Relationship Reflection

      Positive relationships and partnerships are important to me because they help me to communicate with others. They help other people understand me and help me through bad times. Relationships also help to help others through bad times. They help to solve problems, provide solutions, and all of those things together help my emotional and social well-being. You have to show love and respect to maintain a positive relationship. You should also be truthful but not judgmental. I have positive relationships with my son, my husband, my siblings, my principle, and my co-workers.

      My relationship with my son is positive and strong because we respect each other, we listen to each other, and I do not intimidate him. I am conscious of his feelings. My relationship is positive and strong because I observe him, watch his body language and facial expressions, and know how he feels if something is positive or negative. This helps us to communicate and work together to solve problems. We listen to each other, discuss possible solution, and choose the best solution to fit our problem. We have been married for 22 years and I think these factors have helped us to maintain a positive, caring relationship. With my siblings and co-workers alike, I am an active listener. I show them that I care always. I respect their feelings.

     Sometime, taking time to devote your attention to someone when they are speaking to you can be a challenge to maintaining relationships. Being truthful and not judgmental can be a challenge also. We have to be careful with our tone of voice, facial expressions, and body language and choice of words. I think that being respectful, showing concern, and looking out for their best interest can make some relationships partnerships. Many of the characteristics that I used in my description of positive relationships, Such as being a good listener, watching your tone of voice, being aware of your facial expressions, and showing care and respect and not intimidating them coincide with forming relationships as an effective early childhood professional.

When I Think of Childhood Development

"Don’t let what you can’t do stop you from doing what you can do." ~ Author Unknown

"We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today."  ~Stacia Tauscher

I would like to take this time to say thanks to my colleagues for all of their thoughts, insights, and comments in which we have blogged about over the past eight weeks.  I have gained valuable knowledge from the information that has been provided by you. I have learned about some of your own personal experiences and encounters that were unique to you. A lot of the information I learned could not have come a textbook because it was on a personal level with you guys. Therefore, the information was valuable and unique to me. Thanks again Everyone.

Testing for Intelligence

     I realize I am probably being traditional, but I think school age children should take an aptitude test (IQ tests). I think this is important because it allows the teacher to know if a problem is present.  Then, she will know in advance if the child needs some additional help and be better prepared to use additional methods and techniques to help the child.  This is evident because the aptitude test can determine if the student has “the potential to master a specific skill or to learn a certain body of Knowledge” (Berger, 2009, p. 323).

   

    In Africa, the Ages of Stages Questionnaire (ASQ, -2^nd ed.)  is administered to children who are between the ages of birth and six years old. It takes between ten and twenty minutes to administer this test (Ringwalt, 2008, p.4). This test can be administered at home and the individual who gives the test can do so adequately if he has at least a sixth grade education (p.4). Trained professional scores the test and interpret the information that is gathered. Furthermore, this test provides information about which children need practice on certain skills, and which children need additional screening. Tests of this type are important in certain areas in Africa. This is because many families live in rural areas.

      

     I am concerned about the curriculum for children solely based on aptitude tests.  I think the teacher needs to be more concerned about the frameworks provided by the school system. In addition, I think the teacher needs to present lessons in various ways, assess students, and provide remediation as needed for the students. The assessment results should guide the remediation. At the same time, the teacher needs to let the child know why the learning is important. Finally, the child’s learning should be in an environment to where the child knows he is cared about and valued.

References

Berger, K. (2009). The developing person through childhood (5^th ed). New York: Worth Publishers.

Ringwalt, S. (2008). Developmental Screening and Assessment Instruments with Emphasis on Social and Emotional Development for Young Children Ages Birth through Five. The National Early Childhood Technical Assistance Center. Retrieved from: http://www.nectac.org/~pdfs/pubs/screening.pdf.

Consequences of Stress on Children’s Development

     A child that I know experienced violence in one of the worst ways possible. “Wendell’s” father was robbed, shot, and killed from a gunshot wound. This child had a close relationship with his father. He was 6 years old when this happened. This child was able to cope and survive due to the support of his mother, family, and his friends. The boy’s mother is a religious person who believes that ones trust in God can bring him through anything that is negative.  In addition, Wendell’s family members and his friends love him. During this ordeal, his friends came and spent the night with him as they had prior to the violent death of his father.

    

     The resources that the boy used were his family, friends, and reliance on God. He goes to church with his mother on a regular basis. Without a doubt, his family, friends, and his teachers were all concerned about how he would function because he and his dad did many things together. Whatever he needed and most of what he wanted was given to him by his parents. His dad worked long hours to make sure his family had what they needed.

      

     Wendell has remained friendly and caring about people. I am convinced that “the family function for people of all ages is to afford a safe haven of love and encouragement” (Berger, 2009, p.383). In addition, I believe friends and people who genuinely care about children can help them overcome obstacles that they have in their lives.

