Wise People Once Said...

This week we have explored individuals in our field of study that have pioneered new theories, expounded on new practices, and contributed knowledge and experience to early childhood education.  These people come from different sectors of the industry, such as research, Head Start, and public early childhood education.  I chose to profile Janet Gonzalez-Mena, an author and educator, and Art Rolnick, a business man who has taken interest in the dire importance of investing in early childhood education.  In an interview in 2010 with the Star Tribune, a local Minneapolis newspaper, he stated that "We're way under-investing in early education.  There is all kinds of research to say that if you provide a healthy environment for our children starting as early as prenatal, so that kids when they start kindergarten are healthy and cognitively ready and socially ready to learn, our children are much more likely to be successful in life."  That about sums it up!  My hope is that we are beginning to move in the right direction, despite the struggling economy.  Investment is preventative action to ensure that the future holds success for our youngest citizens.

In addition,  Louise Derman-Sparks, a champion for diversity in the field said that "teachers must figure out who they are."  When a teacher views a class of children, he or she must know his or her own temperament, views, biases, and culture in order to effectively reach and understand each and every child there.  It is a difficult undertaking, but beneficial to the teacher, the children, and the families they are working to teach.

Personal Childhood Web

This week we are exploring the concept of the childhood web and the systems that affect and influence young children and their families.  Often educators take a limited look at the child's current levels of performance without identifying the culture from which they come or the environment in which the child lives.  We fail to recognize that children are part of a larger whole and should be looking at the present level of performance of that whole instead.

In my own childhood, there was a strong web of individuals that formed and shaped my perception of the world and how I interacted with it.  My mother and father were well educated and that allowed them to gain employment to provide a safe and secure home and necessities for my sister and me.  We did not have everything we wanted, but certainly had what we needed.  We both attended private Catholic school until college, as these values were important to our family.  We were raised to respect others and to always to our best in anything we attempted.

My father worked for the same company for over 20 years and he worked long hours and days.  However, he made time at night and on weekends to be with us and do things as a family.  When I started softball, he came to games when he could, but always made time to play catch on the front sidewalk before or after dinner.  When we traveled to Wisconsin to visit my grandparents (my mom's side), he would spend most of the time checking the maintenance of the house, cutting and stacking wood for their fireplace, and tuning up my grandma's car.  Since my grandpa had a stroke when I was about 5, he knew it was important to care for the house and car in his place.  My dad also loved being with kids of the family.  He would take us into town for a pop at the local tavern and let us play pool or pinball.  I learned work ethic from him, and the importance of taking care of those around you.

My mother worked off and on during our childhood.  She was home for part of my elementary school days and I loved walking the 4 blocks home for lunch.  She would have it ready for us and we would sit and eat together.  She taught me how to ride my bike, but before that she would take me on errands on the back of hers, where I would say to myself over and over "It's ok, Mommy won't spill me."  My mom was my cheerleader and when my grandparents (my dad's side) bought us a piano and I decided I wanted to take lessons, she was right there with me, playing "Chopsticks" and listening to me practice.  She and my dad loved each other and I was one of very few in my class to have parents that were not divorced.  I now know how much I appreciated that and how significant it was!

My sister is 4 years older than me, and extremely bright.  She played the protective sister in school until it became "uncool" for her to do so.  I always knew she was looking out for me.  We fought terribly as kids and I know it drove my parents crazy.  Today we have a great relationship and I can talk to her about anything.  In school, I was always working hard to live up to the reputation she had as a star student.  It was frustrating then, but now I admire her for her knowledge and willingness to help anyone with just about anything, and believe I am the student I am in part because of her.

The last person in my web is a woman named Mary Neuenfeldt.  When I started preschool, and intermittently through middle school, my mom returned to work full time.  We found a wonderful family child care just a block from our house.  Mary ran it and she made a lasting impact on my sister, me, and dozens of other children in the neighborhood.  She taught us the importance of caring for others, getting along with others, and having fun!  I will never forget the concept of "Warm Fuzzies and Cold Pricklies".  I think it was an early version of social-emotional curriculum that she adopted!  She was a strong influence in me becoming an early childhood educator because she would let me help with the babies and toddlers that came to her house for child care.  I would help feed them, rock them, and play with them when I was only about 6 or 7 years old.

Where it all began...

This week, we have been exploring our professional goals within the master's program and how the university is equipped to support them.  As I wrote them, I thought about some of my colleagues' comments about their families and it occurred to me that my passion for education began with my family.  My parents were college-educated, my father in education and my mother in psychology.  My sister attended college as well, so education was a high priority for me.  However, the love of young children is genetic.  My father was notorious for being the "baby whisperer" whenever extended family would come to visit.  He would ooh and ahh over the youngest of the cousins and I remember watching him intently.  I also remember how he, and my mom, would read to us all the time.  My favorite story that he would read is called Drummer Hoff, by Barbara and Ed Emberley.  Ed Emberley was awarded the 1968 Cladecott Award for the illustrations.  As you explore it, you will also notice the military influence in my family!  What I love about the book, and about the way my dad would read it is the opportunity for sequencing, rhyming and enthusiasm.  To this day, I have a copy and I read it every once in a while.



The photo that is posted in my previous blog is one of me from my trip to South Africa.  It was 12 years ago and I do not look that young anymore!
One of my favorite quotes about education comes from Dr. Haim Ganott and it is as follows:

“I've come to the frightening conclusion that I am the decisive element in the classroom. It's my daily mood that makes the weather. As a teacher, I possess a tremendous power to make a child's life miserable or joyous. I can be a tool of torture or an instrument of inspiration. I can humiliate or humor, hurt or heal. In all situations, it is my response that decides whether a crisis will be escalated or de-escalated and a child humanized or de-humanized.”

It is all in the delivery!  I could be the most prepared educator, but if I am having a bad day, and I project that on to my class, those children will remember that instead of any amazing lesson I spent days planning.

My Part Yet To Be Played

I am a life-long early childhood educator. My journey began at the age of sixteen in a small infant classroom. My passion for the guidance of young children grew through high school and my undergraduate early childhood parent education program. I have been a teacher, a nanny, a director. Currently I am working in the non-profit sector, supporting the concept and practice of inclusion in early childhood education. As travel is a great interest of mine, I have been to South Africa to learn about early childhood education in various parts of that country with a delegation of other education professionals.

I am an introvert, so, by nature, online learning is ideal for me. I can network within the online community and continue recharging. I am a resourceful quick thinker, yet thoughtful in my response to others. I am a visual and hands-on learner, so I believe that learning remotely may pose the greatest challenge for me. The challenge is welcomed, though, as I continue to grow and learn about myself, this field I have chosen, and the part I am to play in it.