Using Communication Skills to Enact Change

When leading policy change two important communication skills that are important to embody are being clear about what you want and giving concrete information.  

According to Helpguide.org (n.d.), when you are communicating clearly you are minimizing the number of ideas that are in a sentence, which makes it easier for the person that you are communicating with to understand what you are saying. By communicating clearly you are also giving the other person clear information that they can use to continue the conversation or to take action if necessary. They do not have to "read between the lines".

“When your message is concrete, then your audience has a clear picture of what you're telling them” (Helpguide.org, n.d., p. 1). By giving them a clear picture you are providing them with direct knowledge of what you are doing. This can also prove that you are not only knowledgeable but that you also have a clear picture of what needs to be done or said. It can also prove that you know what you are doing in the field and make you more creditable.

            Some of my own communication strengths include being able to communicate coherently and providing a complete message so that whomever I am talking to can have a very clear picture of what I am saying. This only goes towards small groups or when I am talking one-on-one, when I am in a large group I am an introvert. This is based on the Communication Anxiety Inventory. I need to work on talking in front of large groups if I want to work to change the current policies in the early childhood field, to make the field better.

Reference

Helpguide.org. (n.d.). Effective communication. Retrieved October 15, 2013,

fromhttp://www.helpguide.org/mental/effective_communication_skills.htm

Social Media’s Influence on Policy Issues

To communicate my policy issue I would use Facebook and Twitter. 

I would use Facebook because it not only allows me to share pictures, it also allows me to share what they call notes. Notes are any post that are over a certain amount of words. It also allows me to be selective of who sees what. I can also start a private group page that could be just for parents. Parents could use the group page to talk to each other or as a source of support from other parents. They could ask questions about things that they may need more information on or help with. I could also use Facebook to share resources with families with links directly to them. There are also a lot of agencies that provide resources that I found parents to be in need of on Facebook.

Twitter has a maximum of a 160 characters that can be posted at a time, this would be a challenge and limit the information that could be shared. Twitter would be good to update families about things that are happening in the community on any given day. It could also be used to ask questions and answer them. It would also be good to give links to other agencies or websites that could be of help to families.

Out of the two I would use Facebook the most because it gives me the freedom to do more and to post detailed information, pictures and live links to other Facebook pages and websites. For example I could write an article on community resources and within the article I can place live links to the resources website and their Facebook page. So if someone was to click on the link,  the link would take them directly to the resources website/Facebook page. 

Dynamics of Early Childhood Policies and Systems Goals

I have worked in the early education field for over 15 years and most of that time has been for a state funded program. Recently I had the pleasure of working on a grant that was for expanding access to full day preschool. I am proud to say that the agency that I work for scored very high on the grant application and we have just received all of the additional funding that was proposed. Working on this grant showed me that even though I help my supervisor out a lot with things she has to do, I really do not know much about how to go about getting funding or how the many different systems of our funded programs work.

One goal that will assist me in becoming more effective and to qualify as a program manager is to learn more about how the systems of funding work from the administration point of view. This will give me the knowledge that I will need to understand what funding sources look for in programs before and after giving them funding. It also will allow me to learn more of the operational system of a non-profit agency which will help me understand when and if I decide to start a non-profit.

Goal number two is to learn how teacher trainings can be geared more towards the need of not only he staff but of families that are served by non-profit agencies. This would include how teachers interact with families that are from different cultures than their own and how they can increase parental involvement in the program.

Goal number three is to gain experience as a program manager so that one day I can run a complete program and not just one child care center. My current course Dynamics of Early Childhood Policies and Systems will help me to develop my understand of all of the complex systems that make up a child development program, this includes not only the children but also their families and their teachers.

 

Final Thoughts EDUC - 7853

My overall experience in this course has been eye opening. I have learned so much about dealing with families from different cultures and how difficult it can be. The course textbook Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves, was not only a big help in this course but also has been the most applicable to my work as an early childhood professional. It has given me new insights into families from different cultures and how I can include these cultures in my classroom without it looking like a display just to please families. The book Spirit Catches You And You Fall Down touched me in a way no other book has. It was hard to read about the child being taken away from her parents because they were presumed to be unfit when it was a lack of understanding and communication between the hospital staff and the parents. This story reinforced the need to make sure that there is a staff member that speaks the parents that I serve home language and that all information that is given to families be in their home language so that they can understand it. I also learned from this book and other course readings that if parents or primary caregivers cannot read then we must find other ways of ensuring that they understand the materials that they are given. This could be having someone that speaks their home language explain to them verbally or have a visual drawing of instructions detailing each step that is to be taken. Yes these methods can take more time and cost more money but in the end it is worth it. This will also show families that they are valued and respected, which will help them to build trusting relationships with center staff.  

