Play 2 Grow

Happy Halloween

2016-10-31T20:55:00.001-04:00

Here is a jack-o'-lantern that our preschool class had. One of the families donated it to us. One of our teachers carved it and then the children scooped out all the pumpkin seeds and the pulp. The kids loved it when we would turn the lights off and like the jack-o'-lantern during lunch. We would use battery operated candles or the flashlight on our phones. I hope everyone is enjoying their Halloween!

Growing Halloween Creatures

2016-10-28T22:55:00.001-04:00

Today was a windy rainy day so we were all stuck inside. We decided to do an experiment with Halloween tablets. They are these tablets that if you put them in water, they will dissolve into different objects or creatures. These happen to be Halloween related. So we chose to use black, green, orange and blue. As we put the tablets in the water, I asked each child to guess what the object inside might be. I did this for each color. Guesses included a pumpkin, a ghost, a jet, an A, purple beans, green beans, flowers, trees, a witch's hat and a W. I don't know where the letters came from. The jet was a little out of place too, but it makes things interesting. It took a while for the tablets to dissolve so we kept ourselves busy by singing songs, reading a story and rolling a ball back and forth. Eventually, the capsules had broken and spongy Halloween creatures emerged. The kids were excited to see them. Since the objects looked a bit strange, I went around the room and asked what the kids thought grew in the jars. A couple of them were correct and could see a pumpkin. Others saw jets, skulls, skeletons, a witch, a sea horse and others were not sure. After closer inspection, we discovered that three out of the four were different shaped pumpkins and the fourth was a bat. Overall, I'd say this activity was a success even with rowdy kids who just finished eating cake for snack!

Our Library

2016-10-27T22:57:00.001-04:00

Here is our library. Right now, we have the light table in there. We have artificial leaves along with sticks to make trees on the light table. We also have colored blocks so the kids can build on the light table and watch the light through their creations.

We have stuffed animals to cuddle with, sensory bottles to help children relax and a mirror for self reflection. It's also neat to watch while working at the light table. We always have the book shelf, and couch. In the past, we've had felt boards, mini chalk boards for drawing, a small doll house etc. We try to have a couple different quiet activities for the children to do when they need to calm down or want some alone time.

Pumpkin Seeds

2016-10-21T23:42:00.000-04:00

Today, we scooped out a pumpkin! The children really enjoyed this activity. Although, it was a sticky mess! We got all the seeds out of the pumpkin. We divided the seeds into two cups. One for roasting and the other for planting. We also have pumpkin seeds for art projects that somebody donated. So we will be having lots of fun with pumpkin seeds! I also wanted to link to a few fun pumpkin books.

https://www.amazon.com/Big-Pumpkin-Erica-Silverman/dp/0689801297

https://www.amazon.com/Legend-Spookley-Square-Pumpkin-CD/dp/0760745552/

https://www.amazon.com/Pumpkin-Soup-Helen-Cooper/dp/0374460310

Sink or Float

2016-10-19T20:58:00.001-04:00

Last week, we did a sink or float activity for science. I had everyone gather around the table and I had ten items. Before putting each item in the water, we went around the table asking each child if the particular item would sink or float. We created a chart showing how many children thought each item would sink or float and the real results. The items were:

A cotton ball,

A pompom,

A smaller black rock,

A larger gray rock,

A clam shell,

A leggo,

A cork,

A golf ball,

A plastic turtle shell

And an apple.

I asked the children what sink meant and one child said that it meant where you wash your hands. That was right, but I explained that in this case, it meant that the object would go to the bottom of the bucket. When I asked what float meant, one girl said that it would stay on top of the water. So as the experiment went on, we talked about concepts such as the weight of the different items and heavy vs. light. The children were surprised that the cotton ball appeared to float at first, but then sank to the bottom as it absorbed water. We were all surprised to see the apple stayed afloat. The children really enjoyed this activity so at the end, I let them drop each item in a second time and then help me dry everything off. I'm sure we'll experiment again with different items in the near future. Here is the chart that we made.

