"My Supports"

I am choosing a few supports because this would be a novel if I listed them all.

Joshua Jessie- He has been the best support in my life the past 5 and a half years. When you have someone in your life that does not judge you, hate you and has forgiveness and puts up with unnecessary drama, they are strong keepers of your heart. He is the type of person that makes you feel better about yourself and forces you to be a better person. Josh is not perfect at all so we learn from one another. He is the best thing that has happened to me and comes when I need him. I know I can not live my life without out him. I feel it would be impossible.

My job- It seems as if  I have been trying to figure out for a long time what I really wanted to do with my life as far as my career. I have changed my major so many times in college and worked so many jobs. I realized my experience through my jobs has been mainly children and youth. I feel as though I am still figuring out what I want to do with this field for the rest of my life. Right now I teach pre school and I love it. The only thing I hate is the pay. I feel under appreciated and it is hard to live off what I make, but my job performance has been persistent and consistent and I am appreciated by some parents. I have learned so much about myself and who I am. I have learned a lot of patience too. Without my career I have nothing and I need it because it is a passion.

Education- School for me is a love hate relationship. I really hate school but I love educating myself especially on something I am passionate about. I have said so many time I am dropping out or I am not submitting an assignment but somehow manage to have 3 degrees and a CDA. It is not in me to quit. It would be difficult for me to teach on the level I am on without my education and it would be difficult to find employment in my field with limited education. I feel I am nothing without my education and I know that this is something no one has control over but me and no one can take my education from me.

I am proud of my success of supporters in my life, even the supporters that has failed me because it shows growth and progress. I face challenges daily with all three supporters but I have learned to juggle them as they are the three most important in my life.

"My connections to play"

Quotes

I spent my whole childhood wishing I were older and now I'm spending my adulthood wishing I were younger.

Ricky Schroder

You know, you don't have to look like everybody else to be acceptable and to feel acceptable.

Fred Rogers

Play Items

    




Growing up I played with my sister, three brothers and neighborhood kids quite often. We played almost anything you can think of and made life seem so much enjoyable. When you are a kid you do not think about tomorrows worries. My mother never stopped or interrupted our playing and we played in appropriate manner. Sometimes my mother would play with us because she was a big kid herself.

I would have to say from what I have observed in this field play is very similar to my childhood. The only difference s that schools are trying to take play out of student curriculum. What kid does not want to play. I have seen that even all of the games are the same as growing up. Hide and go seek, Doctor and nurse, Mom and dad, Vet,  playing teacher, the driver, dressing up,Cooking etc.

When children play no one is left out or looked at differently. I notice the difference in children developmentally when they are social with other children. I highly encourage play.






http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/f/fredrogers193083.html

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/r/rickyschro503981.html?src=t_childhood

Relationship Reflection

Relationship Reflection

Relationships has so much meaning to one’s life. My relationships in my current life make me who I am today for the god and some for the bad, for the bad it has been a learning process. My relationships sums up my life and they are very important to me. The relationships I have with my class, their parents, my boyfriend and my family are important.

My relationship with my boyfriend so far is most important to me in my personal life because he has helped me in so many ways than a lot of people inside or outside my family. My boyfriend and I have been together for almost six years, he is my everything.

The relationship I have had with my grandmother in the past was very difficult and there was a lot that I did not understand then but I do now. My grandmother was abusive and I had so much hate in my heart for her. I never understood why she’s done the things she done to herself and to her grandchildren. Being with my grandmother was the hardest thing in my life to the point where I wanted to end my life. When I moved out of her house at 18 my grandmother was very upset and I knew then my life was going to change. I am a stronger person today because of my grandmother and we are now closer than we have ever been but I will never forget the past and how things went down. I love her but we need this distance.

It was very hard to maintain a relationship with my grandmother, but life is too short and we are all human. I never had a relationship with my father because he was never involved in my life and the relationship with my mother would have been a great one if she had not been murdered while I was a young girl.

Over time I have learned confidence, lots of patience and independence. I have gained many other insights but those three were the top 3 that took the longest and was the hardest to pursue for me at that time.

As a child care professional, you have to have confidence in yourself and believe what you are able and willing to do because if you don’t know one else will have confidence in you or believe in you. How can I teach other children to believe in themselves or to grow if I do not have it in me. I am still learning things about myself just being in this field because of the children. I want children to see how great of a gift they are just like I do.

when I think of Child developement

The quote I chose was by an anonymous person: "Children are great imitators. So give them something great to imitate." -anonymous 

This is so true I love it. Children mimic behaviors and our actions so why not have them follow into great leaderships.

I would like to give a huge thanks to my colleges for their support and input and also my professor for guidance and understanding. I wish everyone the best of luck!

Testing for intelligence

I feel children's developmental level should be assessed considering the early childhood area. I would like to know if my child is developing in the areas of cognitive skills bio-social skills and psycho social skills. It is important to know if children are interacting with other children, being active, trying to write, draw or color or have emotional reactions to certain situations or peers. When children actually start school I do agree to assessments such as the MEAP test and basic test at the end of each term to keep information fresh.

