My Connections to Play





Here are a few quotes about play that I enjoy:

“Play is our brain’s favorite way of learning.”-Diane Ackerman

“A child loves his play, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard.”-Benjamin Spock

When reminiscing on my childhood, I thought of a few toys that I played with quite often: Barbie dolls, basketball, and bikes. I had a lot of toys when I was younger, but when it came down to it I loved just being outdoors playing with the neighborhood kids the most.

My siblings, parents, and friends supported play. My parents were the ones to get me my toys, of course. They always strongly encouraged us get outdoors and play outside though. My sister, Ashley, was just a year older than me so we would play together quite often. The neighborhood kids, Ashley, and I would play simple games like Tag or Hide and Go Seek. I also liked riding my bike around the neighborhood. Sometimes my sister would go with me but most of the time I’d go by myself.

I feel that play is a lot different now than it was then, and that’s only been about 20 years ago. In my day of play, I spent a lot of the time outdoors. When I played indoors, it was with dolls, puzzles, or game boards. According to what I hear from my students, a lot of time spent playing is on the computer or some other form of game system.

I believe that play served a purpose of just simply letting go. When children are in their world of play, everything else doesn’t matter. “It allows them to digest life and make it their own” (Almon, 2002). I feel that as children grow older and enter adulthood, the form of play changes. They no longer run around playing Tag, but move on tow “grownup” things.

Resources

Almon, K. (2002). The vital role of play in early childhood education. Gateway, 43. Retrieved from http://www.waldorflibrary.org/Journal_Articles/GW43almon.pdf

Relationship Reflection

Relationships are an important part of my life. Whether it is with my family members, friends, pets, or God, it gives me a feeling of completeness. Being able to discuss matters in life and my thoughts with others keeps me “sane”. As a result, I don't feel lonely. Humans, by nature, show high interest in human faces and even know their mothers’ voice minutes after birth (Edelman, 2004). I have many relationships in my life and want to mention just a few of my closest ones.

The relationship I carry with my mother is strong. Despite all of the mistakes I have made throughout my 26 years of life, she has stuck by my side through it all. She voices her opinion about certain issues, but encourages me to make my own decisions. She has always said that it is best to learn from my own mistakes. I talk to her just about every day and visit with her every week.

My father and I are very close. I, too, talk to him about every day and see him every week. If I go more than a day of not talking to him, I feel like I am clueless as to what is going on in his life. We share a love for sports, particularly basketball, so we bond a lot through that similar interest. He also happens to be a pastor. Being aware of his knowledge of the Bible and his closeness with God, I confide in him quite often.

The last relationship I want to mention is that of one of my closest friends, Amanda. We aren’t related but still remain fond of each other.  We went to high school together and I went to college with her fiancé so we have kept in touch with each other despite going our separate ways in our adult lives.

Through my experiences in relationships I have found that sharing common interests and goals, being caring, making time, and having honesty and consideration with and for each other are the contributing factors to maintaining positive relationships. Without these characteristics, relationships tend to become a challenge. It takes time and effort to keep people in your life. A friend of mine just recently got married and had her first child. She is so busy with the new additions in her life and I’m so busy with my schooling that we scarcely talk to each other. As a result, I’ve felt a space gradually grow between us.

Having these relationships can impact my work as an early childhood professional. Within relationships and partnerships, comes learning. I can take whatever is learned and apply it in the classroom. For example, I have friends who are teachers and we bounce ideas off of each other when planning our curriculum.

Resources

Edelman, L. (2004). A relationship-based approach to early intervention. Resources and Connections, 3(2).

Thank You!!

I would like to thank each and every one of my group members for sharing their thoughts on my blog and on the blogs of their own. It was truly an experience that I have enjoyed over the past 8 weeks. I pray for the best in all of our futures!

Quotes about Children and Education

“Indeed, education without research or innovation is education without interest.”-Malaguzzi

This quote means a lot to me. It says to me, no matter how many years that I teach that I should always be researching and looking for new, innovative ways to teach. If I don’t do this, I’m just going through the motions.

"There can be no keener revelation of a society's soul than the way in which it treats its children.”-Nelson Mandela

This quote explains that a society is only as much as it treats and raises its children. The way we view children is the way we expect our nation to grow. Our nation won’t better itself unless we better our children.

Testing for Intelligence?