Our Pizza Parlor

2016-10-18T22:05:00.001-04:00

We've recently been rearranging our classroom and redoing our learning centers. We have redone our dramatic play corner. It is now a pizza parlor. It has everything to make and serve pizzas. We have pretend pizzas, vegetables, plates, measuring cups, mixing bowls, pizza boxes, a timer, a cash register, pretend money, books showing pizzas and even phones for ordering. The kids really seem to like it so far! My favorite thing is the pizza that zips together! You unzip it and the slices come apart. It's great! I've attached some pictures so you can see the whole area.1

Our Science Area

2016-10-17T22:12:00.001-04:00

I'm back. I don't know how often I will write. I will explain where I have been in another entry, but I will start by writing about things we are doing in our classroom. Today, I'm posting about our science area. We have recently updated it to match our fall theme. Recently, we've switched from having materials in plastic bins to using open wooden bowls or baskets. In our science area, we have included pumpkins, gourds, Indian corn, pinecones, acorns, leaves, magnifying glasses a scale and the world globe is always there. On some of the shelves, we have books and water play materials. We have a water table and rice table near by. Next to the shelf pictured is a small table with a box of animals. The children are really enjoying our new set up. We have these objects out simply for the children to explore. The children just noticed the scale today so tomorrow, we will show them how to use it. It should be interesting to see what they will do with the items.

I will keep these entries short and I will be posting pictures of other areas in the classroom as well as the activities we've been doing. I hope to blog regularly again.

Where I've Been

2014-02-22T18:17:00.001-05:00

I know that I haven’t written here for almost a year. The last time I wrote, I had just finished my capstone project and was about to graduate. With that accomplished, I focused mostly on my job. At that time, I was working almost full-time in the toddler room again. This lasted until May when more staffing changes occurred which brought me back to my previous schedule of floating between the infant and toddler rooms. I have been doing that since then. A lot has happened, which has lead me to look for new opportunities both in and outside of the early childhood field. The fact that I do not have my own classroom is one of the reasons for my lack of posts. As the floater, I am mostly supposed to follow the lead of the full-time teachers which leaves little room to come up with my own activities and ideas for setting up the classroom environment. I have a couple of posts that I never finished from my work in the toddler room from last spring. I plan to post those in the coming weeks.

I have other ideas for posts in mind that will be more research based which will take longer to write, but I hope you find them useful. As always, I will focus on play. I have recently contacted one of my instructors about teaching assistant opportunities so my blog may go in another direction. I am hoping to assist with teaching early childhood courses. Thank you for following my blog and stay tuned for future posts.

Assignment: Time Well Spent

2013-04-25T18:42:00.000-04:00

When I first began the masters in early childhood studies program through Walden two years ago, I was overwhelmed. When I looked at the list of courses and thought about the time it would take, I wasn’t sure how I would balance a job, school and other obligations. It was a challenge. There were many nights when I’d come home after a stressful day working with the kids. Schoolwork was the last thing I wanted to do, but I am glad to say that I made it! Part of me is relieved that I am done with the program because I will have time for other things. The other part of me is uncertain because I’m not sure what my next step should be. The mountain in the picture represents overcoming challenges, accomplishing goals and achieving success.

We were asked to share three things that we learned from our course of study.

Connections

I have learned so much from the individuals that I have connected with because of this program. I have learned a lot of information through discussion and blog posts from my classmates. Thank you all for sharing information and your experiences as educators. In our Trends in Early Childhood course, we were asked to connect with people who work in the field from other parts of the world. My contacts were Kierna from Northern Ireland and Sherry from Australia. They are both early childhood educators. I learned that many parts of the early childhood systems in other countries are very similar to ours. Early childhood professionals are struggling to be valued and recognized for their work. In most cases, we need to fund our own studies or professional development opportunities. There are also concerns about what is developmentally appropriate. Children around the world do not get to play as much and are forced into learning they aren’t ready for at younger and younger ages. We also have similar concerns with budgeting and paying quality teachers what they deserve. Kierna has a blog called Learning for Life if you would like to check it out. Sherry shares a blog with Donna, another educator called Irresistible Ideas for play based learning. They share many activities that they have done in their classrooms over the years.

Through blogging, I have found likeminded educators throughout the country and around the world. Their posts and ideas have been informative and have influenced the work I have done in my own classrooms. It is amazing how technology has changed and how it allows us to connect with people we would never know otherwise.

Research

I learned what it means to really do research.

In our research competencies course, I designed a research simulation on infant friendships. Before I never understood how to properly read a research article or that there was even a method to do so. I also didn’t understand the concepts involved in designing a research study, but completing the simulation made it clearer. If it weren’t for researchers, we wouldn’t have the necessary information that we use to guide our practices with children. I learned that we are all researchers. We are doing research every day when we ask questions and try to find the answers. When we experiment with a new activity or technique in our classrooms, we are doing research. I want to continue encouraging the children that I work with to become little researchers by experimenting and asking questions.

Play

Finally, I learned that play is essential for child development.

