EXPLORING ROLES in the ECE COMMUNITY

To truly commit to the early childhood field it is important to participate in local and state collaboratives that are working to improve the lives of children and their families.  The following are organizations that making a positive contribution to the field of early childhood in Grand Rapids, Kent County, and Michigan.

Michigan Association for the Education of Young Children

http://miaeyc.org/

The MiAEYC helps children, families, and early childhood professionals with training, materials and services.  They uphold the standards and ethical code of the National Association for the Education of Young Children.  In April there will be a state conference provided by MiAEYC (http://www.miaeyc.org/conferences/earlychildhood.htm).

First Steps

http://firststepskent.org/

First Steps is a collaborative of local organizations that work together to provide access for children and families to early learning opportunities and healthcare.  Their Welcome Home Baby program connects new parents with local nurses that provide informational home visits.  Other programs address healthcare and educational needs of children in Kent County, Michigan.  

Michigan's Children

http://www.michiganschildren.org/

Michigan's Children is a state site that promotes advocacy for children in public policies.  The site provides videos, articles, blogs, and resources that help to inform parents, families, and educators about current public issues and policies.  This site also provides opportunities for involvement in making, changing, and promoting current and future policies.

This video informs voters about the upcoming proposal and how it will effect Michigan's children.

Kent Regional 4C: Your Community Child Care Connection

http://www.4cchildcare.org/

The mission of the Kent Regional 4C's is "To provide Leadership, Resources, Services & Education which create, improve, & promote quality child care".

Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative

http://www.elncgr.org/

In Grand Rapids there are significantly more children in need than available early learning spots.  The mission of ELNC is to "create and provide targeted neighborhood collaborative partners with technical, developmental and educational support in order to increase the accessibility of early educational resources for vulnerable children."

https://youtu.be/upa3iCpZYww

I am currently teaching at one of the preschool sites that collaborate with ELNC.  I am interested in becoming one of the Early Childhood Specialists that work to ensure that every site is providing quality early childhood programs for the children attending.  This position coordinates monthly professional development meetings intended to provide training and opportunities for teachers to share ideas, resources, and materials.  This position also informs teachers and directors of resources in the community that help address the needs of children and families in the community.   

My early childhood teaching experience helps to provide real world strategies for teachers that are in the classroom.  It would be important to be outgoing and willing to work with all types of people and personalities.  This position requires good listening skills and effective communication skills.  In order to be in this position you must recognize that it takes a team effort to grow in this field.  The current early childhood specialist is open to new ideas and does not treat people like she knows more than they do.  She is ready to hear new ideas and willing to grow in the field.

REFLECTING ON LEARNING

"Anti-bias work is essentially optimistic work about the future for our children."  

-Derman-Sparks and Edwards, 2010, p. 2

My biggest hope for my future as an early childhood professional is to build a anti-bias education movement in Grand Rapids, MI.  I have learned that it is difficult to fully implement anti-bias curriculum without the support of other staff and team members.  I would like to see teachers and educators thinking about the impact on children and families and society as a whole if children develop a strong sense of self and family, appreciate and celebrate differences in others, recognize injustice, and act against it.

I am hopeful and optimistic with this goal because I am seeing it unfold and I have only been back in the field and advocating for 3 months.  I am seeing that my co-teacher likes how the children respond to problem solving regarding issues of gender.  Therefore, she is engaging in conversations with me about lesson planning that encourages the development of the anti-bias goals.  In the center I have seen the parent engagement coordinator reconsider parent engagement activities that might be exclusive to some family structures.  I a most excited about my connections with the Early Childhood Specialist for our organization (Early Learning Neighborhood Collaborative).  I shared with her the four goals that are outlined by Derman-Sparks and Edwards (2010).  We talked about the differences between diversity training and anti-bias education.  Shortly after she purchased and read "Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves."  Next year she would like to collaborate with me to provide training for all the staff at ELNC as well as do a presentation at one of our local annual early childhood conferences.  I feel that this networking will get others excited about anti-bias work and build a movement that can help influence other cities in Michigan and the nation.  Anti-bias work will help to ensure a new generation of thinkers, problem solvers, and socially responsible citizens of the world.  It can help but be optimistic work for the future of our children!

