Web Resources

National Head Start Association - www.nhsa.org

The blog from Olivia Harper was short but reinforced the importance of parent engagement in the classroom. Olivia talked about how her goal for classroom was 100% of the children will be kindergarten ready and could not have been reached without the daily engagement, partnership and support her parents offered (Harper, 2015). Olivia inspired me to discuss with my supervisor the possibility of having literacy nights with just my classroom as a way to get more families engaged. We do parent education nights twice a year but they are school wide events - this makes it harder for my parents to really engage with us and each other.

I was able to connect with two ECE professionals from New Zealand and Canada  :) 
I look forward to learning more about their work.

References

Harper, O. (2015). Parents as partners: Creating advocates for a true "head start." Retrieved from http://www.nhsa.org/parents-partners-creating-advocates-true-head-start

Professional Contacts

I was unsuccessful trying to make a professional contact - I emailed about 9 people through a common ECE page on Facebook hoping for a response. I have yet to receive any messages...I am still hopeful!

The World Forum website was not working either, so I signed up for the Save the Children newsletter. My boyfriend and I decided to sponsor a child through the organization as well - we loved the fact that we can receive pictures and letters from the children. We are looking forward to learning about the little girl and would love to share with everyone.

I decided to follow two websites; National Head Start Association and National Association (NHSA) of Early Childhood Teacher Educators (NAECTE). Since I work for Head Start I wanted to keep up to date on the ever changing regulations/policies. I chose the other website because I noticed they had a communication network for teachers that I thought would be beneficial.

I'm excited to keep everyone up to date on the different aspects of Head Start and educators across the country through NAECTE. 

My Supports

When I think of the word support I think of the people in my life who lift me up and encourage me to keep going. Of course, we need supports in the way of money, food, and shelter as well but I relate to those second to people and relationships.

My support systems would have to be my family (boyfriend, parents, siblings) and my friends. Without each of these people I would not be where I am today - they all have a special emotional connection with me and encourage/support me in different aspects of life. My boyfriend has the hardest part, he plays the role of everyone sometimes :) 
If anyone one of my family or friends was not in my life there would be a large void because I communicate with them all on a daily or weekly basis - thanks to text messaging. Even if it is just a simple check-in and not a long drawn out conversation the fact that I know they are there is what counts. 

I had a snowboarding accident about ten years ago where I lost my vision for a couple minutes and had major trauma to my head. I still wonder what my life would have been like if I was unable to regain my vision that day on the mountain. This accident taught me to be grateful for all that I have in life and not take things for granted. My support system would have grown if I ended up losing my sight because I would have needed to learn Braille, rely on my other senses, and would have probably had another set of friends who I could relate to.

My Connections to Play

As a child I did not have many toys - we spent most of our time outside playing. I had a baby doll I liked to carry around with me and I pretended to be the babies teacher, my siblings and I would play football in the front yard with our neighbor friends and I spent almost every weekend in the mountains skiing or snowboarding.

                                                               

Quotes that represent play in my childhood:

"Children should play outside and get dirty." - National Trust

  "Don't just tell your kids to be active and to get outside to play. Lead by example." - Summer Sanders

When I was a child my parents were outside playing with us and taking us to explore the beautiful Rocky Mountains (which are basically my backyard), which is why I chose the second quote. We cannot learn to play when we are younger if nobody shows us how. When it comes to the baby doll I use to carry around I engaged in conversations with my mom about the baby and she would treat it like a person. This showed me how to respect toys and people in general. 

I feel like play (for the most part) is completely different from when I was younger - watching my nieces and nephews grow up with iPhones, iPads, computers, and televisions in their rooms. We had one computer in my house (which was located in the kitchen so my parents knew what we were doing) and one television in the main room which was hardly turned on. This allowed us to go outside and use our imagination with our friends - nowadays all kids know is Superheroes and Ninja Turtles.

The importance of play and exploration in my childhood has made me learn to love nature, use my imagination, and live a healthier lifestyle. As an educator I have tried to express the importance of playing outside to my classroom children - there are some kids who don't like playing outside and want to be inside. These are the children I tend to spend more one-on-one time with on the playground to show them what to do and how they can have fun. Playing in the centers is also essential for children but I feel that is not where our children struggle, I feel that their exploration in nature is struggling.

Relationship Reflection

This quote represents what a relationship/partnership means to me - both or all individuals need to be positive and active participants. 

Challenges with building partnerships is being the only active member and not sharing the same values or goals.

When children and parents have positive relationships with the teachers it encourages growth and motivation. They feel comfortable and supported to spread their wings to try something new. 

My boyfriend and I started with a relationship which slowly turned into a partnership. We have supported each other through the good and bad times, never giving up. We have a partnership with each other because we both put in the same amount of effort, compromise as much as possible and share in each others happiness.

My family (well part of them)! This partnership has grown and continues to grow with every argument, victory, hardship, and vacation. We learn from and compliment each other. Where one struggles others excel and support. This group of people have the best sense of humor and we are constantly laughing. We try not to take anything too serious and learn to laugh at ourselves. My nieces and nephews hold a special place in my heart - their relationship with me is what helps me get through hard times. My boyfriend and I struggle to have children so their bond with us means the world. 

My boyfriends parents (on the left) have recently moved to Colorado from New York so this relationship is new. I had only met them five or so times before which made the connection hard. They encourage and love me like my own parents and we have that mutual respect for each other and their son. 
My mom and step-dad (on the right) are my biggest cheerleaders. The two of them are more calm and reserved than my dad and step-mom - it is nice to have that balance in my family. My step-dad had his work cut out for him when he joined my family (my brother and I had some issues from my parents divorce) but he willingly accepted the challenge and won! 

Thank you Catherine for your kind words when talking about my friends past - I shared it with her as well. I enjoyed learning from you during this course and hearing your thoughts on the topics we discussed. Good luck in your future with Walden!

Thank you Katie for your comments throughout this course - especially the response about breastfeeding. I too am hopeful that one day woman will not feel ashamed or like failures if they cannot breastfeed their babies. Good luck in your future with Walden!

How should school-aged children be measured or assessed?

When thinking about assessment in school-aged children I believe they should be tested the traditional way (standardized testing) but also through observation and conversation. Being able to engage with children in conversation about specific learning objectives will determine whether or not they understand what is being taught. Observation can be a powerful tool for teachers because they can easily jot down the specifics on the children and see the progression/growth the children are making. I stated children should be assessed using the traditional method because I do not know of a perfect assessment tool to use across the board. Testing can give children anxiety and the results won't show their knowledge which could lead to negative affects on the child or school. 

How are children in other parts of the world being assessed?

Assessments are usually held annually, and they are the main criteria to promote the students to higher grades or to retain them in the same grade (Khattak, 2012). Children in Pakistan are assessed by their school, same as the children living in the United States. There are eight key features that the National Curriculum 2007/10 use for benchmarks or standards in Pakistan, those are; standard/competencies driven, learning objectives correspond to students' learning outcomes, progressive approaches, life skills are integrated across subjects, vertical/horizontal connections are ensured, promote creative writing and analytical thinking, detailed guidelines are provided for effective delivery of curriculum, and guidelines are provided for assessment/evaluation (Khattak, 2012). 

References:

Khattak, S. (2012). Assessment in schools in Pakistan. SA-eDUC JOURNAL, 9. Retrieved from www.nwu.ac.za/sites/www.nwu.ac.za/files/files/p-saeduc/New_Folder_1/6_Assessment%20in%20schools%20in%20Pakistan.pdf