The Interview Process

The Interview Process

The assignment is to interview two people that work or has experience in the area of my Course Project. I have chosen to interview a program manager for a city funded Family Source Center and a single father that has been off and on homeless since the death of his wife, almost 7 years ago.

      My interview with the program manager has been rescheduled two times already, the second time was during the interview. The center had a family come in that was Spanish speaking only and they needed emergency service and he was the only one there at the time that spoke Spanish. I have to admit that it is kind of fustrating that the interview keeps getting rescheduled but I understand that the families that this program service comes first. I respect him for taking care of the needs of that family before anything else. I have another appointment with him on Monday he is aware that I have to have this interview done this upcoming week so hopefully everything goes as plan.

      I have conducted the interview with the father and I will be finishing up with him Monday evening. This interview has been very hard for me to do. It breaks my heart to hear how this father lost his wife to cancer and how he has tried to provide for his daughter and how people would look at him strange when he would try to get help. His daughter seems to be well adjusted and happy. She is very protective of her father. She wanted to know who I was and why I was talking to her dad and she stayed right next to her father. This made it difficult to ask some of the questions that I wanted to ask him because I did not want to bring up what might be unpleasant memories for her. That is why we will continue on Monday, when she is supposed to be with one of her aunties.

So far in these interviews they have made me thank God that even though I went through a lot growing up that I had the strength to fight to be different than what I knew growing up.

EDUC – 7853: Influences of Family, Culture, and Society in Early Childhood: Course Project Challenge

The challenge that I have selected for my course project is:

Challenge: I would like to research how providing early childhood education services to homeless families can help the development of their children.

Sub-Topic: Providing these services to immigrant and minority families. 

I have selected this topic because recently one of the families that I work with lost their home due to a fire that started in the apartment below them. They lost everything and the mom is also pregnant. They were staying with extended family members but the living situation was not comfortable for them or their children. They were told they had to find somewhere else to go. The mom came to me as the site supervisor and asked for help and I really did not know what to do to help her but send her to our agencies family source center.

Learning what was going on with this family explained the sudden withdrawal of their child, not from the program, but in her interaction with staff and peers. It gave us a better understanding of why she seemed afraid to let her mom go and other changes that had happen. It made me want to learn more about how being homeless can affect the education of young children.

My initial values and beliefs about the development of homeless children is that they need more high quality childcare services than a regular childcare center can offer. They need one that can provide the support that not only the children need but also their whole family and special trained teachers that understand how hard it is for these children.

One question that I have is does being homeless really harm the development of young children? Another question is, how can we as teachers help these young children development in a positive manner?

Sources of Inspiration Related to Child Development

12 Motivational Education Quotes to Inspire You

By Kendall Bird on October 18, 2012 9 Comments

It takes someone special to be an educator; a person who cares for others, and aims to help students grow to their fullest potential. The best teachers are capable, dedicated and hardworking, along with having an interest in making a substantial difference in the future of children.
Deciding to study early childhood education is a unique calling and career, but where do you find your motivation? In today’s world, inspiration takes many forms and has many different sources. To help you stay inspired, we chose 12 motivational education quotes from past educators, lawmakers and historical figures to do just that.
Whether you are seeking inspiration or just looking for a pick-me-up during the day, we hope these quotes encourage and inspire your work in early childhood education. Remember, quotes are not only a powerful way to showcase how you feel, but also a way to convey a message to many.



























http://www.rasmussen.edu/degrees/education/blog/12-motivational-education-quotes-to-inspire-you/

English proverb
"The soul is healed by being with children."
http://www.compassion.com/child-advocacy/find-your-voice/famous-quotes

http://www.cdr.org/index.php/about-us/

https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/tag/children

http://interactionimagination.blogspot.com/2013/03/the-relevance-of-loris-malaguzzi-in.html

http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/keywords/development.html

http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=359

http://www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org/

100 Ways to Play

In 100 years of creating, educating and innovating, Boston Children's Museum has encouraged children and families to play together at the Museum, at home and out in the world in more ways than we can count. Every day, there are a wealth of opportunities for adults and their children to play and grow together. We have chosen 100 of our favorites, in honor of our 100th anniversary and we share them with you here. See how many of these 100 Ways to Play you can try together this year!