I believe that children should be assessed in all of the areas that affect learning. Howard Gardner described multiple intelligences as linguistic, logical-mathematical, musical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic (movement), interpersonal (social understanding), intrapersonal (self-understanding), naturalistic (understanding nature), and existential (life and death). Once children are assessed, educators can receive a general idea of how to teach them due to what they are skilled in. The question still remains, “What is the best way to assess children?”

In Australia, children are given standardized tests to assess their intellectual abilities. This has known to be problematic because the results seem to never give a true result of the child’s IQ. Children are referred to as having an intellectual disability in Australia, instead of mental retardation. These intellectual disabled children have a 70 or below IQ score. Children that are below 70 are categorized into four groups: mildly (score of 55-70), moderately (score of 40-55), severely (score of 25-40), and profoundly (score of 25 and below) disabled. None of the formal testing is completed independently of other skills. The tests require children to already possess language or motor skills. Because of this, these tests are considered biased therefore inaccurate for the children who don’t have these skills or struggle in these areas.

Resource

Colmar, S., Maxwell, A., Miller, L. (2006). Assessing intellectual disability in children: are IQ measures sufficient, or even necessary. Australian Journal of Guidance & Counseling. 16(2), 177-188.

The Stressors of Children

A stressor from my childhood that I want to talk about is racism. I attended a school system in which very few African Americans went to. The ratio from black students to white students was around 1:50, about one per grade level in elementary school. I was very athletic and active, so at recess time I could be found on the basketball court or soccer field. I remember a time in third grade wanting to play soccer and a child approaching me saying, “You can’t play because you are darker than us.” I felt crushed and went crying to my sister. She was just a year older than me so we shared the same recess time. Her protective older sister instincts kicked in and she “handled” that situation. I’ll let you use your imagination and fill in the rest! I told my teacher when we went inside and she talked to the both of us about the situation. Anyways, that was just one of a few instances that I experienced growing up.

In South Africa, there are many stressors for children. Poverty, disease, environmental factors, and hunger are issues that affect children and their growth. The strategies used are described as erosive. This means that it solves the problem now, but in the future it doesn’t because more problems occur. To ensure that enough work is done at home in preparation for meals and warmth, young boys and girls are forced to stay at home. They stay at home and help their parents so the family can be fed, therefore they become uneducated adults in the long run. Mother’s with a deathly disease, such as AIDS, don’t plan for their children’s future. They assume that another member of the family will take care of their children or they will be admitted into an orphanage. In either case, either one doesn't guarantee proper eating habits or education. This is a result of having no access to appropriate support and services. Parents don’t know where or who to turn to when hunger, poverty, or disease becomes too overwhelming. Efforts are being made to make assistance available for families who are in dire need of food, shelter, or medical attention.

Resource

Drimie, S., Cassale, M. 2009. Multiple stressors in Southern Africa: the link between HIV/AIDS, food insecurity, poverty, and children’s vulnerability now and in the future. AIDS Care, 1(21), 28-33.

Breastfeeding Around the World

My mother started breastfeeding me when I was born. For weeks I was a healthy baby girl. She and my doctor’s noticed a yellowing of my skin. A blood test showed that I was jaundice, a yellowing of the skin due to a recycling of old blood cells. Mom had to stop breastfeeding because the doctor’s thought I was getting this disease from her milk. She remembers hating taking me to the doctor every week to get my blood drawn because I would scream every time they pricked my foot!

I find breastfeeding to be important, not only for the infant, but for the mother too. I researched breastfeeding in South Africa. At one time, it was very common. As the years progressed, breastfeeding rates digressed. This was partially because of HIV being passed through the mother’s milk. Now it is being stressed that infants be breastfed for the first 6 months until some sort of food is introduced. The studies that have been conducted on breastmilk substitutes shows that it unsanitary because 30% of people don’t have access to clean water and 40 % don’t have access to any form of sanitation (Meyer, 2007). Infants that are being breastfed are not only more protected from diseases due to the immunities transmitted through the mother’s milk, but they recover quicker after an illness. As a result, a lower infant mortality rate is common.

Resources

Meyer, A. Van der Spuy, D., du Plessis, L. (2007). The rationale for adopting current international breastfeeding guidelines in South Africa. Maternal & Child Nutrition, 3(4), 271-280