Birthing Experiences

The birth experience of my second son involved the use of a midwife.  I chose this birth because this experience was much different than my first two births, in that we were given the opportunity to make decisions regarding the way the labor and birth would taken place.  My midwife was present for the laboring process from start to finish, he performed massage techniques, we were permitted to have as many people present for the birth as we chose.  I did not have the burden of answering questions from the nursing staff (which can be extremely annoying when you are in the middle of a contraction), because we had a clearly defined birthing plan. Our midwife answered all of the questions and met my every need.  We opted for a "natural" birthing experience using breathing and relaxation techniques.  My husband was directly involved in the birthing experience, he actually delivered the baby once the head was out.    This experience allowed me to learn my body and the power of its natural processes like never before.

 I believe that the birth experience has a direct correlation to the development of the child.  I am in no way a scholar when it comes to child development, however in my limited knowledge I believe that some things are concrete and universal.  Being knowledgeable, prepared, and empowered allowed me to have a childbirth free from stress and complications. 

I chose to research birthing practices in India, in this culture pregnancy is viewed as normal and does not require intervention by health care professionals.  It is believed that the women have no control over their pregnancies or the outcomes.  There is great value on male babies, so much that herbal medicines are taken during pregnancy to promote development of male babies.  Laboring women are isolated after delivery because of beliefs about pollution and impurity.  This isolation can last for fourty days.  Admiring the newborn is discouraged because it may cause envy and cast the evil eye.  The placenta is buried to keep an evil spirit from seizing it and influencing the well being of the child. 

References:

J.Obstet. Traditional Practices of Women from India: Pregnancy, Childbirth, and Newborn Care. (1997 Sept-Oct 26).  Retrieved from www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9313183

A Note of Thanks

As my first course of the Early Childhood program comes to an end, I would like to extend thanks to my colleagues for their posts and professional input.  Though I have had a challenging beginning, I am encouraged to press through because of you all.  Thanks for everything and I look forward to our continued work together.

Code of Ethics

These are just a few of the Code of Ethics of the Division of Early Childhood that are meaningful to me,  as a future child care provider It is my goal to adhere to these specific ethics within my child care facility. 

Enhancement of Children’s and Families’ Quality of Lives:

We shall advocate for equal access to high quality services and supports for all children and

families to enhance their quality of lives.
As I have learned through my professional experiences as well as this course, the lack of high quality programming effects children in many negative ways.  I want to bridge the gap between quality programming and school readiness, while providing access to ALL families.

Professional and Interpersonal Behavior:
 

We shall demonstrate the highest standards of personal integrity, truthfulness, and honesty in all

our professional activities in order to inspire the trust and confidence of the children and families
and of those with whom we work.
I believe that people are more willing to learn from you and work with you when they are able to trust.  It is important for early childhood practitioners to be authentiic in their work with children and their families. 


Responsive Family Centered Practices:

We shall demonstrate our respect and appreciation for all families’ beliefs, values, customs,

languages, and culture relative to their nurturance and support of their children toward achieving
meaningful and relevant priorities and outcomes families’ desire for themselves and their children.
I have learned through my experiences as an educator that children learn best when the materials they are learning is culturally relevant.  This is an area that needs much more improvement in order for our children to be successfull. 


Reference:
The Division for Early Childhood. (2000,August). Code of ethics. Retrieved June 11,2012, from http://www.dec-sped.org/

 


 

Growing My Collection of Resources

 Position Statements and Influential Practices

• NAEYC. (2009). Developmentally appropriate practice in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/dap
  
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on child abuse prevention. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/ChildAbuseStand.pdf
  
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on school readiness. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/Readiness.pdf
  
• NAEYC. (2009). Where we stand on responding to linguistic and cultural diversity. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/diversity.pdf
  
• NAEYC. (2003). Early childhood curriculum, assessment, and program evaluation: Building an effective, accountable system in programs for children birth through age 8. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/pscape.pdf
  
• NAEYC. (2009, April). Early childhood inclusion: A summary. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/DEC_NAEYC_ECSummary_A.pdf
  
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families. (2010). Infant-toddler policy agenda. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://main.zerotothree.org/site/PageServer?pagename=ter_pub_infanttodller
  
• FPG Child Development Institute. (2006, September). Evidence-based practice empowers early childhood professionals and families. (FPG Snapshot, No. 33). Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.fpg.unc.edu/~snapshots/snap33.pdf
  Note: The following article can be found in the Walden University Library databases.
  
• Turnbull, A., Zuna, N., Hong, J. Y., Hu, X., Kyzar, K., Obremski, S., et al. (2010). Knowledge-to-action guides. Teaching Exceptional Children, 42(3), 42-53.
  Use the Academic Search Complete database, and search using the article's title.

Global Support for Children's Rights and Well-Being

• Article: UNICEF (n.d.). Fact sheet: A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview.pdf
  
• Websites:
  
• World Forum Foundationhttp://worldforumfoundation.org/wf/wp/about-us
  This link connects you to the mission statement of this organization. Make sure to watch the media segment on this webpage
  
• World Organization for Early Childhood Educationhttp://www.omep-usnc.org/
  Read about OMEP's mission.
  
• Association for Childhood Education Internationalhttp://acei.org/
  Click on "Mission/Vision" and "Guiding Principles and Beliefs" and read these statements.