This concept isn’t news to me, but my research especially in this capstone strengthened my belief that early childhood programs should be play based. Play keeps children physically and mentally healthy. Through play children learn about relationships, sharing, empathy and playing different roles. Play helps children process both good and bad events that occur in their lives. Play even helps children learn those important math, science and literacy concepts that are necessary for later success in school. One of my goals is to advocate for play. This capstone course has helped me develop a way to do that. Click here for a list of organizations and links related to play.

Farewell

To close this entry, I want to thank my classmates for sharing their experiences, offering feedback and being a source of support. There are a few of you who were there when I needed help with some of the assignments. I want to thank Dr. Davis for offering feedback as well. You helped me narrow down my topic which was difficult. You also made me rethink my goals and turn them into something measurable and manageable. I wish you all success and I hope you achieve your goals. If any of you would like to keep in touch, my E-mail address is darceylynn@gmail.com or I can be found on Twitter @play2grow. I hope to cross paths with some of you in the future.

Assignment: International Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community

2013-04-12T17:24:00.000-04:00

I have never thought of looking for a job internationally. First, I have never thought of actually living in another country. Also, I do not know a second language so finding work in another country especially in this field would be difficult. You really need to be able to communicate with the families and children you work with. However, this week, we were asked to explore roles and or jobs in the field on an international level. It gave me an idea of what is out there.

The first organization I explored is Save the Children. This is an organization that makes a difference in the lives of children around the world. They assist in the rebuilding of areas that have been devastated by natural or other disasters. One position that is currently available is the coordinator for their Early Steps to School Success program. “Early Steps to School Success provides early childhood education services to pregnant women and children birth to five years of age, education services to their parents, and ongoing staff training to the community early childhood educators” (Save the Children, n.d.). Responsibilities of the job include recruiting pregnant families and children ages birth to five into the program, developing and scheduling the program activities, including home visiting parent/child groups, toddler playgroups, transition to school activities and other programmatic activities and providing regular home visits to families using STC approved home visiting curriculum. The candidate must also organize and conduct parent/child groups in the elementary schools, conduct child screenings and make referrals to community providers and coordinate/Collaborate with program partners. This job sounds interesting, but I am not sure how I feel about home visits. They require someone with a degree in early childhood or a related field which I have. However, I do not have experience working for a program that does home visits. However, I do have experience working with infants and toddlers.

I was having difficulty finding other positions that interested me so the rest of this entry will focus on international communities of practice. The next organization I came across is OMEP. “OMEP is an international, non-governmental and non-profit organization concerned with all aspects of early childhood education and care (ECEC). OMEP defends and promotes the rights of the child to education and care worldwide and supports activities which improve accessibility to high quality education and care. OMEP is currently established in over 60 countries and is represented at meetings of UNESCO, UNICEF, and other international organizations with similar aims” (OMEP, n.d.). OMEP USA

This organization interested me because they work on a variety of projects around the world. Their current projects include donating books or materials that support preschools and or programs that teach early childhood educators in other countries, earthquake and other natural disaster relief and Collaborating with UNICEF in the development of OMEP's Water, Sanitation, and Hygiene (WASH) initiatives in early childhood settings in the developing world. Members of this organization include policy makers, lawyers, therapists, early childhood educators, students and parents or grandparents. this organization invites anyone who wishes to advocate for and make a difference in the lives of children and families around the world.

Another interesting organization I found is The International Society on Infant Studies I had never heard of this organization before, but I am interested in learning more about them and reading some of their journals. “The International Society on Infant Studies The International Society on Infant Studies is a not-for-profit professional organization devoted to the promotion and dissemination of research on the development of infants through its official journal and a biennial conference where researchers and practitioners gather and discuss the latest research and theory in infant development” (The International Society on Infant Studies, n.d.). Membership is open to anyone with an advanced degree in any discipline related to infant development. This organization caught my attention because I work with infants and I think it’s important to stay up to date with the latest research.

Assignment: Jobs/Roles in the ECE Community: National/Federal Level

2013-03-27T20:25:00.000-04:00

This week, we are continuing to explore various roles or jobs within the early childhood field. We were asked to search within national or federal organizations. I found this difficult, but after searching a variety of websites, I found some available jobs.

The Ericson Institute is looking for an early childhood developmental screener. Erikson Institute is one of the nation's leading graduate schools in child development and early childhood education. The purpose of this job is to assess parents and their children birth to age three with the goal of identifying and recommending appropriate services to maximize child and family functioning. The applicant must be a graduate level professional who is self-motivated and reflective. The candidate must have knowledge of child development, relationship based practices and experience with working with children and families. The responsibilities of the screener will range from doing assessments, making referrals to Early Intervention or other necessary systems and training and consulting with caseworkers and foster parents on early development and infant mental health issues. Many of these requirements match my knowledge skills and experience. I have knowledge of child development, have worked in the early childhood field for several years and have a bachelors degree in mental health and human services. This program through Walden has expanded my knowledge of child development, communication and best practices in the field. However, I am not bilingual so would not be qualified for this specific position, but I am posting it anyway because I found the job description interesting. I am also unfamiliar with the assessment tools they use such as Denver II, Ages and Stages Questionnaire (ASQ) and Ages and Stages Questionnaire: Socio-Emotional (ASQ:SE). click here for the job description.

