Each day the Child Care Exchange sends out informational emails on the world of Early Childhood Development, Education and Professional Development, which I try to share with you. For more info or to receive their emails directly, please see their website at Child Care Exchange.
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Barb Gallick and Lisa Lee’s article, "Eliminating Transitions," talked about the challenges transitions present for children and adults. While it is primarily geared for those working in Early Childhood and child care settings, I believe the information is also useful to parents who are helping their young children learn to transition from one activity to another.
"As adults, we often find ourselves transitioning from one activity to another in a short time span. Most of the time, we don’t feel we have a lot of control over our schedules, but wish that we could carve out extended time to relax and focus on one project.”
If we relate this scenario to the way a daily schedule unfolds in an early childhood setting, we might begin to see how young children feel each time we ask them to transition from one activity to another. Picture a group of children in the block area who have spent 15 or 20 minutes building an elaborate car wash. They have just gotten to the point where they will be using cars to develop a story and act it out when the teacher says it’s time to clean up for snack. Of course, after snack there’s group time and then the class will be heading outside. Are these children also wishing that they could have had an extended time to relax and focus on enjoying their car wash and the dramatic play possibilities? Do they also feel like they have no control over their schedule?
"Having a daily schedule that creates routines for young children is an essential part of every child’s life whether at home or in an early childhood classroom. Whether the head teacher in an early learning classroom or the parent who home schools their children, evaluating the daily schedule on a regular basis is an integral part of creating an environment that meets the needs of both the children and adults who ‘live’ in that ‘classroom’ each day. We would suggest that you look (with a critical eye) at your daily schedule once a year to determine whether it works for you and the children. One of the most important things to consider when reviewing your schedule is the number of transitions that occur throughout the day.
"Transitions tend to be some of the most difficult and stressful moments in an early childhood classroom. At these times teachers often find themselves dealing with more challenging behaviors and feeling more like police officers than nurturing caregivers. If you are feeling uncomfortable or frustrated during transition times, that is a sign that your current schedule may need to be revised to better meet the needs and developmental levels of the children in your care."
For more specific tips, or to read the entire article, please go to: http://www.childcareexchange.com/resources/view_article.php?article_id=5019448&page=3&keyword_id=
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DEACONESS call to Parents:
You are the experts when it comes to your children and we would love to hear from you. Please feel free to comment or send us an email at info@deaconesschildren.org and let us know what you would like to see on our blog.
Please feel free to join us on Facebook as well at Deaconess Children's services.
For 114 years, Deaconess has been transforming the lives of children in the Pacific Northwest by breaking the cycle of child abuse and neglect and putting Children First!
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Gender Differences
Each Day, the Child Care Exchange sends out informational emails on the world of Early Childhood Development, Education and Professional Development, which I try to share with you. For more info, please see their website at www.childcareExchange.com.
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".... There's very little solid evidence of gender-based differences in kids' brains," reports Lise Eliot, author of Pink Brain, Blue Brain (Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 2009), in Work & Family Life (December 2009). "To be sure, there are natural differences. But these become magnified through our parenting, marketing, and especially through children's own culture. Indeed, infant brains are so malleable that small differences at birth become amplified over time as parents, teachers, and the culture unwittingly encourages gender stereotypes."
Eliot does, in fact, discuss differences that do exist in the earliest years...
"Early in infancy, boys are a bit larger but, surprisingly, are more vulnerable than girls. They are more likely to be fussier, harder to soothe, and, by three or four months of age, less socially attuned. Boys' senses of touch, smell, and hearing are likely to be a little less acute than girls' — and their language, memory, and fine motor skills also lag during the first year of life.
"Where boys do tend to excel is in their gross motor development — sitting, standing, and walking at the same ages as girls, despite their slower maturation. While girls are easier to care for and more socially aware, they typically do not get as much encouragement as boys do for their physical development and emotional independence — two concerns that become pronounced later in childhood but can be addressed in infancy. The earlier parents are aware of the particular needs of boys and girls, as well as the power of gender stereotyping, the better chance they will have to help kids reach their full potential."
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DEACONESS call to parents:
In our experience, gained working with thousands of children and parents over the last 112 years, some children will fit the desciptions in this article and some will not. Please comment and tell us about your experiences as you've watched your child(ren) move through their developmental stages and the things you've noticed. We love to hear from you.
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".... There's very little solid evidence of gender-based differences in kids' brains," reports Lise Eliot, author of Pink Brain, Blue Brain (Boston: Houghton-Mifflin, 2009), in Work & Family Life (December 2009). "To be sure, there are natural differences. But these become magnified through our parenting, marketing, and especially through children's own culture. Indeed, infant brains are so malleable that small differences at birth become amplified over time as parents, teachers, and the culture unwittingly encourages gender stereotypes."
Eliot does, in fact, discuss differences that do exist in the earliest years...
"Early in infancy, boys are a bit larger but, surprisingly, are more vulnerable than girls. They are more likely to be fussier, harder to soothe, and, by three or four months of age, less socially attuned. Boys' senses of touch, smell, and hearing are likely to be a little less acute than girls' — and their language, memory, and fine motor skills also lag during the first year of life.
"Where boys do tend to excel is in their gross motor development — sitting, standing, and walking at the same ages as girls, despite their slower maturation. While girls are easier to care for and more socially aware, they typically do not get as much encouragement as boys do for their physical development and emotional independence — two concerns that become pronounced later in childhood but can be addressed in infancy. The earlier parents are aware of the particular needs of boys and girls, as well as the power of gender stereotyping, the better chance they will have to help kids reach their full potential."
