Getting to Know My International Contacts

Since my contact with Canada was unsuccessful this week, I chose to study the effects poverty has on Mongolia.  Historically, Mongolia was not part of the former USSR, though relied on the Soviet trading.  After Mongolia joined the World Trade Organization, the country became an open economy.  The rapid change in the economy caused unemployment and prices increased (Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre, 2012).

Even though the economy in Mongolia is more consistent, the gap continues to widen from those benefiting from the market and the ones who are not.  Families living below the poverty line have increased in the 1990's.  Many of the children which live in poverty are in families where the female is the head of the household or children birth to age sixteen.  Social Services in Mongolia was very accessible and high quality (Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre, 2012).

Currently, the health care system has many restrictions which does not allow for the people who need it to have access.  Health care services are horrendous.  More babies are living and the mortality rate has gone down.  Over half of the population does not have clean drinking water (Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre, 2012).

Education suffered due to major cuts to the budget.  Children living in poverty do not have the opportunity to go to school in order to receive an education.  The Mongolian government has stopped investing in education.  The people of Mongolia are extremely concerned about their children's future (Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre, 2012).

Many children and their families are not receiving the necessary support from the state.  Older siblings take care of their parents to go to work.  This means that children do not attend school or drop out.  Children which live on the street has dropped especially since Mongolia experiences extremely low temperatures during the winter months (Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre, 2012).

Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre is doing research to assist families in poverty migrate into urban areas.  They view the effects of migration on children's education and techniques for families to get out of poverty.  It will give the families an opportunity to find jobs and better education for their children.  Since education in the rural area is very poor, many families do not understand how education can provide their children more options.  As a result, children in poverty are being left behind which causes the gap between the rich and poor to become wider (Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre, 2012).



References
Childhood Poverty Research and Policy Centre (2012).  Mongolia.  Retrieved from www.childhoodpoverty.org


"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-

Sharing Web Resources

I chose the Zero to Three website.  Zero to Three is a non-profit organization which provides resources to educate and assist society involved with infants and toddlers  Their mission is to ensure the healthy overall development of infants and toddlers.  I signed up for the e-newsletter called Baby to Big Kid.  I have not received a newsletter yet.  I look forward to reading what techniques they suggested to parents to enhance the overall development of their child.

Zero to Three has weekly downloads called Healthy Minds.  This week's download deals with promoting the healthy development of newborns to two months old.  The handout provides information about how parents can nurture their baby's development.  Research shows how essential the parents relationship is to the overall development of their baby in order to adapt to society.

There is an area which provides scenarios to help parents understand they are not alone, especially being a new parent.  The situation is taken apart and the techniques the parents used are explained in how it promotes the overall development of their baby.  A chart is provided which describes different situations, tips on what to do and things for parents to consider.  It is an useful resource to help parents determine what is normal and enhance their development.

"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-

Establishing Professional Contacts and Expanding Resources

I chose the zerotothree.org website because I work with the Infants and Toddlers program in Dorchester County.  This is a great website to use to help families.  Many of the parents, I work with, are having concerns with behavior.  I am encountering more young children with mental health concerns.  This website has excellent resources for mental health concerns in young children.  When I speak to the doctors, more children are becoming more aggressive, especially children on the autism spectrum.  I find this website extremely useful in explaining to parents with special needs children that some of the behavior concerns they have are similar concerns of parents with typically developing children.

Zero to three has excellent resources dealing with behavior, development, maltreatment, care, education, public policy and more.  It provides information to keep early childhood professionals current with the issues parents face today.  Many parents find they have quite a few questions about the correct way to raise their child.  More children are experiencing metal health issues.  This website provides tools parents can use to assist with mental health concerns.

There is a military families section which lists trainings taking place at varies military installations.  I am familiar with the challenges associated with deployment as a civilian military family.  The trainings provide techniques where early childhood professionals can be more supported of military and civilian families.  I am looking forward to reading the "From Baby to Big Kid" newsletter.

www.zerotothree.org

Please let me know if there are any questions I can answer from the Zero to Three website?

I contacted UNICEF globally.  I emailed the Cote d' Ivoire, France and Germany.  In junior high and high school, I took French.  I remember enough of French to speak and write it.  In college, I took German.  I speak enough German to communicate basic needs.  Since I took in school these languages, I would like to learn more about the culture of the languages I have studied. 

I would like to work on contacting the three countries for another few days before I use the alternate global contact.  It is exciting contacting Cote d' Ivoire, France and Germany.  Each country had the website in their home language.  I had to look up some words to understand how to fill in the forms when I was inserting my information.  I am hoping the countries respond to my email.  I am looking forward to building a relationship with early childhood professionals in these countries in order to observe their educational systems and collaborate with them.

http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/index.html

 

"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-

My Supports

My children, my church and my sister are supportive daily to me.

Everyone which is supportive to me understands that my husband travels frequently and is away from our family for a long time.

My children are such blessings.  When their father is on business trips, they support me by cleaning around the house and assisting with dinner.  My two older children help their younger siblings get dressed, with homework and reading to them.  My oldest daughter is absolutely wonderful with her younger brother who is autistic.  They all do what they can to be supportive while I do my classwork.

My church family is very supportive.  They sit with my family and help me with the children.  If I need help with anything my husband would typically did around the house, someone at my church would assist me. 

Even though my sister lives two hours away from me, she is a great support.  We talk every day and she helps me think through tough situations.  I can talk to her about my kids and converse about different techniques for raising my kids.  If I need her physical presence, she does not mind getting on the road immediately.

It would be very difficult living without the supports in my life.  Since I am the parent physically here taking care of the kids, it is essential I take care of my mental health.  If I did not have these supports, my mental health would be in jeopardy.  I need my supports to be able to focus on my schoolwork. 

