my first blog ever

      While exploring the Early Childhood Australia website which is an equivalent to NAEYC, I found that they publish a quarterly journal, the Australasian Journal of Early Childhood (AJEC), which "offers evidence-based articles that are designed to impart new information and encourage the critical exchange of ideas among early childhood practitioners, academics and students (Early Childhood Australia, n.d.)." In the latest installment which came out in December 2018, some of the research studies included food allergies and anaphylaxis management within early childhood education and care, the effects of social-emotional learning programs have on children's social-emotional development, and determining if there is a sense of community among early childhood professionals who utilize the Supporting Nutrition for Australian Childcare (SNAC) website.       The article that stood out for me was on food allergy readiness. Just recently, there was an issue ...

      I found an interesting article that depicts both the positive and negative effects television programs have on children. Growing up, my siblings and I watched our fair share of television, no more than the average child of today.We were limited on our television time, but also back then we spent most of our free time playing outside with our neighborhood friends. With that being said, I feel that watching television during early childhood did not negatively effect us. Now-a-days, it seems that some members of society believe that watching television programs is harmful to children's behaviors and health. Hence why I was searching for an article that was related to this topic.    In the article, Effects of Television Viewing on Social Behavior of Elementary School Students: A Qualitative Study (2017), it describes how watching television can support pro-social behaviors, create effective communication skills, and teaches ethics and etiquette....

     Five years ago, I had a 4-year-old child in my class who had Type 1 diabetes. I was familiar with the basics of this medical condition; however, I was not familiar with what the difference(s) was between Type 1 and Type 2 (which some of my family members have), what the signs were for low blood sugar, and how to input the correct insulin dosage into a pump. But over the course of that school year, I was able to learn and familiarize myself with Type 1 diabetes and what it mainly entails. Plus, there were two other children at the school who had Type 1 diabetes and I could talk to their teachers and families if I needed help.      Jump forward to this year and I now have a child, who was diagnosed with leukemia a year and a half ago, in my class. Although he is in remission, once a month, he has to have chemo treatments and according to his parents, he has come a long way from where he was when he was first diagnosed. Just like with Type 1, I was not t...

Three consequences of learning about the international early childhood field 1. Poverty affects children and families globally as well as children and families living in the United States.  Poverty has lifelong affects including health and developmental issues. In Paraguay, there is a program, Pastoral del Nino which began in 1995, available to help and support families and children. This program places importance on respecting and valuing children as well as believing that parents are their children's first and most important teachers. 2. Another insight is how difficult it is for immigrants to have a sense of belonging when they come to the United States because of language barriers and cultural differences. They also face differences within their own family such as finding a balance in their daily routine and ways to preserve their culture. 3.Lastly, the availability and accessibility of early education programs are limited for immigrant families because they may be una...

I have worked as an early childhood professional for quite some time now and there has always been discussions about what qualifies a teacher or professional as high-quality. Is it the education he/she receives? Does it depend on how many years experience she/he has? Does he/she work well with others including children, families and colleagues? Is he/she willing to learn new things and open to new ideas?  I feel it is not just one aspect that makes a high-quality teacher/professional, but a balance between a few different aspects. Of course, an education is needed. I feel that is a necessity.  It gives teachers the knowledge of developmentally appropriate practices for children. In addition, teachers learn various strategies to best support children and their families, how to observe and assess children's development and skills, and how to create a safe and inviting environment to enhance learning. Commitment and passion for early childhood is also a nec...

After exploring Children's Defense Fund website and their topic of early childhood, it lead me to the National Women's Law Center which primarily deals with inequalities for children, families, women and LBGTQ communities, among other issues of equity.  Delving deeper into the heading of Child Care and Early Learning, the site breaks down the topic into five subtopics: CCBDG Implementation, Child Care, Head Start, Parents, Children & Low-Wage Jobs, and Prekindergarten.  Throughout each of these subtopics, there was much information pertaining to equity and excellence in early childhood education and suggestion of what needs to occur to breakdown the barriers of awareness, accessibility, and responsiveness.  The Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), reauthorized by a law in November of 2014,  provides an opportunity for states to better meet the needs of parents in low-wage jobs with nonstandard or irregular work schedules (National Women's L...

While exploring Children's Defense Fund, I found an article written in August discussing what happens to children who get expelled or suspended from childcare centers. At first, I thought how preschools or centers could do that to young children and their families. Then, I realized that over the years, there have been many children who have been "expelled" from the school I worked at because of various behavioral challenges which were affecting other children in the classroom. For instance, one child would run throughout the class hitting, kicking or pulling hair of any child within his reach. He would take a paintbrush and put paint on another child if the teachers could not get to him quick enough. He would cry and scream, non-stop throughout the day until his mom came to pick him up. After several months of parents complaining and concerns, the parents were given a choice to either find a "companion" for him or they would have to find another program becaus...