The National Institute for Early Education Research is looking for research assistants. “Founded in 2002, the National Institute for Early Education Research (NIEER) is affiliated with the Graduate School of Education at Rutgers University. NIEER supports early childhood policy development by providing independent research, analysis, and technical assistance” (NIEER, 2013). This job description interested me because I would be qualified and it is a completely different role but just as important to the field. The research assistants can either be graduate or under graduate. Applicants should be enrolled in education, child development, psychology, economics, statistics, public policy or a related Field. The candidate must have excellent written and oral communication skills, the ability to meet deadlines and enthusiasm for bringing change to early childhood policy. Click here to see the job description.

The final job I thought of for this assignment is an instructor. I could complete training through Maine Roads to Quality to provide professional development workshops, apply for an instructor position at a community college or work as an online instructor or professional coach for the Childcare Education Information Institute. I thought of this because I have completed two of their certificate programs and several professional development workshops. They have regular instructors and coaches that assist students as they work through their programs. I did not find a list of requirements for this position, but I imagine that one would need at least a masters degree in early childhood education or related field, direct experience in the field and excellent communication skills. I found their career opportunities page, but it only had an opening for recruiting coordinators. Career Opportunities.

Assignment: Exploring Roles in the ECE Community:

2013-03-15T14:28:00.000-04:00

This week, we are exploring various roles or jobs that one can have in the early childhood field. We were asked to search for job opportunities in our neighborhood, community or state. As I already knew, opportunities in this area are quite limited. Two of the job postings I found are old and they have already filled the positions, but I will use them anyway because they are different roles and require different qualifications.

The first position I came across was the director of the Children’s Center at Bowdoin College. They serve children from six weeks to five years of age. They have four classrooms and I have done some substitute training there. There was a long list of qualifications which included a bachelor's degree in child development, early childhood education or a related Field. A master's degree is preferred. Applicants must possess excellent oral and written communication skills; demonstrated leadership abilities; excellent interpersonal skills; the ability to work cooperatively and communicate well with others; demonstrated administrative skills including budget management, scheduling, training, etc., in addition to strong computer skills (MS Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook); and the ability to maintain confidentiality. A minimum of five years' experience in the early childhood education field with at least three years in a direct supervisory role within this field is required. Extensive experience evaluating and developing age appropriate curriculum, and experience and understanding of state and federal regulations and licensing procedures is required. This job is out of my reach at this point since it requires at least three years of supervisory experience and many administrative responsibilities that I have limited experience with. The add can be seen by clicking here.

The second position available is the lead infant teacher at an agency called Opportunity Alliance. Opportunity Alliance provides early education and child care, nutrition programming, advocacy, information and referral, mental health and substance abuse treatment, as well as meeting basic needs for people living in poverty. This job sounded interesting to me because I already work with infants and toddlers and it would be the next step up. This agency provides a wide variety of programs and services which means there will be more employment opportunities in the future. This job requires a bachelors degree in early childhood education or related field, at least two years working with infants and toddlers and supervisory experience is preferred. One of the roles of the job is to supervise assistant teachers in the room. The job description is here.

The final position I found is an early head start home visitor. The agency responsible for this program is called Community Concepts. They offer a variety of housing, economic development and social services for the communities of Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties of Maine. The home visitor works with families with young children- birth to age three- and expectant parents, delivering developmentally appropriate activities by partnering with parents to utilize their teaching & parenting skills within the home environment. Qualifications for this position include an associate’s Degree in Social Work, Early Childhood Education or related field, obtaining or maintaining CPR and first aid certifications and at least two years with home visiting experience is recommended. The job description can be found here.