1. After it rains, take off your shoes and stomp and splash together in the puddles that the storm left behind.
2. Cook together…but don’t follow a recipe!  See if you can create a delicious cake, or cookie, or veggie dip from scratch without any help from a cookbook.  How did it turn out?  What would you change?  Compare your recipe to one you find in a cookbook or online.  Check out these activities for some ideas (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/cupcake-science/; http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/food-power-design-a-dip/).
3. Paint a moustache on your face and negotiate a business deal with your parents.
4. While waiting for your food to arrive at a restaurant, make an accordion with your straw wrapper.
5. Make snow angels.
6. Put on a play based on your favorite story.
7. Find an ordinary (or extraordinary) object and look at it closely: examine every detail, describe what it smells like, what it feels like (are there different textures to it?); if you have a magnifying glass see if that shows new details you hadn’t noticed.  Even familiar objects start to take on new characteristics when they are explored close-up.
8. Draw a crazy scribble and give it to someone to make a picture out of. Or, make a bunch of doodles together and then make up stories about them.  Check out this activity for some ideas (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/scribble-stories/).
9. In the car, look for the letters A to Z, in order, on signs, license plates or billboards.
10. While you are waiting for a bus, try to find shapes in the environment around you (squares, triangles, circles); or anything red, blue or green…practice those powers of observation!
11. Find random objects around the house that have at least one thing in common; see if someone can guess what connects them. Then, have the person that guessed find their own objects to challenge you with.
12. Plant some seeds from a fruit you ate and watch them grow. Try tomatoes or avocados especially.
13. Make shadow puppets out of recycled materials, then put on a play that you make up with those puppets. You can pull the shade off of a lamp and use the bright light to help with your puppets. Check out this activity for ideas (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/shadow-puppet-play/).
14. Play your favorite music and have a dance party with family and friends! Make up a new, silly dance move to teach to everyone. Take turns making up new moves.
15. Create a collage out of old newspapers, magazines, mail, art work, maps….
16. Find a place that no one knows about.
17. Make paper dolls and accessories.
18. Play sardines: it’s like hide and seek, but only one person hides and everyone else looks. If a seeker finds the hider, the seeker squeezes into the hiding space with him. No giggling!
19. Learn how to juggle! Click here for instructions for making your own juggling balls (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/juggling/)!
20. Roll down a grassy hill.
21. Pour cream into your coffee, but don’t stir!  Watch the beautiful patterns it creates as it swirls around.
22. See how many clothes you can pile on top of each other then try to do jumping jacks.
23. Lift up a rock and see what you observe underneath it.
24. Make face paint and paint yourself (and your friends!) silly. Check out some recipes here (http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Your-Own-Face-Paint) and here (http://www.ehow.com/how_6452736_homemade-face-paint-food-coloring.html).
25. Build a snowman.
26. Watch the clouds and talk about what (or who) they look like.  Make up stories about these cloud objects, animals and people.
27. Lie on the ground at a local park and see who can count the most different kinds of bugs.
28. Create your own crazy jumps, spins and tumbles.
29. Tickle each other.
30. Make your own tangram set and see how many shapes you can make.  Check out this link for instructions and challenges (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/tangrams/).
31. On a long car ride, look for license plates from every state. 
32. Round up single socks to put on a puppet show.
33. Fill spray bottles with water and some food coloring and paint the snow.
34. Have a parade at home with any drums or shakers you may have…or make your own instruments with pots, pans, wooden spoons, etc.  March around the house singing songs you love and keeping the beat with your instruments!
35. Learn origami! Check out this link for some tips (http://www.wikihow.com/Make-Origami).
36. Build a pillow fort and defend it from your stuffed animals.
37. Create a drawing using only the letters in your name.
38. Spin around and around on the grass until you fall down, then watch the world swirl around you.
39. See how many sounds you can make with objects in your kitchen.
40. Dig a hole in your yard and see what you find.
41. Make a snow globe – glue an object to the inside top of a baby food jar, add water and glitter to the jar and close it up.  You can glue the lid to the jar or use “thread tape” to help keep it from leaking.  Try mineral or baby oil instead of water – does the glitter “snow” fall differently? Click here for some tips (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/snow-globes/).
42. Tie your socks together (while you’re wearing them) and have a race.
43. While you wait in line, make up stories about the other people in line. Are they spies on a secret mission? Are they here to surprise the cashier? This is especially fun while waiting at the airport, train station or bus stop.
44. Take a song you know and make up new words.
45. Invent your own card game.
46. Read together; change the storyline or ending of a familiar book/story to see who notices first what you changed.
