"Further Investigations On Chosen Websites"

The Global Alliance of NAEYC is one of the outside links that had yet to explore was explored tonight. On this particular website, there is a Week of the Young Child link. The purpose of the Week of the Young Child is to focus public attention on the needs of young children and their families and to recognize the early childhood programs and services that meet those needs. The 2011 Week of the Young Child is April 10-16. There was also a link entitled "Play: Where Learning Begins." This link re-enforced everything that I knew about the act of play. It states that "Play is a vital part of early childhood education and development. When children explore, experiment, and interact through play, they learn about how the world works." Some other interesting information was offered that could be beneficial to parents and teachers such as the establishment of common-core standards, and a discussion of teacher quality and quality programs.

The website that I had originally chosen was The Association for Childhood Education International. One piece of new information was their report on improving teacher training programs. It captured my interest because we need to have appropriate teacher training programs. The article talks about "providing quantified sources as a potential starting point for major form." This particular piece interested me because we need to have more programs such as this one to insure that we get the best teachers in place for the job to do the job that we need them to do.

Update On Professional Website

I have sent contact information to my chosen website and I have yet to receive a newsletter. The funny thing is, I searched that particular website and I came to another website that aroused my curiosity--the website was listed as Association for Childhood Eduation International. When I logged on, I didn't know what to expect but I was pleasantly surprised. Not only does the site contain information about Africa, Asia, China, and other countries, they even had a list of events and publications offered, and extra resources for those who are interested. They have a section entitled "E-News." Each month, the E-News is updated. These things are interesting to me as an educator because I want to know what is going on in the world of early childhood education. For someone who has always taught middle school, I have no knowledge, other than what I have learned in class on early childhood education. I think by learning what actually goes on in other countries, we are more empathetic to those needs of the families there and in our own classroom. Politicians and other businesses are important to this site because the provide monies to support the educational programs and travel of individuals to other countries in support of what is needed there. Politicians also serve on the board and they do speaking engagements to promote the cause; therefore, although on the outside looking in, we might not think that they do much, it seems that they are there and their intentions are good. These programs need publicity and they also need money to fund their cause so in the end, it works out for everyone involved. The other insights that I gained from this particular website are the fact that on a personal level, I feel that it is refreshing to see people come together in support of poverty and education. I honestly believe that they are making a different. On a professional level, I am just glad that I have found a sight that is going to further my cause in making me aware of what is going on around the world.

"India's Childhood Poverty"

The country that I was chose to read about was India. I didn't know much about the country therefore, I decided to take a look at the information and needless to say, I was surprised at what I found. The information found below is the information that I gathered from the article:

1. Almost half of all children (about 62 million) under the age of five are malnourished and 34% of newborns are underweight.
2. In India, there are children 16 years old and below who make up a portion of the workforce.
3. Females are seen as inferior to their male counterparts and the girl child spends majority of her day out in the workforce because education is not seen as something that is beneficial to the females in India.

These are the three things that really tugged at my heart strings because in the United States, education is one of those things that children and adults have access to but in other parts of the country, education is like a mirage. It is only a figment in the imagination of those who can't receive it. I have known about the caste system but did not know that it is still in operation. Just the idea that the workforce in India is comprised of children who aren't even old enough to have a job or a part-time job are working to support a family. In order to counteract this problem, organizations are making arrangements to reduce poverty and ensure that an education is well in the reach of a child who deserves it.

Status of Organization Joined/Newsletter

Unfortunately, I was met with disappointment. I haven't heard from the organizations that I joined last week nor has there been any interesting blogs posted under these organizations;therefore, I decided to take a new route and I signed up to receive a newsletter from the National Black Child Development Institute. The reason why this particular organization caught my attention was because there was literature about how parents can become involved within the lives of the children. As a teacher, we always want the parents to be involved although many of them are not. As a human being, I realize the importance of having parental involvment because I am a product of a broken home and know that there are a lot of things that a child can get into when there isn't anyone there to guide them.