I'm Still Here

2013-03-07T20:58:00.000-05:00

I know I haven’t written in my blog for months. I have been really busy with work and school. I realize my blog is missing the photos and I hope to have them back up soon. I have switched my file hosting to dropbox and need to redo all the links which may take me some time. I usually use this blog to post activities that I do with the children, but over the past year there have been many changes. I began 2012 as a preschool teacher. Then in March, I took a job as a toddler teacher at our second center which only lasted until late April when they decided they had too many teachers on staff. Meanwhile, I looked for other jobs and I stayed on as a long-term sub until they hired me in December to work as the floater in the infant and toddler classrooms. This is why I haven’t posted any activities. I haven’t had a classroom that was my own. As of now, I am still the floater, but I am covering for one of the full-time toddler teachers for the month of March. In April, I should go back to my floater schedule, but as I’ve learned there are always changes going on where I work. Also, my last three courses through Walden have not required that I post blog entries. Now, I am taking my final course and will have to start posting. I am glad to be taking my final course and look forward to networking with everyone through the blog again. I wish everyone good luck in this course.

10% Off Holiday Special from MPMSchoolSupplies.com

2012-11-27T20:55:00.000-05:00

The people over at MPM School Supplies generously gave me a $25 gift certificate to put towards the purchase of any product on their website. Since I work with infants and toddlers, I wanted to find something that we could use in the classroom. I bought a set of Textured Blocks 1In Thick 30 Pc.

I decided on these after browsing their site for a while. They have everything including blocks, art supplies, classroom decorations, pretend play toys and even sand and water tables. I found many products I’d like to have in my classroom like these shimmering water rainbow blocks Or this pretend food set Or if our center somehow got a lot of money, this light table, Once I decided on the blocks, the checkout process was quick and easy. I was done in less than five minutes. Just follow the simple steps on each page and you’re done! The next day, I received a tracking number and the package arrived a couple of days later.

The blocks were well packed and come in a plastic bag with a zipper. I introduced them to my toddler class yesterday and they loved them! We talked about textures like bumpy, smooth and how some of the blocks have squiggly lines. We talked about shapes like rectangles, triangles, circles, half circles, squares etc. Some toddlers even figured out that you can put two shapes together to make another. One girl was proud of herself when she discovered that putting two triangles together make a diamond. There was a lot of learning going on already and we haven’t even begun building.

Overall, I was happy with the pricing, product selection and customer service at MPM School Supplies! I would like to thank them for giving me the opportunity to purchase a new product for my classroom. In addition, they are generously giving a discount to my readers! Click here to get 10% off the first 10 purchases to help you buy those much needed classroom supplies!

Winners

2012-07-21T15:36:00.000-04:00

Here are the winners of the What to Expect books giveaway!
Mags comment 3.
And
Jhanell T comment 11.
I have sent you both an E-mail. If it isn’t in your inbox, check your junk folder.
Thanks to everyone for participating even if you didn’t win. I hope to offer more giveaways in the future. Have a great weekend!

What To Expect Books Giveaway

2012-07-13T15:47:00.004-04:00

The What To Expect series is now on its fourth edition!

The most recent updates to the What to Expect When You’re Expecting book include answers to dozens of new questions and a detailed week-by-week fetal development section in each of the monthly chapters, an expanded chapter on pre-conception, and a brand new one on carrying multiples. There is an expanded section for work place concerns and additional material covering physical, emotional health and nutrition.
Since I am not a parent, I have never read any of the What to Expect books, but when they generously offered to give two sets of books to two of my readers, I wanted to check them out. So I decided that since I work with babies, it would be useful to read What to Expect the First Year.

So far, I have been surprised about how much information this book covers. It covers everything from baby’s first medical exam, advice for soothing a colicky baby, signs of common illnesses in babies to baby’s first bath. It has a detailed section on breastfeeding vs. bottle feeding and the advantages and disadvantages of both. The month by month chapters show you what to expect during each month of your baby’s first year. The developmental chart of milestones is meant as a guide, but as the book reminds us, each baby is different and will develop at their own pace.

After your baby’s first birthday, What to Expect The Second Year picks up where What to Expect the first Year left off.
This book covers milestones (from first steps to first words, first scribbles to first friends). There are chapters on growth, feeding, sleeping, behaviors of every conceivable kind, discipline (including teaching right from wrong), and keeping a toddler healthy and safe as he or she takes on the world. There is a developmental timeline of the second year with special milestone boxes which help parents keep track of their toddler’s development.

Two of my readers will win a copy of each book! Meaning three books for each winner!
How to enter:
1. Leave a comment on this post telling me which book you would find the most useful.
Additional entries:
2. Follow @play2grow on Twitter and leave a comment on this post letting me know.
3. Follow @whattoexpect on Twitter and leave a comment on this post.
4. Follow play2grow via Google Friend Connect or subscribe by E-mail and leave a comment letting me know.
Please be sure that you leave an E-mail address in your comments so I can contact you if you win.
If I do not hear back from you within 48 hours, another winner will be drawn.
The giveaway ends on Friday July 20th at midnight Eastern
Thank you and good luck!