Reference

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

THANK YOU!
I would like to give a special thank you to my colleagues and professor for challenging my professional growth and providing such unique perspectives on the implementation of anti-bias education.  I leave every class feeling more informed, inspired, and prepared to advocate in the early childhood field.  Good luck to all of you as you work to finish your degree next class!  I hope to see many of you in the field as we continue on this life long journey! 

UNICEF

LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN REGION

I chose to take a closer look at this region because I am currently teaching in a preschool that services a lot of immigrants from Guatemala.  I have three students and their families in my class.  This group of people are different from the Mexican immigrants because many are considered refugees instead of immigrants.  It is helpful to understand the conditions and challenges that cause these families to leave their country. 

In this region children are faced with many challenges the affect their development.  Although it difficult to get accurate information for real statistics there are an estimated high number of cases of neglect, commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking, juvenile justice, child labor, child soldiers, and birth registration.

• NEGLECT- Thousands of children in countries like Brazil, Columbia, and Bolivia face homelessness due to the inability of their families to properly care for them.  Many of these children are institutionalized.  

• COMMERCIAL SEXUAL EXPLOITATION AND TRAFFICKING- Throughout Latin America and the Caribbean there is an estimated 1.2 million children trafficked every year and 2 million are sexually exploited through prostitution and pornography.  The majority of the women prostitutes were sexually abused in their homes when they were children.  This is a huge problem because children have limited access to school and basic health services.

• JUVENILE JUSTICE- The perception which is reinforced through the media is that poor adolescents are responsible for the rise in violence in this region.  However, statistics show that the percentage of adolescent perpetrators are actually relatively low for the region.  However, In 2004 children and adolescents deprived of liberty conflict with the law in Latin America were approximately 40,000.
• CHILD LABOR-  Although child labor is on the decline in Latin America there are still an estimated 5.7 million children ages 5-14 engaged in different jobs in the region.

• CHILD SOLDIERS- In 2004, some 11,000 children under 18 were required to participate as child soldiers in the conflict in Colombia.  They are forced to become fighters, cooks, messengers and, in many cases, to provide sexual services.

• BIRTH REGISTRATION- 18% of annual births are not registered in the region.  However, this number does not reflect indigenous and African descent populations, displace populations, and border and conflict areas where the numbers are estimated to be much higher.

All of these are examples of trauma that put children in this region at great risk of mental and physical distress that greatly affect their growth and development.  UNICEF works closely with governments and civil societies to help ensure the rights of children and adolescents.  They state that "Children and adolescents have the right to grow up in an environment that ensures their welfare , protect them against violence , abuse, exploitation, neglect and discrimination" (unicef.org).  They work with local governments, families, and the greater society to help inform and implement systematic and sustainable change to affect long term conditions and safety for children.

On a personal and professional level this knowledge affects the work I do with the families from Guatemala in my center.  For instance, we know that there is little access to education in Guatemala.  Therefore the immigrants from this region do not have the same understanding or value of preschool programs and what they can offer their children.  For these families we need to do more to encourage attendance and offer regular information on what their children are learning while at school.  The teachers send informational notes home regarding fine motor, gross motor, cognitive, and social emotional development to help families recognize where their children are on the developmental scale and how they are progressing.  It also gives them a reference so they can help with these skills at home.  We have regular events that invite families into the classroom and center so that they can see first hand, through modeling, the learning activities that are incorporated through play.  We also provide family notes and information that is written for low literacy readers (i.e. 2nd grade literacy).    

