Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

Poverty is certainly on the rise in the world.  Working in the school system, I see so many children living in poverty.  I am drawn to one child in particular and her struggle for survival.  This little girl lived with her mom only.  Mom had many issues that she was dealing with, drugs, legal problems, drinking just to name a few. The little girl was 3 years old at this time.  She bascially had to raise herself.  She had no bed to sleep on, went days with no food and had horrible living conditions.    Eventually the mother was put in jail. At this point, dad received custody of the child.  She moved in with dad who lived with his parents, siblings and their children.  In all their were 10 people living in this house.  The child had never used a utensil before, so at the age of 4 she was learning to eat with a spoon and fork.  When she would get hungry, she would rummage through the garbage looking for food.  This was just a norm for her from living with her mom.  She didn't know to look in the fridge or cupboard for food. I have her in my class now, and she still picks food up off the floor and eats it.  She steals food from the other kids.  I try to give her more so she doesn't have to do this.  In short, this child has had a very difficlut life.  She is now almost 6 years old, and she has so many trust issues and behavior issues to deal with.  She is a very angry child.  I feel so bad for her, I know she has a long ways to go.  I fear she is scarred for life and wonder if she will be able to have a happy normal life.

POVERTY IN BRAZIL

I chose to look at the poverty situation in Brazil.  What I found is that 2.6% of the population lives in poverty. 42% of the children live in poverty and 150,000 children under the age of 5years die due to hunger.  Many children lack education, health care and nutrition.  Many families cannot afford to raise their children and therefore many are abandoned and live on the streets.  These children often turn to drugs, crime and prostitution in order to survive.  The Ministry of Social Asstistance is a program setup by the government  to help fight poverty and starvation.  In order to survive, children are pushed into the workforce instead of education.  There are no child labor laws in Brazil, so this leads to a breeding ground for malnutrition, viloence and sexual exploitation.   

To read more on the poverty situation in Brazil click on the following link:
http://hubpages.com/hub/Poverty-in-Brazil

Child Development and Public Health

The public Health topic I chose is on breastfeeding.  It seems that more mothers are breastfeeding their infants and steering clear of formula.  Research shows that breastfeeding has many benefits.  The child is receiving all the important nutrients and vitamins from the mother.  They also receive the antibodies to help fight off infections and illnesses.  It's proven that children who are breasfed are healthier and spend less time at doctors offices. The contact that comes between mother and child helps build a secure attachment.  It also helps the mother lose weight after childbirth and helps the uterus to get back to normal size.  I don't have children, but if I did, after researching I am confident that I would breastfeed because of the benefits.

As I was reseaarching, I discovered an article about breastfeeding and mothers of Yemen.  It appears that this phenomenon is not very popular in Yemen.  Doctors recommend that for at least the first 6 months of life, infants should be exclusively breastfed.  This mean they only consume human milk, no water or juice is allowed.  In Yemen, the mothers feel that this is not sufficient for a baby.  They will breastfeed for short periods of time but not the entire 6 mos.  yemen, is a country that has a very high malnutrition rate.  The mortality rates of infants due to malnutrition has not changed for several years.

After doing the research, I understand now why my student who is of Yemen decent was so sickly.  Even though mom was American, dad was Yemen and did not believe in breastfeeding and had very strict dietary requirements.  I think this information will help me in the future if someone wants my opinion about formula or breastfeeding I can give accurate data and help them be informed.

To read more about The Yemen's lack of breastfeeding , go to the following website:

www.yobserver.com/sports-health-and-lifestyle/10012767.html

Childbirth - In Your Life and Around the World

I myself do not have any children.  I have an older brother who has 3 children, but I was not present for any of those births.  I have a friend who gave birth 16 years ago, so this is the best experience I have with childbirth.  When my friend had her daughter, she had a private room.  I was amazed at how big the room was.  At the time my boyfriend , myself and the father were the only people in the room.  There were not many nurses or doctors coming in.  The baby was in the nursery and was brought to the mom a couple times during the day for feeding and bonding.  If I remember correctly, my friend stayed  in the hospital for 3 days.  Unfortunately, that is all I remember of the child birth experience I have.

I chose to take a look at Denmark and their practice of child birth.  It was surprising to me to learn that the mother can choose to have the baby in a public hospital or at home.  The doctor assigns the mother a midwife who will attend to her regularly.  Giving birth is considered a natural event, so only the midwife is present during the birth unless she feels there are complications in which case the doctor will also be present.

The child sleeps in the room next to the mother.  The child is never taken away.  The mothers are encouraged to take care of the baby right after birth.  Nurses are available to help and to take care of the baby if the mother is tired and needs to get her strength back.  If it is the first child, the mother stays in the hospital for a couple of days; otherwise the mother leaves within a day or two.

What I found most interesting is that when the mother returns home from the hospital with the baby, she is visited by a nurse who makes sure mom is ok, does checkups on the baby  and answers questions that may arise during the first year of life.

There seems to be many differences between these experiences:  The midwife instead of doctors in the delivery room,  the baby stays with the mom in the room isnstead of going to a nursery.the fact that a nurse comes to the house after the birth.  The duration of the mother’s stay is pretty similar in both experiences for the first child, I do not know if it is the same for the second child.