I imagine being blind as my challenge.  A person close to me would have to decorate my home and teach me where everything is located.  I would need a device or animal which would serve as my eyes when I leave the house.  The community has braille on signs and building entrances I could use to establish my location.  I would need to surround myself with positive people with who love me and would keep me encouraged emotionally.

Life would be extremely difficult without support.  Since I am blind, I must have people around me that would tell me the truth about my environment daily.  If I did not have the necessary supports, I would be even more vulnerable.  My mental health would be compromised and I would be at great risk for becoming very depressed.



"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-

My Connections to Play

Play energizes us and enlivens us.  It eases our burdens.  It renews our natural sense of optimum and opens us up to new possibilities.

Stuart Brown, MD

Contemporary American psychiatrist

Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning.

Fred Rogers

American television personality

1928-2003

My sister and I enjoyed playing Barbie together.  We would play with the Barbie's house and design it.  Barbie had a car where we would pretend she was driving to the store or the beach.  I had a giraffe that was just as tall as me when I was three years old.  That was my favorite stuffed animal.  I would pretend to ride it.  My grandfather bought my sister and I "My Little Ponies".  We would play with our ponies at my grandparents house during the summer.  We would pretend they would run in a field.

My family loved how my sister and I played together very well.  We are two and a half years apart.  My family bought us toys we could play with together.  We had video games and a computer.  My sister and I enjoyed playing Barbie, riding our bikes, painting and coloring.  My family provided us with the opportunities and materials for us to play.

Play has changed due to the increase of technology.  Many families do not regulate the use of technology and encourage their children go outside to play.  Early childhood professionals can help parents find a balance between technology play and imaginary play.  Technology for children has increased dramatically in recent years.  The toys have changed also.  Some board games have been modified to include a component of technology.  Technology has changed how children play from when I was a child.

I hope early childhood professionals can help families find a balance between playing with technology and imaginary play.  Families seem to have less opportunities to play together due to the demands of their careers and lack of understanding for the need children have to release energy/frustration through play.  Children with special needs usually have accommodations for frequent breaks which allows them to get up to move more often than their typically developing peers.  Children need opportunities to play which should reduce challenging behaviors in the classroom.  Society needs to be mindful about the impact play has on a child's development.

Play encourages children to use their imagination.  When children use imaginary play, they have the opportunity to develop creative ideas.  Play also helps children adapt socially.  Children which have the opportunity to use imaginary play become productive and effective members of society.

"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-

Relationship Reflection

Relationships/partnerships are important to me because they support me spiritually and emotionally.  In my life journey, I have learned to rely on my close relationships to sort out issues or complex situations.  I trust they have what is best for me in mind when they give me spiritual and/or emotional support.  It took time to build trust and get to know each other very well.

My husband and I have a relationship and a partnership.  Our relationship, as husband and wife, provides emotional and spiritual support.  We have been married for ten years but we have known each other for fifteen years.  When my husband and I got married, we learned almost every side of one another.  We have experienced several of life's challenges and learned to work together despite our differences.

My sister and I have known each other since I was two and a half years of age.  She is the first experience I had of learning to live with another person.  We knew everything about one another.  Our relationship changed when I entered college.  I was no longer living in the same house with her and did not get a chance to talk to her every day.  We had to learn how to build a relationship as young adults by communicating with each other constantly.

My best friend and I met when I was earning my bachelor of science degree at Bethune-Cookman in Daytona Beach, Florida.  We have been best friends for fourteen years.  When we met, we had an instant spiritual connection.  We were and continue to be a spiritual support for one another.  After I left Daytona Beach, we lost contact for a couple of years.  Once we regained contact, we made sure we did not lose contact again.  Technology provided us the opportunity to stay in touch no matter how many times our addresses or phone numbers changed.

I have learned when situations change in our lives, it becomes more challenging to maintain relationships.  When the relationship is beginning to develop, it is even more challenging to establish trust while a person or family is going through a transition.  In my relationships, I had to share things about my life which helped us identify with each other.  The relationships were maintained by frequent and constant communication.

The special characteristics of my relationships are trust, respect, caring and love.  The relationship with my husband is also a partnership.  We have to work together to meet the financial demands of our family.  Since my husband travels to provide for our family, I am responsible for being the person which is constantly at home to take care of the children.  We work together to meet the unique needs of our children.

My experiences have taught me to be understanding.  Each person has their unique situations where they need to respected for making the best decisions with what they are given.  As an early childhood professional, I can be more effective by respecting the unique needs of families.  Relationships/partnerships require constant communication and trust.  In order for me to be an effective early childhood professional, I need to keep that in mind.

"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-

A Very Big Thank You!

It can be very difficult understanding young children with language disorders.  The link below provides a video by Krista Blessing describing techniques she uses in the classroom to assist her students with language disorders.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=09rfaRUsGPk&feature=player_detailpage

" A child's life is like a piece of paper on which every person leaves a mark."
-Robert A. Heinlein

"The child must know that he is a miracle that since the beginning of the world there hasn't been, and until the end of the world there will not be, another child like him."
-Pablo Casals

"Children are like wet cement. Whatever falls on them makes an impression."

-Dr. Haim Ginott

Thank you Thelma, Stephanie, Rola, Felecia, Valerie, Sheila, Lachelle, Shala, Mekesha, Todd and Destiny for sharing your experiences which opened up my mind to new information and concerns about our young children today.  The more informed I am about the issues and situations impacting families with young children, the more effective I can become as an early childhood educator.

Thank you again and I look forward to working with you next semester!

"It takes a village to raise a child." -African Proverb-