As for the website, another key factor for me choosing this particular organization is the way that they have included many black history facts...in NOVEMBER. I am used to seeing people wait until February to include black history factual information but this site has a lot of interesting stuff about the African-American race. I was ecstatic about the website.

Professional Blog On Early Childhood Issue/Website That I Chose To Follow

When I first read the assignment, I was thrilled to be given the task because it allowed me to reach out to other professionals who were skilled in an area (early childhood professional. Since I am a newbie in the field of early childhood, I knew that these people whom I contacted would be an asset for me and to me on my journey. I am not sure if I took the right steps but the results, I believe, will prove to work out in my favor. For the website or professional organization to study, I chose the Arlington Alliance of Early Childhood Professionals. Sometimes, we look to places further from home to do research on but the truth of the matter is, there are professional organizations in neighboring states as well that are doing things totally different than what we are doing in our area. This one is in Texas. As for the steps that I took to find this particular site, I heard about it from a friend. She is a member and she recommended it to me. I email them and left my contact information. I am waiting on a response from them.

The person I decided to blog with is Laura Bornfreund. Her platform is found under the New America Foundation. The one thing that captured my attention from this site was the title of the latest blog. The title was "The State of Preschool: Comparing the U.S. to Our International Competitors." I read some of the posts that were made and it seemed to be posts that were worthy of a response. Furthermore, I began to read her credentials. She is a policy analyst for New America's Early Education Initiative. She analyzes early education (birth to grade 3) studies and policies, researches and writes original policy papers, and contributes to this blog on a regular basis but the main factor for my choosing is the fact that she used to be a fourth grade teacher. I think that teachers are the ones in a better position to say what a child needs as far as education is concerned. I am angry that sometimes people who haven't been in the classrooms are making decisions that govern education. I have set up a feed to this blog.

My step to finding Laura was powered by Google. This computer mechanism is a God-send.

my supports

I have many supports such as my family and friends. These people are important to me because I would cease to exist without them. My life is what it is because they have shown love and they have taught me how to love. I think the other supports that I have are materialistic. The two biggest materialistic supports that I have would be my cell phone and computer. I label them as supports because my cellphone is my life line to those who are miles away. Mt computer is important because it is where I complete my work for class. I am behind on my work now because my computer is down so I am submitting my work via phone.

"My Connections To Play"

Two quotes that I feel connects to the theory of play

"Children's games are hardly games. Children are never more serious than when they play."

"There are children playing in the street who could solve some of my top problems in physics, because they have modes of sensory perception that I lost long ago."

(Play Item #1)

(Play Item #2

I think that I should probably explain my two play items.  For the most part, the bike or the automobile in item #1 is something that would interest me because it represents freedom.  As a child, the places that I could go are limited because after all, I am a child, but many children like to ride bikes because they like the idea of moving and going.  The wind is at their back and their imagination is running wild--a moment such as this one is priceless.  In item #2, the puppies are something that I would like because they represent that unconditional friendship.  The relationship that we have with our animals are almost the same as the one that we have with our family.  Animals are family and they are very forgiven.  They don't judge nor do they criticize.  Children need that in their lives--no judging and no criticizing, they need to know that they can be themselves.

When I was a child, I had too many responsibilities.  We were a family of nine and everyone had to take care of someone. We played but our play time was not filled with computers and electronic devices.  We had slinkies and we had board games but for the most part, we made up games to play outside.  We never wanted to be in the house; our fun was outside playing in the dirt and grime.  In today's society, a child has just about every toy within their fingertips.  Many children don't go outside and adults spend so much money on computer games and these games keep the children confined to the house.  Then, there are those children who are active and who love to go outside.  I think that people value play; I think that our perception as to what play is has changed.

I personally believe that play is a necessity for children who are becoming social and who are trying to form an identity.  I think that adults need to accept that children are imaginative and creative and they need an outlet.