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DEACONESS call to parents:
In our experience, gained working with thousands of children and parents over the last 112 years, some children will fit the desciptions in this article and some will not. Please comment and tell us about your experiences as you've watched your child(ren) move through their developmental stages and the things you've noticed. We love to hear from you.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Excellence and Frivolity
Each Day, the Child Care Exchange sends out informational emails on the world of Early Childhood Development, Education and Professional Development, which I try to share with you. For more info, please see their website at www.childcareExchange.com.
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"Are you having fun? It's one of the best indicators of organizational vitality — yet we don't value it much." This is what Nancy Austin asserts in her book (authored with Tom Peters), A Passion for Excellence (New York: Grand Central Publishing, 1989). She observes that one of the "8 tough lessons" in the pursuit of excellence is to "inject the frivolity factor":
"While most of us would like to work for (or be) the accessible, accountable enthusiast whose eyes light up when talking about a new product or service, it somehow doesn't seem right. When I was in graduate school, "fun" and "passion" weren't part of my business vocabulary. Instead, we were drilled in emotional detachment and control. And complicated busi ness terminology — instead of plain English — was held up as the preferred language of the professional manager.
"That kind of thinking puts a damper on the enthusiasm that should be part of a successful and well-run enterprise. A fun business atmosphere can cultivate customers as well as good ideas — so lighten up!"
One of the ways we “lighten up” here at Deaconess Children’s Services is through regular, free to in-expensive team building activities which include coffee team meetings, lunches, hiking trips and even the odd wintertime holiday shopping excursion. It gives us a chance to bond with one another, which helps make Deaconess a great place to work.
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"Are you having fun? It's one of the best indicators of organizational vitality — yet we don't value it much." This is what Nancy Austin asserts in her book (authored with Tom Peters), A Passion for Excellence (New York: Grand Central Publishing, 1989). She observes that one of the "8 tough lessons" in the pursuit of excellence is to "inject the frivolity factor":
"While most of us would like to work for (or be) the accessible, accountable enthusiast whose eyes light up when talking about a new product or service, it somehow doesn't seem right. When I was in graduate school, "fun" and "passion" weren't part of my business vocabulary. Instead, we were drilled in emotional detachment and control. And complicated busi ness terminology — instead of plain English — was held up as the preferred language of the professional manager.
"That kind of thinking puts a damper on the enthusiasm that should be part of a successful and well-run enterprise. A fun business atmosphere can cultivate customers as well as good ideas — so lighten up!"
One of the ways we “lighten up” here at Deaconess Children’s Services is through regular, free to in-expensive team building activities which include coffee team meetings, lunches, hiking trips and even the odd wintertime holiday shopping excursion. It gives us a chance to bond with one another, which helps make Deaconess a great place to work.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Relationships with Children
Each Day, the Child Care Exchange sends out informational emails on the world of Early Childhood Development and Education, which I try to share with you. For more info, please see their website at www.childcareExchange.com.
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Lilian Katz has spent many years conducting workshops for teachers, parents, and students all over the world. During those workshops, she often refers to her son Stephen, and what she has termed the "intellectual emergencies" she experienced during the years he was growing up. Her responses to these "emergencies," the moments when he analyzed her actions and challenged her decisions as a parent and a teacher, are presented in this insightful, witty book.
With music and words from Stephen incorporated into the book, Katz presents an inspirational work for parents and teachers, or anyone who has ever looked into the face of a child and wondered if she/he was making the right choices.
In her book, "Intellectual Emergencies: Some Reflections on Mothering and Teaching," Lilian Katz makes these two observations about teachers' relationships with children:
"Relationships cannot be developed in a vacuum; we have to relate to each other about something — something that matters to the participants in the relationship. The content of our relationship with children should not be mainly about rules, regulations, and conduct, but about their increasing knowledge and developing understandings of those things within and around them worth knowing more about and understanding more deeply, more fully, and more accurately."
"Cultivate the habit of speaking to children as people — people with minds — usually lively ones. Appeal to their good sense. It is not necessary to be sweet, silly, or sentimental at one extreme, or somber, grim, or harsh at the other end. Let us be genuine, direct, honest, serious, and warm with them, and about them — and sometimes humorous too."
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Lilian Katz has spent many years conducting workshops for teachers, parents, and students all over the world. During those workshops, she often refers to her son Stephen, and what she has termed the "intellectual emergencies" she experienced during the years he was growing up. Her responses to these "emergencies," the moments when he analyzed her actions and challenged her decisions as a parent and a teacher, are presented in this insightful, witty book.
With music and words from Stephen incorporated into the book, Katz presents an inspirational work for parents and teachers, or anyone who has ever looked into the face of a child and wondered if she/he was making the right choices.
In her book, "Intellectual Emergencies: Some Reflections on Mothering and Teaching," Lilian Katz makes these two observations about teachers' relationships with children:
"Relationships cannot be developed in a vacuum; we have to relate to each other about something — something that matters to the participants in the relationship. The content of our relationship with children should not be mainly about rules, regulations, and conduct, but about their increasing knowledge and developing understandings of those things within and around them worth knowing more about and understanding more deeply, more fully, and more accurately."
"Cultivate the habit of speaking to children as people — people with minds — usually lively ones. Appeal to their good sense. It is not necessary to be sweet, silly, or sentimental at one extreme, or somber, grim, or harsh at the other end. Let us be genuine, direct, honest, serious, and warm with them, and about them — and sometimes humorous too."
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