Sharing Web Resources

•What specific section(s) or information seemed particularly relevant to your current professional development?

The one section on the site zerotothree.org that was particularly relevant to my current professional development was the article about how to determine if children are school ready.  Many of my students will be entering kindergarten next year.  It is important for me as their teacher to ensure that they have the necessary skills and abilities to enter without having any difficulty.  The article also gives key tips for the parents to help them feel comfortable sending them to school and what signs to look for if they may develop trouble.

 •Which ideas/statements/resources, either on the website or in an e-newsletter, did you find controversial or made you think about an issue in new ways?

One idea that was on the site that made me think about the issue in a new way dealt with trauma.  I understand that many children go through some sort of trauma, many on a daily basis due to their lifestyle.  I never understood or realized how much it impacted them later on in life.  The journal article explained how the experiences they have now can ultimately affect them later in life.  They may not show signs of anything now, but it may develop once they reach adult hood.  Although children may seem to recover fine from something, we never know if it will bother them once they reach a certain age.

 •What information does the website or the e-newsletter contain that adds to your understanding of how economists, neuroscientists, or politicians support the early childhood field?

The website offers various links and resources that helped me understand how economists support the early childhood field.  It offers articles in regards to the public policy and how education will be impacted due to the most recent budget cuts.  It explains how the president has given additional money for 2014 to the Early Head Start programs because each child needs the extra help when it comes to education.

 

 •What other new insights about issues and trends in the early childhood field did you gain from exploring the website or e-newsletter?

One trend that I gained from exploring through the website is about military families.  The website zerotothree.org offers various suggestions and resources for military families to explore.  They offer book suggestions to help young children understand why a parent may not be home for a long time as well as various activities to do with them.  It is a very useful tool, especially now when many families are dealing with this issue.

References

http://www.zerotothree.org/

International Contacts - Week 2

I chose to research the country Mongolia and its struggle with poverty.  One interesting insights that I gained was reading that it appears the economic system of Mongolia is improving and becoming more stable, little are seeing the benefits.  The gap between the people living there benefiting from the better economy and those who are not is steadily increasing.

Another insight that I gained is as of 1990 about 96% of the population was illiterate.  Due to significant budget cuts from the national budget, the education programs suffered.  After time, the enrollment rates are beginning to rise and dorms are beginning to open up again.  Children living in poverty have a high dropout rate due to economic reasons.  The buildings and equipment are of poor quality, making the teaching quality to suffer as well.  The children that are fortunate enough to attend school are not getting the education they deserve.

The final insight that I gained from reading about Mongolia and poverty is many children are forced to never attend or drop out of school and work.  They do jobs such as cutting wood or fetching it for factories or markets.  More and more families are resorting to living in the streets with young children, even with the weather reaching as low as minus 30-40 degrees.

The country is suffering and as a result so are the children.  Mongolia needs to reexamine their education system and finds appropriate ways where the children that need to work can still have access to some sort of school.  They can offer courses at night or allow them to bring material home with them to work on independently.  It is difficult to be in that situation, especially if the family ends up on the streets in freezing weather.  They have to find ways to come together as one and fight for their education.

Resource

http://www.childhoodpoverty.org/index.php?action=countryo#12

Sharing Web Resources

The organization that I selected is called zero to three and can be found at the website zerotothree.org.  The main focus of the organization is to provide parents, teachers, and caregivers or children from the age of birth to three years of age.  They have a special forum created especially for military families as well to help the children better understand where their parents are and sometimes why they have to move so often.  They state directly on their website what their focus and missions are which is to help promote the healthy development of infants and toddlers.

One particular newsletter from the website that caught my attention was in regards to parents and identifying when their child is ready for school.  This is a main concern for a majority of the parents I interact with in the beginning of the school year because the children are so young.  The letter identifies various ways in which to help get the children ready along with different clues to look for the parents determine if they are or not.  It is a great tool for any parent to read and to help them to help know what to expect when their child leaves for the first time.  The bottom of the article also stresses the importance of sharing the information with any parents that may be struggling with the idea of sending their young child off to preschool.  As they state, “sharing is caring.”

After reviewing the topic of getting children ready for school, I realized how important it is for parents to take time to explain to their children where they are going and what they will be doing there.  The article stressed the importance of emotions and how the parents have to be prepared for their children to become upset when they go to leave them at school.  Some parents have a hard time letting go, especially when it is their first child.  The website explains steps that can be taken to help avoid the separation anxiety on both the parents and child’s part.  That should be a big help for many families new to not only preschool but also leaving their child in the hands of someone else.

 

http://www.zerotothree.org/public-policy/school-readiness-infographic.html

Establishing Professional Contacts

I began by trying to figure out how I wanted to contact a representative from an international setting.   After carefully looking over everything, I decided that for me the best option would be the alternate assignment for part 1.  Since my internet connection can get a little sketchy at times, I would feel more comfortable knowing I had the option of listening to the professionals on the radio then stressing about responding to emails in a timely manner. 

For the second part of the assignment I decided to select the Zero to Three  (http://www.zerotothree.org/about-us/ ) organization to study.  I had previously stumbled upon their sight and found it to have a multitude of resources for professionals in the early childhood field.  I enjoyed the sight and often found myself referring back to it for the current journal articles.

Has anyone else found it difficult to select only one site to study?  I feel as though since we are in the field of early childhood, all the sites would benefit us to become familiar with.