doll place where children can play with our realistic dolls in imaginative and creative ways.  We will have an art center incorporating colored pencils, crayons, paint, stamps, ink pads, paper and other art supplies.  Children will be encouraged to draw and paint about their world.  Our literacy center will be filled with books that are multicultural, multilingual, and kid-created.  We will have a reader of the month that will be a respected person or parent in the community.  Our school will be a place where our students and their families are celebrated.  We will have mostly kid-created items in our classroom.  Parents will be an integral part of our school community.  To incorporate a home-school connection, there will be a Bookbag of the Month.  In this bookbag there will be a multicultural book, maybe Hairs by Sandra Cisneros. Families will be asked to read the book with their child, and write or respond in a creative way to this book.  Those responses could include a photo of them reading with their child, an illustration of their favorite part or any other creative way to respond.  Our school will be a place where everyone is welcome and celebrated.