Bugs & Beans Sensory Tub

2012-07-03T13:05:00.001-04:00

For spring, we set up a bugs and beans sensory bin in the toddler classroom.
Here’s what’s inside.

I found these Melissa and Doug Sunny Patch Bugs
On Amazon. The kids liked the bright colors and I liked that they were big enough for them to safely play with.
My co-teacher found these bugs from Oriental Trading Company. The kids did okay with them, but I thought they were a bit small for toddlers.
For filler, we added a variety of beans, scoops and cups for scooping and pouring.
The children loved this sensory tub and asked us to open it everyday. Their favorite parts were scooping and pouring the beans and finding the hidden bugs.

Lemon Play-dough

2012-06-30T15:17:00.005-04:00

During the first part of April to celebrate spring, I made this lemon scented play-dough!
It smelled so good!

Here is the recipe that I used.

2 cups flour,

1 cup salt,

2 table spoons vegetable oil,

2 table spoons cream of tartar,

1.5 cups boiling water

A few drops of lemon extract,

A couple drops of red food coloring.

A few drops glycerin.

1. Mix dry ingredients.

2. Stir in oil.

3. Add water and mix until lumps are gone and it comes together.

4. Then kneed. Add scent, food coloring and or glycerin for shininess at kneading stage.

Store in an air tight container.

Assignment: Thank You

2012-06-21T20:27:00.000-04:00

We are finally at the end of our communications course. I want to thank my classmates and professor for their feedback, encouragement and for sharing their knowledge and experiences. I have enjoyed learning and working with all of you. There are a couple of you who have been in classes with me basically since the beginning. Others I have met recently.

Now as we move on to our specializations, some of us will be taking different paths, but we all are passionate about and are dedicated to making a difference in the lives of children. I want to wish everyone luck and success at work and in life! For those who are specializing in administration, management and leadership, I look forward to learning with you. For anyone who would like to keep in touch, you can reach me at play2grow@sent.com or on twitter @play2grow. I will also keep this blog open to share projects and activities in the future.

Assignment: Adjournment

2012-06-09T15:38:00.000-04:00

This week, we learned how groups develop through five stages. For our blog entry, we were asked to focus on the adjourning phase. “During the adjourning stage, group members reflect on their accomplishments and failures as well as determine whether the group will disassemble or take on another project. To mark this stage, some groups hold a celebratory dinner or simply say thank you and good-bye. Alternatively, some groups may decide to continue to work together on new tasks” (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2009, p. 235).
The most recent groups that I have been apart of were either through school or work. I participated in an internship in 2009 where I worked in the younger preschool classroom at a small childcare center. I had a lot of negative interactions with the members of that group, but there were positive experiences as well. Mainly they were with the children. On the second day of my internship, a new little girl came in. She was sad to see her mom leave and the head teacher thought it would be nice if I bonded with her since we were both new to the program. She was really shy at first and would only talk to me, but eventually started participating with the rest of the group. She was funny and extremely bright. Late in my internship, I was sad to learn that she was moving away. My internship was supposed to end the week before she left, but I wanted to stay with her until the end because she had so many changes going on. So I decided to volunteer for that extra week. On our last day, we celebrated! We had cupcakes and exchanged gifts.

The last time I heard from her was when I received a Christmas card from her family back in 2009 announcing that she would have a new brother or sister.

That last day represented success! I had completed my classes, the internship and would now be graduating. I was also proud because I had taken on professional responsibilities that I hadn’t been able to in my previous jobs. I had reached some of my goals.

It was bitter sweet because I was glad it was over, but I was sad to be leaving some of the children. Later that summer, they hired me as a substitute which started a whole new phase to this group. Our interactions did not get any better and I decided to quit in January of 2011.
The end of that experience meant that a new door was about to open. That’s when I started working with infants and toddlers which I really enjoy.

When I think about adjourning from the group of classmates from Walden, I don’t think it will be as hard as other groups because we’ve never met face to face. I also took a break around the holidays last year so when I came back, I had mostly new classmates. This will happen again because I am taking a break over the summer because I will be switching to another specialization. I’m sure there are a few classmates who I will keep in touch with. It has been interesting getting perspectives from people from many different places and walks of life. The other part of adjourning will be the uncertainty. A new door will open, but the question is to what? I will have to wait and see what the future brings.

O’Hair, D., & Wiemann, M. (2009). Real communication: An introduction.
New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s .