Reference

UNICEF. (n.d.). UNICEF Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean. Retrieved February 21, 2015, from http://www.unicef.org/lac/

THE SEXUALIZATION OF EARLY CHILDHOOD

Let me first make the clear distinction between sexualization and sexuality or sex.  Children are naturally curious about their bodies.  It is normal for children to have questions about their bodies, love, affection, and intimacy as they gradually develop a sense of sexuality and sex.  However, according to Levin and Kilbourne (2009) "When people are sexualized, their value comes primarily from their sex appeal, which is equated with physical attractiveness" (p. 4). Unfortunately, children are bombarded with images, music, and ads that can create an unhealthy development of body image, caring relationships, and healthy sexual intimacy.  

When my daughter was four years old she wanted to take dance lessons.  We were new to town and on the recommendation of a local parent we signed her up at a dance studio nearby.  The night of her first recital we were sitting in the auditorium with great anticipation of our little girl coming on stage to wow us with her new dance skills.  There were several performances from other classes prior to hers.  The one that stood out the most was a group of girls that had to be about 8 or 9 years old.  They started out the dance crawling on the floor with their knees spread wide and preceded to dance around poles like they were doing a strippers dance.  Although my little four year old came out and danced a completely age-appropriate and sexless dance this image of the other girls would not disappear.  We took her out of that studio shortly after the recital.  I regret never expressing my feelings with the owners of the studio so that they could be aware of how such dances are perceived.

Working at a children's clothing store as a manager for five years I was constantly flabbergasted at the horrific sexist and sexualized content of children's clothing.  In particular the graphics on t-shirts.  Even starting as infants we sold shirts and one piece outfits that commented on little girls' lack of intelligence, dependence on beauty, and dating and marital interests.  In contrast little boys' clothing commented on their strength, power, and action.

Halloween was also another eye opener for me when it came to the sexualization of young children.  I found that little girls are marketed to be very submissive characters with little power and their costumes left little to the imagination.  We often found that we had to make our daughter's costume because there were not appropriate costumes that allowed her to be a non-sexy kitty or a serious veterinarian.  This only worsened as she got older.  Now at 15 years old it is almost impossible to find a costume for girls that is not marketed to be sexy (i.e. sexy witch, sexy nurse with not mention of being a doctor, sexy princess, etc.)    

These images send young girls the message that they are objects of little value other than their appearance.  They are subject to judgement of males and at their mercy for a good life.  This kind of marketing lays a foundation for girls in early childhood to become women consumers of products that will help them achieve perfection in their appearance and earn the attention of men.  It cannot go without saying that it is also damaging to young boys who are at risk of growing into men that do not value and respect women, but see them as objects to be obtained.  There are always worse case scenarios, but not every girl will grow up to be a prostitute or every boy into an abuser.  However, these images can create confusion for young children that can alter their attitude of themselves and their future female/male relationships. 

As early childhood professionals we can provide a safe environment that is absent of these images.  We can ensure that dress-ups in the dramatic play area are not gender specific or stereotypical.  Recently I just added different size pieces of fabric in many different patterns and colors to my dramatic play area and watched how the boys suddenly flocked to the dramatic play area to make the fabrics into masks, capes, belts, wings and more.  The girls were still able to make dresses and veils, but the fabrics have not been used the same way twice.  All the children are using their imagination and creativity instead of being limited by an outfit that has one use.  The books and puzzles in the classroom can provide images of non-stereotypical gender roles, men and women performing the same profession or same care giving role.  

According to Derman-Sparks and Edwards (2010) "young children typically focus on the external and cultural aspects of their gender identity-that is, they believe that how they dress (appearance) or what they like to do (behavior) is what makes them a girl or a boy" (p. 91).  As early childhood professionals it is important that we provide clear age-appropriate information and language about their bodies and their sex so that we can make the distinction between anatomy and actions when it comes to gender identity.  Children will feel more free to take risks and try things that are outside their perceived boundaries of gender.