47. Make paper fortune tellers and go tell everyone their fortune (http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Cootie-Catcher-(Origami-Fortune-Teller)).
48. Cut a variety of fruits and vegetables open to observe what’s inside.  Then, eat the fruits and vegetables!
49. Raid the recycle bin and see what you can make! Will you make a robot, a city, a sculpture?
50. In the grocery store, shop by color (especially in the fruits and vegetables aisle) – what foods do we need that are green?  How about red?
51. Have a freeze dance! Put on some music and dance like crazy. When the music stops, freeze in whatever wacky position you’re in.
52. Play toe tac tic: the goal is to NOT get three in a row.
53. Make a whistle with a blade of grass. Check out some tips here (http://www.wikihow.com/Whistle-Using-Grass).
54. Have a jump roping contest.
55. Build structures using straws and pipe cleaners or paper clips to connect them together.
56. Make crazy hats out of paper, paper grocery bags or fabric.
57. Practice pouring – give your young child a small plastic pitcher and a few plastic cups in the bathtub and ask them to fill the cups with the pitcher…then ask them to fill the pitcher with the cups!  Experiment with different sized cups.
58. Play “Thing-Go Bingo” on a long car ride (especially if it’s a daily commute) – each player picks 5 things they think they’ll see on their car ride…first person to spot those 5 things calls out bingo! Click here for instructions (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/thing-go-bingo/).
59. Throw a bed sheet over your dining room or kitchen table to make an instant clubhouse.
60. Make up songs about your daily chores or routines, like taking out the garbage, washing the dishes or going to school.
61. Freeze plastic bowls of water with plastic animals in them.
62. Finger paint on the tile wall in the bathtub.
63. Go on a monster hunt – take turns being different kinds of monsters.
64. Add a cup of dish soap to a gallon of water, swirl it around and go outside to blow bubbles!  Can you make a bubble with your hands? Check out some tips for making excellent bubbles here (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/bubbles/).
65. Make up your own constellations while you look at the stars.
66. Tell silly jokes, make some up and laugh, laugh, laugh.
67. Play catch! Try to move as far away from your partner as you can and still reach them with your throw.
68. Fill balloons with water and freeze them, peel off the balloon to get a round ice (cube?).
69. Invent your own language; speak it with your brother in front of your parents.
70. Learn a new game. If you have a group of friends, try this one (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/color-colorcito/).
71. Gather a few flashlights and in a dark room play flashlight tag, tell stories, or make light patterns on the ceiling and walls.
72. Turn a leftover box into a car by cutting out windows, a door and by drawing wheels.
73. Make a tape drawing using different colored tape.
74. Do a texture hunt in your old magazines at home - find something that looks: fuzzy, rough, slippery, slimy, bumpy, soft, etc.
75. Grab a big glass bowl filled with water and some food coloring – experiment with color mixing my adding one drop of food coloring at a time.
76. Cut some string and play cat’s cradle. Check out this link for some tips (http://www.wikihow.com/Play-The-Cat%27s-Cradle-Game).
77. Play 20 questions.
78. Make a sled out of a cardboard box.
79. Pretend that you and your child haven’t met before, and strike up a conversation at the playground.  Encourage your child to ask questions and trade information.
80. Dress up like your favorite super-hero. Don’t have a costume? Make one!
81. Pick a scene from a favorite movie and try to act it out together from memory.
82. Make oobleck out of cornstarch and water and play around with it.  Add more cornstarch or more water and see how it is different. Click here for some tips (http://www.beyondthechalkboard.com/activities/oobleck/).
83. Use books, cardboard boxes, and other stuff in your living room to make a castle.
84. Make a big spider web out of string and try to untangle it.
85. Make an obstacle course inside or outside with pillows, benches, jump rope, anything you can go over, around and through.
86. Anything can be a hat.  Wear something unexpected on your head.
87. Try to sing an entire conversation, instead of speaking.
88. Make some homemade sidewalk chalk paint using cornstarch, food coloring and water. Click here for a recipe (http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-Your-Own-Sidewalk-Chalk/).
89. Go for a walk and walk each block like a different zoo animal.
90. Make paddles from wire hangers (to form the frame) and panty hose over that and use them to bat balloons around.
91. Make mud pies.
92. Build card houses.
93. Grab a variety of fruits and vegetable, predict which ones will sink and which will float, then toss them in a sink or bin full of water and find out!
94. When you are waiting in line anywhere, ask your child to estimate how many people are in line in front of you, and then count them.  Try again with how many people are behind you.  Then estimate how long it will take to get through the line. For more simple math games, check out this website (http://mixinginmath.terc.edu/).
95. Dance around with scarves in your hands.
96. Make homemade instruments and start a band.
97. Go on a 10 minute walk around your neighborhood and find things that start with the letter “S”.  Then try a new letter.
98. Have a “serious contest”: stare at each other, and try not to smile or laugh.
99. Play broom ball – brooms + any size rubber ball = hours of fun.
100. Build a snow fort.