Module 5 Blog: Reflection

I have gained many new insights throughout this course.  Through blogs and discussions, I have learned that networking and talking to others helps to learn new ideas and perspectives and gives you more knowledge about things you are interested in.  I had never blogged before, so I have learned to try new things and this gave me a new way to connect with others.  Through my field work, I have gained more knowledge regarding my advocacy efforts and an idea of what others think or know about Developmentally Appropriate Practice.  I truly enjoyed all of our discussions and the feed back I received.  It is nice to get different perspectives and new ideas from everyone.  Thank you!

Module 4: Observing and Interacting with Families of the Children in Your Setting

I have been observing in a Head Start classroom throughout this course.  This Head Start program serves families that are low income and they provide transportation for all children.  I have observed that it can be somewhat difficult to get a hold of some of the families, let alone interact with them.  It makes it difficult when they do not have to drop their child off or pick them up.  It is nearing the end of the school year and all the teachers have to do end of the year home visits and conferences with the children's families.  Some of the teachers are really struggling to make contact with some families.

I was, however, able to talk to a few parents that were participating in some of the classroom activities this week.  I asked them if they participated in classroom activities often and what prevents them from participating other times.  One of the parents is a regular visitor of the classroom and the other two do not visit too often.  The parent who is a regular visitor told me that she does not work so the least she can do is come and help out in the classroom.  The other two said that they have other children at home which prevents them from visiting more.  I also asked them if they feel that they have a good relationship with the teachers in the classroom and they all said they did.  One said that she feels very welcome in the classroom and feels that she can talk to the teachers about anything that she is concerned with.

I also talked to the parent coordinator for the program and she informed me of all of the activities she coordinates for the families of the program.  They hold monthly meetings for the parents to learn different things regarding early childhood education.  She also said that they invite parents to join the policy council which helps to make decisions regarding the program and different policies they have.  She said that joining the policy council is a great way to be involved in their child's education and to let their voices be heard.  The parent coordinator also sends home activities for the families and children to do together.  I think that it is wonderful to have someone in the program that is solely dedicated to connecting families to their children's education and program.

Module 3: Observing and Interacting With Program Director(s) and Other Administrative Staff in Your Setting

During the past two weeks I was able to talk with the director of the Head Start where I am doing my observations.  I was also able to talk to the assessment manager and the education manager.  I asked them all what they think about Developmentally Appropriate Practice and my advocacy of it.  The education manager was excited about it because she is a big proponent of children learning through play which is a developmentally appropriate practice to use when working with young children.  The director of the program was eager for me to share my insights with the program.  The assessment manager thinks that many of the teachers need to become more informed about DAP so she was glad that I was doing my research on the topic.

An insight I have gained through my observations is that some of the teachers are very concerned about letting the children have so much free choice time and not enough teacher instruction.  From my observations, I feel that the teachers want more teacher instruction and the education manager wants them to have more free choice.  I have learned that there needs to be a good balance of the two.  Adults are responsible for the children’s learning but children also benefit from making their own choices and interacting with their peers.  I believe I will have a lot to share with this program and hopefully they can find the right balance between children's self-initiated learning and adult guidance and support.

Module 2 Blog: Observing and Interacting With Professionals, Children, and Families in an Early Childhood Setting.

I am observing in a Head Start classroom that consists of children who are 4 and 5 years old.  There is a teacher with a Bachelor's degree, a teacher with an Associate's degree, and an assistant in the classroom.  There are 17 children in the class and they are all going to kindergarten in the fall.

The focus for my research paper is Developmentally Appropriate Practice.  Within that I am focusing on assessments, classroom activities, and parental education about child development and learning.  While observing in my host classroom, I observed that there was a good balance of large group times, free choice time, small groups, and recess.  The activities seemed to range in difficulty and I asked the bachelor teacher about that.  She said that     some children are at different learning levels than others so they need a range of activities to meet the children's needs.

I talked with the bachelor teacher about what type of assessments they do on the children and she said that they do an ages and stages questionnaire on the children with the parents at the beginning of the year and they also do social/emotional questionnaire on them.  She also said that they observe the children daily, taking notes and pictures to document their progress throughout the year and plan appropriate activities for the children.  The teachers meet with the parents three times a school year to discuss the children's progress and discuss any concerns.

During my observation, I was able to talk to some of the parents about what any of their concerns were with the program and I asked if any of them knew what Developmentally Appropriate Practice was.  None of the parents knew what DAP was and the main concern of most of the parents was that it seems like the children just play all day at school.  I was also able to talk to the teachers about some of the parents' concerns and it seemed to really frustrate the teachers.  They said that they hear that all the time from parents and they try to explain that children learn through play.

One insight I gained through my observations is that the teachers would like to educate parents more about child development and learning.  I was glad to be able to talk to families and teachers during my observations to get a feel for what concerns them.  I got some great information regarding assessments that they do and how they plan activities for the children in the classroom.

Module 1: Interviewing Professionals about Developmentally Appropriate Practice

I interviewed two professionals about the focus of my research paper which is Developmentally Appropriate Practice (DAP).  The first person I interviewed is the assessment manager for the Head Start where I am employed.  The second person I interviewed is a lead teacher for Head Start.  They both thought that Developmentally Appropriate Practice is an area that could use advocacy and that it would be a great focus for my paper.

The teacher I interviewed thought that a couple related topics of my area of interest would be how to promote DAP in each area of learning and individualization with each child.  She finds that it is a struggle to find the time during the day to meet every child's individual needs, especially when you have children with IEP's and special needs in the classroom.

  The assessment manager thought that a current issue related to this topic is being able to plan appropriate activities using our curriculum and assessment tools.  Some of the teachers do not follow the curriculum and plan activities that are not appropriate for the age level they are working with.  She stressed the importance of planning individual activities to help nurture the development of the children.

These interviews have shown me that planning appropriate activities and using individualization are very important topics related to my area of interest.  I think that the three related topics of Developmentally Appropriate Practice I am going to focus on are planning appropriate activities in the classroom, assessments, and educating families about development and learning.

If anyone has any suggestions regarding DAP or any related topics, I would greatly appreciate them!

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