It was interesting to learn that in china, school aged children typically start school at the age of six and in some districts seven years of age. When they began primary schooling, they are in school for 6 years and then junior high three years. The children take test at the end of each term and at the end of each year to determine their eligibility for the next level. Children are examined before entering the next grade level.

I have test anxiety so sometimes I think their should be ways around testing. Sometimes in such cases I believe being able to show and comprehend work by completing test and projects or papers shows evidence as such academic levels, but I agree with the way children are being assessed.




http://siteresources.worldbank.org/EDUCATION/Resources/278200-1126210664195/1636971-1126210694253/China_Skills_Assessment.pdf

Childhood stressor

One of the stressors I have experienced during my childhood was CHAOS.  My mother and father had five of us together and my mother and father was married but my father was never around. Before my father left home and abandoned us,my siblings and I witness my father and mother physically fighting one another all the time. My mother and father argued and physically fought. My father slept around with other women all through the times they were dating and after marriage. My mother and father were separated but still married and my mother begin dating other men and was murdered by one of her boyfriends while she was pregnant. My siblings were inside in out of court rooms, counseling sessions and finally split up to be with different family members. So yes there was tons of Chaos and I have not even mentioned half of it.

I learned to cope the hard way because counseling did not work for me and I shut down and my thoughts eventually took over me. I attempted suicide and my thoughts were swamped with it. I change my attitude and I believe it was one of the hardest things I had to do. I had to change my thought process and I started writing in a journal.

I would like to know more about Haiti. I think there is so much stress in the young children in this area because they suffer from lack of education, hunger, and grief daily. These young children are usually on their own and their parents aren't around either. The lack of love and support from parents will mentally cause so many problems to these young children. Kids in Chaotic dysfunctional homes also lack medical care and proper nutrition. This can become a huge issues leading up to everything else that a young child needs. Mental health care systems are being brought to thought to be built in Haiti, in the mean time little to no clinics are doing with they can.

http://www.cleveland.com/parents/index.ssf/2012/01/when_toxic_stress_in_children.html

http://www.psysr.org/blog/2010/09/30/mental-health-in-haiti/

Public health topic

I was always curious and still am curious about breastfeeding. I work in child care and I hear plenty of stories about the joys of breast feeding and it wanted to make me breastfeed when I have my children. In the article I read it mentions that babies that were breastfed had better health profiles. People that were breast fed has better teeth, bones, eye health, lower obesity rates, cancer and heart disease.

Before all of this research and working with children I did not want to breastfeed because of the breast dripping milk all the time, having to pump, infants not latching, breasts feeling heavy and just the feeling of it. I learned that women's bodies go through so much for the health of others and them self's. I learned that after birth breastfeeding helps contracts the uterus, helps burns calories and releases hormones.

In Australia babies are breastfed at birth but by five months they are already eating solids. Normally babies are fed up till six months and it is recommended.

American Academy of Pediatrics policy statement on breastfeeding and the use of human milk, Pediatrics, December 1997: 100(6): 1035-39.

http://www.incultureparent.com/2012/03/breastfeeding-around-the-world/#slide10

Birth Experience!!!

Birth Experience!!!
I really do not have any memory because my mom died when I was young, I do not have any children and I have never seen a child born besides videos. The only thing I can remember is the iron burn mark on my arm from when I was 3 months old. My twin sister kicked me off the couch and i rolled into a hot iron and till this day I am 23 years old and still have it.

I just watched a documentary on Babies around the world. Africa seemed most interesting to me because the women there do not go to hospitals and have natural births in the homes or tents. Another thing I found interesting is that they bathe the babies in this clay made substance and the babies do not wear diapers and have BM's just anywhere. I seen a baby have a BM on the mother and she wipes it off her leg with a stick. I think after watching that I would rather have birth in a hospital due to health risks.

Working in the childcare field is the reason I am who I am today. I feel so much wiser because I have learned about my self through them. There is more to life than just a job and finances. Living and enjoying plays a huge role and I saw that through the behaviors of children.

A child that touched me!

I used to work with the Okemos public school district here in Michigan. The job I worked was with the English language school where families from many different parts of the country came to America to take classes in learning English. One particular 2 year old I had was from Korea and I instantly fell in love with him and became so attached. He was so smart and well behaved. Geo had a hard time following our daily routine and eventually adapted to it. We did the same thing everyday and could never tell if he was learning. I worked with him one on one and still could not tell if he was learning. Geo's mother would come to me the next day and express her gratitude because she saw that he was learning. My last day at work Geo sang twinkle twinkle little star and said my name and I just cried. Geo was Learning and showed it in his own way and at his own time. He understood a lot of things but finally showed and applied it. Children may not tell you but will definitely show you.