      

     I wanted to learn about the lives of children who live in Cuba.  My concern is due to the problem that Cubans experience with poverty, problem with past ruler, Fidel Castro, and the danger the people are willing to face to get out of Cuba.

“Under the child labor code stated in1997 Human Rights Report, fifteen and sixteen year old Cuban children receive training towards a job or can cover for absentees during a shortage of workers. This code also states that Cuban students over the age of eleven must devote between thirty and forty-five days of their summer break to working on a farm” (International Labor Rights Forum). However, they are limited to a maximum of eight hours a day. “It is mandatory that Cuban children attend school until the ninth grade” (Yarow, Clark, Hitchings, & Hamm, 1998, par. 2). 

     

     Another problem in Cuba is with the educational system. Many children especially those in rural areas did not have the same access to school as those in urban areas. Fidel Castro, previous ruler of Cuba, did away with private schools. Then, he provided government paid school for all children. The socioeconomic conditions and living in rural areas continues to hinder the progress of education in rural areas.

     

     “The International Labor Rights Forum has played a leading role in fighting to eradicate forced and child labor” (International Labor Rights Forum). This group informs people throughout the world about countries that have children working long hours in dangerous places to produce goods to sell in other countries. Groups who hope to help these children hope that other countries will be discouraged from buying good from countries who encourage these practices. This is a worthwhile idea. However, I did not find any evidence of drastic measures to stop the unfair work laws for children in Cuba.

Berger, K. S. (2009). The developing person through childhood. (5th ed.). New   York, NY: Worth Publishers

International Labor Rights Forum. Stop Child & Forced Labor. Retrieved from: www.ilrf.org/child-and-forced-labor.

Yarow, S., Clark, L., Hitchings J., & Hamm, J. (1998). Child Labor and Child Work in Cuba. Retrieved from: www.tulane.edu/~rouxbee/kids98/cuba5.html. 

Child Development and Public Health - Breastfeeding

      I have always heard that breast-feeding is a healthy way to feed babies. This topic is interesting to me because I wanted to learn specifically about the benefits of breast-feeding.  This concerns me because I see children who have different problems such as colic disorders and other problems. I have wondered would babies be better off if they would be breast-fed.

  

   “For most newborns, good nutrition starts with mother’s milk” (Berger, 2009, p.154).  In addition, “Compared to cow’s milk, human milk is sterile, at body temperature, with iron, vitamins, and other nutrients for the brain and body” (p. 154). Actually, this causes human milk to have what the baby needs for months. In addition, when children are breast fed, the likelihood that babies will develop some childhood and adult health problems diminishes.  The diseases or health problems that decrease in breast-fed babies and adults are “asthma, obesity, and heart disease" (p. 154).  

     Breast-feeding is also beneficial for mothers. Mothers who breast-feed have the following positive effects:  “Decreased postpartum bleeding, decreased menstrual blood loss, and the uterus returns to its pre-pregnancy state more rapidly. They also tend to experience an earlier return to pre-pregnancy weight, as well. Over the course of their lives, research has shown that mothers who have breastfed their children have a decreased risk of ovarian and breast cancer and a decreased risk of hip fractures and osteoporosis in the post-menopausal period. Moreover, breastfeeding promotes a strong emotional connection and psychological bond between mother and child” (Higa, 2011, p. 1)

   Today hospital staffs are working harder with mothers to help them breast successfully (Department of Health and Human Services Center of Disease Control and Prevention, 2011,   p. 1). Unfortunately, only 5% of hospitals in the United States fully work to help the baby and mother experience success in breast feeding (p.1).

  

   A long-term study by the Australian Institute of Family Studies tracked the lives of 5000 children and showed that “by the time babies was six months old the number who were being exclusively breastfed had dropped to 14 per cent, compared to 80 per cent at birth and 56 per cent at three months old” (Cooke, 2008, p. 1).

  

   This  topic will affect my future work because of the way it will benefit not only the mother, but the baby too. I think that the benefits will help the mother to feel more like taking care of her baby and the baby will be healthier. Being that taking care of a baby is a big responsibility, therefore if the mother feels better, she will be more capable when taking care of her baby.

Sources:

Berger, K. S. (2009). The developing person through childhood (5th ed.). New York, NY: Worth Publishers.

CDC. (2011). Breastfeeding Report Card_ United States.  Retrieved from: www.breastfeedinghawaii.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=43&Itemid=55.

Cooke, D. (2011). Australian babies are not breastfed enough. Essential Baby. Retrieved from: http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/baby/breastfeeding/australian-babies-not-breastfed-enough-20080620-2u27.html.

 Higa,L.(2011 ). Benefits: Why Breastfeed? Retrieved from:                  www.breastfeedinghawaii.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=43&Itemid=55.