Assignment: Conflict Resolution

2012-06-01T15:57:00.000-04:00

This week we were asked to discuss a recent conflict in our professional or personal lives and the strategies we used or could use to resolve it. I remembered a recent ongoing conflict between a coworker and I. When I started working in the classroom, this person did some things that made my job very difficult. I felt that these things made me look bad to our supervisors. This conflict was more about actions than verbal communication. One example was that when I was changing a child on the diapering table, this person would walk out of the room and leave the door open. She was only leaving for a minute to bring a child to another classroom or bring the snack cart back, but this left enough time for several children to leave the room. Since the children were not used to me, they didn’t listen when I told them to stay and this person would get frustrated with me for allowing them to leave. I told her several times that I could not leave the changing table with a child there. I would have to stop the diapering, pick up the child and then run to the door which just wasn’t practical. That just wasn’t going to work and even though I kept telling her this, she continued to leave the door open.

Finally one day during planning, she told me that if I had any problems that she hoped I would tell her. This provided a supportive climate for me to voice my concerns. I told her that one of my problems was when she left the door open when I was unable to stop children from leaving. I told her that I was worried about the children’s safety and I didn’t want to get into trouble for a child leaving the room. She said that she understood and that she didn’t realize she was doing that so often. She said that she would make sure that she closed the door if she had to leave while I was changing the children. After our talk, I noticed that she left the door open less. There were other issues involved in this conflict, but I am focusing on this one for the purpose of this entry because it was the only part of it that was resolved.

At first, I used escapist strategies for several reasons. People may use escapist strategies if they want to avoid the conflict, they do not feel it is the right time or place to discuss the issue or they are waiting for the other person to raise the issue (O’Hair & Wiemann, 2009). I was new to the class so I was reluctant to bring up concerns. I didn’t want to be viewed as a complainer or disruptive. Also, there were limited opportunities to discuss issues since we were so busy with the children. So when she asked if I had any issues, I thought it was a good time to discuss it. During our conversation, we both listened to each other. Many conflicts can be avoided if we just stop and listen.

Next, we used a cooperative strategy to come up with something that works for us and the children. It benefited both of us because I didn’t have to worry so much about children leaving the room and she realized that she was doing something unsafe that she was willing to change.

It’s interesting how we want to teach children to share, to show empathy, to be good listeners, to be caring friends, but as adults we often forget about those things. Those are all important skills no matter how old we get.

References
O’Hair, D., Wiemann, M. (2009).
Real Communication: An Introduction.
New York: Bedford/St. Martin’s .

Free images from FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Cornmeal Play-dough

2012-05-31T16:30:00.000-04:00

When I first started working with my second toddler class in March, they were in the middle of a western theme. I had trouble coming up with activities that fit in with the theme that were appropriate for toddlers. One of my ideas was play-dough, but I wasn’t sure how to tie it in with the theme. My co-teacher suggested something textured, grainy or rough. I thought of mixing in coffee grounds or oat meal and finally we settled on cornmeal.

I used a recipe that I found from Little Wonders Days.

I added some yellow food coloring to make it a brighter yellow. This play-dough did not come out grainy, but it had a nice texture. It was squishy like regular play-dough and had an occasional rough or grainy texture when broken apart. This was the first batch of play-dough that I actually cooked and it came out well. The kids enjoyed it. We kept things simple using small rolling pins and cookie cutters. The toddlers were most interested in squishing, pounding and rolling with their hands. It’s good fine motor practice!

As a side note, I found a pack of these containers at Walmart in the Tupperware section. I’ve found that they work well for the play-dough. They seal pretty well if you push down on the center of the lid and they are just the right size.

The Sticky Bucket

2012-05-28T19:26:00.003-04:00

I got this idea from Deborah Teachpreschool. She has done various activities with a sticky table so I decided to create one of my own. Since I knew it wouldn't be possible to keep the contact paper on the table for more than an hour, I decided to make sticky boxes. I covered two small boxes with the contact paper sticky side up. some of the children didn't understand and ripped the contact paper off so we ended up adding the sticky paper to this bucket. When I introduced this activity, I started by putting out a basket of ribbons, pipe cleaners and feathers to see what the children would do. Some decided to make letters, shapes and elaborate constructions. Two girls sat down at the table and made a boat. They told me about diving boards, motors and wheels. They used every single piece in the basket. As time went on, I added different materials to the basket like felt and yarn. On the day when I was finally able to take a picture of the sticky bucket, I had set out sponge shapes for them to try. I imagined that it would be like building with blocks accept it would be 2d because the sponges wouldn't stay stacked. However we discovered that the contact paper wasn't sticky enough for the sponges to stay in place, but we tried.