The website I found this information from is: 

  http://paguro.net/expat-life/local/denmark/all-documents-denmark/denmark-pregnancyandbirth

A Note of Thanks and Support

I have truly enjoyed working with everyone during the first course of our program.  I have learned so much from each of you.  This experience has been rewarding for not only myself, but for my students.  I have taken things from each of you and incorporated it somehow into my classroom - whether it is a book recommendation or a quote you posted.  I look forward to continuing our journey together and lending support to each of you.  To all, I wish you the best of luck!

Codes Of Ethics

1). I-1.1   To be familiar with the knowledge base of early childhood care and education and to stay informed through continuing education and training.

I chose this ethic from the NAEYC because I feel that as an educator and future advocate for children, I need to stay current with the early childhood field.  Studies and research are consistently changing and I feel that it is my responsibility to stay on top to help my students succeed and for my families to understand their child’s education.

 

2)   I-2.2 To develop relationships of mutual trust and create partnerships with the families we serve.

This also is from NAEYC.  In order for students to be successful, they need to see that educators and parents are working together in collaboration.  Parents need to have a sense of trust that the teacher is doing everything they can to ensure their child’s safety, well-being and educational needs.  As a teacher, I need to trust that parents will cooperate and work with me if there are problems.  When we all work together, we have the child’s best interest at hand and the child benefits from it. 

3)  Responsive Family Centered Practices #6:  We shall respect families’ rights to choose or refuse early childhood special education or related services.

I chose this ethic from the DEC because I feel that ultimately the parents/guardians have the final say in what services if any their child receives.  As an educator, we have the responsibility to inform our parents of services that we may feel benefit their child.  We need to give the families all the information required to make their decisions.  I feel that when parents have the opportunity to discuss options with the teacher and other support staff, and they are able to have their questions answered, then I as an educator have done what I can do, but ultimately the family has the final say and I have to be respectful of it.

•  Article:  NAEYC. (2005, April).  Code of ethical conduct and statement of commitment.  Retrieved May 26, 2010, from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PSETH05.pdf

• Article: The Division for Early Childhood.  (2000, August).  Code of ethics.  Retrieved May 26, 2010 from  http://www.dec-sped.org/

      

Course Resources

Position Statements and Influential PracticesNAEYC. (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://www.blogger.com/goog_698327916
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
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 Foundation
http://www.worldforumfoundation.org/wf/about.php
This link connects you to the mission statement of this organization. Make sure to watch the video on this webpage
World Organization for Early Childhood Education
http://www.omep-usnc.org/
Read about OMEP’s mission.
Association for Childhood Education International
http://acei.org/about/
Click on “Mission/Vision” and “Guiding Principles and Beliefs” and read these statements.

Selected Early Childhood Organizations
National Association for the Education of Young Children
http://www.naeyc.org/

The Division for Early Childhood
http://www.dec-sped.org/

Zero to Three: National Center for Infants, Toddlers, and Families
http://www.zerotothree.org/

WESTED
http://www.wested.org/cs/we/print/docs/we/home.htm

Harvard Education Letter
http://www.hepg.org/hel/topic/85

FPG Child Development Institute
http://www.fpg.unc.edu/main/about.cfm

Administration for Children and Families Headstart’s National Research Conference
http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/opre/hsrc/

HighScope
http://www.highscope.org/

Children’s Defense Fund
http://www.childrensdefense.org//

Center for Child Care Workforce
http://www.ccw.org/

Council for Exceptional Children
http://www.cec.sped.org//AM/Template.cfm?Section=Home

Institute for Women’s Policy Research
http://www.iwpr.org/index.cfm

National Center for Research on Early Childhood Education
http://www.ncrece.org/wordpress/


National Child Care Association
http://www.nccanet.org/

National Institute for Early Education Research
http://nieer.org/

Pre[K]Now
http://www.preknow.org/

Voices for America’s Children
http://www.voices.org/

The Erikson Institute
http://www.erikson.edu/

Additional Early Childhood Resources
Early Childhood News: Professional resources for teachers and parents.
http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/

Education.com : An education and child development site for parents.
http://www.education.com/

Finding Dulcinea. Articles and resources on Early Childhood.
http://www.findingdulcinea.com/guides/Education/Early-Childhood-Education.html

Words of Inspiration and Motivation

“As Early Childhood Professionals we have an opportunity to shape a child’s life for the better.”  Sandy Escobido

My passion is to create a safer and more just world for all kids.  Louise Derman-Sparks

A passion of mine is to “honor diversity and seek to understand what culturally sensitive care means for each family being served.  To meet such a goal, professionals have to establish close communication with families and work together with them toward positive outcomes for children’s identity, sense of belonging and cultural competence.”  
 Janet Gonzalez-Mena

Words of motivation: “In the good years, work very hard to win everything that’s possibly winnable.  In the bad years, work just as hard to keep your losses to a minimum.  There are good times, and there are bad times.  But you have to stay in the game.”
 Edward Zigler