I must add on a personal note that when I found this image I was reminded of how disgusted I am when breastfeeding is reduced to a sexual act as well.  Critics of breastfeeding in public like to sexualize this natural act by being offended by the slight appearance of breasts.  How many times have you noticed someone breastfeeding?  Except for first time moms, it becomes so easy that a woman could sit with you and carry on a conversation and you would probably think she was just holding a sleeping baby.  With all the images of breasts that we see on a daily basis how do we allow ourselves to be bothered by the image of a baby doing what nature intended?  I believe people are bothered because they grow up learning that breasts are sexualized objects.  Therefore any act of sucking, even an infant, becomes a sexual act.  It is time to change. 

References

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

  
Levin, D. E., & Kilbourne, J. (2009). [Introduction]. So sexy so soon: The new sexualized childhood and what parents can do to protect their kids (pp. 1-8). New York: Ballantine Books. Retrieved from: http://dianeelevin.com/sosexysosoon/introduction.pdf

EVALUATING IMPACTS ON PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE

"Almost everything adults say or do around children carries messages about gender, economic class, racial identity, ability, and family culture." 

-Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010, p. 32

One of the most important things we can do as early childhood professionals is to assess and reflect on our social identities, schema, and bias.  We know that children, from birth, observe and internalize the words and actions of adults in their lives.  Even the most subtle and covert messages become realities for our children and are reflected in their learned actions and stereotypes.  Even a teacher with good intentions could be perpetuating stereotypes in their language and learning environment which is why it is so vital that we constantly evaluate our perceptions of the world and how we think about gender, class, race, culture, sexual orientation, abilities, and age.

Personally, I have been reflecting on how sexism has affected me in my life as a woman and how it influences my interactions with children and the building of a nurturing learning environment in my classroom.  Internalized oppression can cause me to believe that the stereotypes about girls and women are true.  Then unintentionally I can react and interact with the children in my class in a way that perpetuates those stereotypes.  I have to be aware of my bias so that I do not treat girls as nurturers and boys as builders.  I have to be careful not to compliment girls on their appearance and boys on their actions.  In addition to assessing my interactions I have to ensure that I am encouraging healthy gender exploration in the learning environment as well.  This means that boys feel comfortable and encouraged to investigate different roles in the dramatic play area and that girls feel confident and motivated to explore in the block area.  The library area also needs to have books that do not perpetuate gender stereotypes, but show a wide variety of females and males crossing gender boundaries (e.i. female firefighters, leaders, construction workers, and male nurses, dancers, and caretakers).  

 



Reference
Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

OBSERVING COMMUNICATION

MY OBSERVATION:

My observation took place in a preschool classroom with four year-olds.  After an extended time of free choice play the teacher announced that it was time to clean-up.  She turned on a song that seemed to trigger, for most, a time of transition.  Many children stopped what they were doing and began to put the toys, games, and materials on their places on the shelves.  There was one little boy that continued to cut a piece of paper at the table.  The teacher told him twice "it is time to finish and put away the scissors."  This child did not respond and continued to cut.  After encouraging other children to clean up the teacher returned to the boy at the table and this time bent down so that she was eye level with him.  She put her hand on his so he would stop cutting and said, "I know you are working very hard to cut this paper, but we are getting the room ready so that we can go outside."  The little boy shook his head and said "no."  The teacher said, "If you would like to finish what you are doing you can put the paper in your cubby and finish it this afternoon, would you like to do that?"  The little boy smiled and nodded and stood up from the table immediately and put the paper in his cubby and put the scissors away.

REFLECTION

I was so impressed by this interaction because the teacher was able to get what she wanted and still value the needs and wants of the child.  Children do not understand the schedules that the adults in their lives make.  They become really comfortable with routines, but schedules are different.  A schedule has the influence of time restrictions.  Children are not usually opposed to routines, but often the adult time schedule does not coincide with a child's schedule.  One of our goals as early childhood educators is to see children truly engage in activities that are self-motivated.  When we force a child to stop what they are doing because of a schedule it sends a message that we do not value what they are doing compared to what we have planned.  When this teacher gave the boy the option to continue his cutting activity at another time he received the message that what he was doing is valuable, and it allowed  him to be more open to move on with the schedule.  