This was the last time I was able to add to the sticky bucket with this class, but later I tried it with the toddlers. I covered a small table with clear contact paper sticky side up. The toddlers noticed the texture above everything else. They kept touching it over and over and saying, "Sticky." When they started to put their pretend foods on it, they noticed that some of them actually stuck and they were able to keep things in place. I am hoping to do more texture activities like these with my future classes.

Additional links:

From Seed to Flower at the Sticky Table

Playing With Nature at the Sticky table

Exploring Everything Sticky in Preschool

Assignment: Who Am I as a Communicator?

2012-05-26T14:36:00.001-04:00

This week we completed three evaluations; the communication anxiety inventory, the listening styles profile and the verbal aggressiveness scale. We were also asked to have two other people complete them for us so I asked my boyfriend and a coworker. I surprised me that all the scores were so similar. First, I scored a 57 on the communication anxiety inventory. My boyfriend and my coworker scored me at a 59 and 55 which are still in the moderate category. “47-59: Moderate. Your score indicates that you feel somewhat concerned about a number of communication contexts, but probably not all. This mid-point level of communication anxiety is what we call “situational.” This kind of surprised me because I avoid speaking in public and in most cases I won’t speak up at group meetings. I prefer talking to one or two people at a time. This is even the case with children. I get nervous at the thought of leading a circle time activity, but don’t mind leading a small group activity with the children. According to these evaluations, people know I don’t like public speaking, but they don’t notice my nervousness. Feeling more comfortable speaking up in group situations and or leading activities where all the children are focusing on me is one of my communication goals.

For the listening styles profile, I scored highest in group one which means that I am a “People-oriented listener. You are empathetic and concerned with the emotions of others. This listening style helps you to build relationships, but it can interfere with proper judgment because you tend to be very trusting of others.” The others who evaluated me got the same result. I agree with this because I am empathetic and prefer to listen than talk.

Finally, on the verbal aggressiveness scale, my score was 40. The other scores I got were 30 and 33 which all fall under the category of low verbal aggressiveness. I don’t like arguments and I try to avoid them especially in professional situations. Sometimes it can’t be helped which can be very uncomfortable for me. There are times when it is helpful or necessary to be more verbally aggressive. I’m talking about being more assertive than aggressive. The evaluation implied that being verbally aggressive was related to attacking someone’s character or damaging their self concept which I almost never will participate in.

From this week’s discussion, I learned that I am hesitant to make assumptions about people from a first impression. In this case it was a photograph. It was impossible for me to choose what books, TV shows or activities the woman enjoyed. However, if her appearance were different, I might have been able to make a guess. This will help me professionally because I will take time to get to know children instead of making assumptions. Communication involves so much more than language. It involves body language, tone of voice, eye contact, the way we dress, our hairstyle and the way we carry ourselves. A good communicator keeps these things in mind and adapts them based on the situation.

Assignment: Communication Differences

2012-05-18T14:29:00.000-04:00

When thinking about the assignment this week, I realize that I communicate with some groups differently. However, I’m not necessarily talking about people from different cultures. Professionally, I find that I communicate with the parents in the same manor. I may change the method of communication based on the preferences of the family. There were a couple mothers who preferred receiving a few short texts about their child’s progress throughout the day instead of waiting until pick up time. One mother told me that this helped her feel better while working knowing that her child was having a good day. There are some families who I have a better rapport with. I find that it’s easier to communicate with outgoing and inquisitive parents than those who are more distant or don’t initiate communication. This is partly due to my personality. I am generally quiet and it takes time for me to feel comfortable with new people. So if the parents are more outgoing and ask questions or share other information it helps shape our conversations. When parents are less comfortable communicating with me, it’s more difficult because I’m the one asking questions or giving most of the information.

With coworkers, it depends on the situation. I remain professional, but there are coworkers who I can laugh or joke around with. If they come to me with concerns, I do my best to listen and respond appropriately. One example was when another teacher wanted my opinion about whether I felt a child in her classroom should be referred for services. This was before I knew the child well, but I told her that I saw some things that might be red flags, but I wanted to observe the child more. As I spent more time with the child and in the classroom, it was apparent that he needed help in several areas. During our first conversation about him, I wanted the other teacher to know that I was listening and understood her concerns, but I did not want to jump to conclusions without enough information.

With my friends and family, I’m not formal, but I may or may not discuss certain topics depending on whom I’m talking to. In most cases, I feel more comfortable speaking my mind or offering advice or my opinion. One rule of communication that I feel applies no matter who I’m talking to is talk less and listen more. I get so frustrated with people when they ask me questions that they would’ve heard the answers to if only they were listening. Over these past three weeks, I have learned a lot about the patterns of my own communication.