OBSERVING COMMUNICATION

For this blog assignment, I observed a tee ball team practice. My friend’s daughter is on the team that I observed. During practice, the head coach was very hands-on with the team. As each child practiced hitting the ball off of the tee, the coach kneeled down on one knee to help each child hold the bat properly and swing at the ball. I was close enough to hear the coach explain to each child exactly what he was doing. This reminded me of the article, Communicating with Babies, when Kovach and Da Ros-Voseles (2011) discussed the importance of talking directly to each child and talking to children before touching them. I learned that there are other people besides early childhood educators who know about and implement the principles we learned about this week. I think that the coach did an outstanding job communicating effectively with each child. I also think that the way the coach communicated with the children affected each child in a positive way. I believe that the children felt safe, respected, cared for by him. I believe they all trust him due to the way he communicated with them.

Reference

Kovach, B., & Da Ros-Voseles, D. (2011). Communicating with babies. YC: Young Children, 66(2), 48-50.

 

Creating An Affirming Environment

 

If I were to create my own family child care home, I would make sure to create a very welcoming setting. I would make sure that the place is open, spacious, and bright. I always find that bright and spacious child care centers have a friendly aura. I would also make sure that I include the children and their families throughout the center. This would help create a classroom environment that is unique. “Because the physical environment begins with who children are, each early childhood classroom will have its own unique look” (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). I like how Adriana, from the media segment, had a family culture display in which she changed each month to represent all of the children in her program. I think that would be something that I would also like to do. I even like her idea of using the students within her class on the display posters. “To ensure that all children and families in a program are visible in your learning environment, you may need to supplement purchased materials by making your own” (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010). Another thing I would like to do is expand the respect and understanding of diversity. Implementing the different shades of bean bags as ways to compare and contrast skin tones was a brilliant idea from Adriana (Laureate Education Inc., 2011). I would focus on creating a child-friendly, family-welcoming, diverse learning environment.

 

References

Derman-Sparks, L., & Edwards, J. O. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC).    

Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: Welcome to an anti-bias learning community. Baltimore, MD: Author