In order to communicate with children in this way the teacher used a step back approach that allowed her to look at the situation from the child's perspective and respond in a way that both parties got what they needed (Stephenson, 2009).  It is so important to effective communication for adults to remember that children are whole people with their own thoughts and ideas about what and how they want to do things.  It is harder to make a child understand our perspective as adults when we can not understand their perspective.  When the boy in the observation felt he was being listened to then he was immediately more willing to listen to what the teacher needed.

Key Points in Effective Communication Strategies with Young Children (Laureate Education Inc., 2011):

• Watch children's play
• Ask open-ended questions
• Go slow
• Be receptive to their oral and body language
• Be respectful of their ideas (do not laugh unless they are laughing)

I found this video does an excellent job of summarizing the important key elements of effective communicating with young children.

References

Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: Communicating with young children. Baltimore, MD: Author

Stephenson, A. (2009). Conversations with a 2-year-old. YC: Young Children, 64(2), 90-95. Retrieved from the Walden Library using the Education Research Complete database. http://ezp.waldenulibrary.org/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ehh&AN=37131016&site=ehost-live&scope=site

CREATING AFFIRMING ENVIRONMENTS

Family Child Care Home

I think the most important part of my new family child care home would be the entrance area.  It is important to have an area that is warm and welcoming for children and their families.  This is the first area that they see when they arrive so it needs to feel like a safe place that is inviting.  It is important for me to have a space (like a sofa) where families can sit with their children and and take their time saying goodbye, as well as visit with other families.  This makes adults feel less rushed and more involved in the school community.  In this area I would also provide a space for every child to keep their belongings so that they feel as though they belong here.  It is important that they feel as though they are a member of this community.  I would also provide a space for guardians to communicate individual needs or questions for the day as well as receive daily information from me (Laureate Education Inc., 2011).  

Different play areas and materials in the classroom would first need to represent the families and cultures of children attending.  It is difficult to say in detail how this would look "because the physical environment begins with who children are, each early childhood classroom will have its own unique look" (Derman-Sparks & Olsen Edwards, 2010).  However, there are several key elements and materials that I feel would be included.

Dramatic play is a vital area for children to reflect on the realities of life and mimic what they see and hear while participating in pretend and make-believe worlds too.  I feel that many of the materials in this area should be real  items.  If possible include pretend food or empty food containers that represent the kinds of foods that the children eat at home.  Dress-up clothes should be open-ended such as scraps of material that is not gender specific and can be made into dresses, capes, scarves, veils, etc.  Having dress-ups be open ended helps to prevent tokenism where a piece of clothing represents an entire group of people or culture (ex. a kimono represents all people from Japan).  Dolls should represent the skin tones of the children.  I also like the idea of have a story box where children can create the dolls used as well as the furnishings of their choosing (Laureate Education Inc., 2011).

The library should be a warm and cozy place where children will want to curl up with a book.  Many books should represent the families, cultures, abilities, and economic groups in your service.  It is important to avoid books that misinform or misrepresent people.  Including books that perpetuate stereotypes about race, culture, class, abilities, and gender.  Class-made books are a great way to ensure that every child is represented.

There are some other ways to ensure a more anti-bias approach in the family child care home setting.  It is important to include music, rhymes, songs, stories, and poetry from diverse cultures and languages especially ones that represent the families in your service.  I would try to ensure that rugs, fabrics, posters, and art represent the families in my service as well.  Diversity puzzles can be purchased or they can be made with pictures taken of current families members performing different jobs, in local businesses, or with differing abilities.  Many of these ideas will also involve family participation which builds a partnership between home and school.  

References

Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, D.C.: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).

Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: Welcome to an anti-bias learning community. Baltimore, MD: Author