Early Childhood Organizations

• National Association for the Education of Young Childrenhttp://www.naeyc.org/
  
• The Division for Early Childhoodhttp://www.dec-sped.org/
  
• Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Familieshttp://www.zerotothree.org/
  
• WESTEDhttp://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm
  
• Harvard Education Letterhttp://www.hepg.org/hel/topic/85
  
• FPG Child Development Institutehttp://www.fpg.unc.edu/main/about.cfm
  
• Administration for Children and Families Headstart's National Research Conferencehttp://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hsrc/
  
• HighScopehttp://www.highscope.org/
  
• Children's Defense Fundhttp://www.childrensdefense.org/
  
• Center for Child Care Workforcehttp://www.ccw.org/
  
• Council for Exceptional Childrenhttp://www.cec.sped.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home
  
• Institute for Women's Policy Researchhttp://www.iwpr.org/
  
• National Center for Research on Early Childhood Educationhttp://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/
  
• National Child Care Associationhttp://www.nccanet.org/
  
• National Institute for Early Education Researchhttp://nieer.org/
  
• Pre[K]Nowhttp://www.preknow.org/
  
• Voices for America's Childrenhttp://www.voices.org/
  
• The Erikson Institutehttp://www.erikson.edu/

Professional Journals Available in the Walden Library

• YC Young Children
• Childhood
• Journal of Child & Family Studies
• Child Study Journal
• Multicultural Education
• Early Childhood Education Journal
• Journal of Early Childhood Research
• International Journal of Early Childhood
• Early Childhood Research Quarterly
• Developmental Psychology
• Social Studies
• Maternal & Child Health Journal
• International Journal of Early Years Education

Additional Resources

PBS Teachers:  Early Childhood Education http://www.pbs.org/teachers/earlychildhood

NAREA - North American Reggio Emilia Alliance

http://www.reggioalliance.org/

 

 

Success for all Foundation  http://successforall.org/

Words of Inspiration & Motivation:



“If we don't stand up for children, then we don't stand for much.”
― Marian Wright Edelman

Investing in [children] is not a national luxury or a national choice. It's a national necessity. If the foundation of your house is crumbling, you don't say you can't afford to fix it while you're building astronomically expensive fences to protect it from outside enemies. The issue is not are we going to pay -- it's are we going to pay now, up front, or are we going to pay a whole lot more later on.

Marian Wright Edelman

 

 

The failure to adequately prepare teachers who can educate all children has been identified as evidence of pedagogical, instructional and conceptual problems in teacher preparation."

---Aisha Ray, Ph.D

 

Families may view education as a vehicle for the future success of their children and hence may seek out early education program to help them gain a head start”. Aisha Ray Ph. D

 

Passion comes from within each of us it cannont be imposed or mandated from outside.  At the same time, it compels us to move outside, to engage with the world around us. ~ John Hagel

 

"Everything in me was being called on to teach, made me feel whole and creative". ~ Louise Derman-Sparks

 

Personal Childhood Web

There are people in my life who have impacted me in one way or another and helped me to become the person that I am today.  I am thankful for each and every one of them knowing that their imprint, no matter how large or small has assisted me in my "becoming": 

Nanny: This is my paternal grandmother, she was so much more like a mother to me.  As the eldest of my father's children, I was shown much love and attention growing up.  My father passed away when I was 13 years old, my grandmother made sure that I knew who my father was. any questions that I may have had about him. She made sure that I had answers to  She was always there for me. She was very stern growing up, however she made sure that each and every one of her grandchildren knew that she loved them in one way or another.  She was the "rock" of my family, she passed away this year and will forever be missed.

Aunt Annette: My aunt (father's sister), she was my inspiration.  I grew up in a single parent home with little hope that life would offer me more than  that which I saw.  My aunt faithfully picked me up every weekend and every summer without complaint.  Just being in her presence inspired me to want more out of life.  I looked forward to the time we spent together.  She exposed me to things that I would not have seen had I not been with her.  Her continued love and support for me has encouraged me to establish bonds with my neices and nephews and to always be there for them.

Uncle Edward:  My father's only brother.  My uncle unfortunately never married and had children of his own.  Upon my father's death, my uncle purposed to be there for me growing up and continues to do so in my adult years.  His dedication to me has helped me to relate to my husband, I didn't realize how much not having a father can impact a woman in her adult years. 

Toni:  My favorite cousin.  He taught me everything I needed to know about how to carry myself as a woman from a male perspective.  He was always there when I needed him, always honest in a loving way.  He always encouraged me to pursue my dreams no matter how outlandish they may seem to someone else.  He jokes and refers to me as a "professional student", and laughs and tells me how proud he is of me and my academic accomplishments.

A Few of My Favorite Things:

Me as a baby with my favorite Aunt:

















Quotes:

"Every child you encounter is a divine appointment." ~Wess Stafford, President, Compassion International

Train a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not turn from it. ~ Proverbs 22:6 (NIV)

My favorite children's book:

This book has been embedded in my memory since I was a young child.  I loved how Eric Carle took us step by step through the process of the caterpillar becoming a butterfly with the colorful pages!  I have shared my love for this story with my children, as well as my students. The Very Hungry Caterpillar will always be a part of my library.   A wonderful resource for teaching a interdisciplinary unit!