Professional Hopes and Goals

 

One hope that I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is that they find acceptance wherever they go, especially for the children as they enter school.

One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issue of diversity, equity, and social justice is that more effort gets put into making everyone feel safe, secure, and accepted no matter where they are from. We need to assure everyone who enters our classrooms feel comfortable, welcomed, and accepted.

Thank you to all of my colleagues for taking the time to read my posts. I pray that each of you continue on with your collegiate goals and are successful in everything you do. 

 

Welcoming Families From Around the World

For this assignment, imagine the following scenario:

You are working in an early childhood setting of your choice—a hospital, a child care center, a social service agency. You receive word that the child of a family who has recently emigrated from a country you know nothing about will join your group soon. You want to prepare yourself to welcome the child and her family. Luckily, you are enrolled in a course about diversity and have learned that in order to support families who have immigrated you need to know more than surface facts about their country of origin.

The name of “your” family’s country of origin

•  Jamaica

At least five ways in which you will prepare yourself to be culturally responsive towards this family

• Research 
• Learn about Jamaican traditions
• Find books, pictures, toys, etc for the classroom so that the new student and his/her parents will feel more comfortable
• Educate the other children about our new student and his/her culture
• Speak with the parents and child so that I may get to know them prior to the first day of class  
  

A brief statement describing in what ways you hope that these preparations will benefit both you and the family
 

• These preparations will definitely benefit both me and the family in many ways. First, it will show them that I respect them and their culture and that I want to better understand where they come from. Second, it will make all of us feel more comfortable and less insecure about having their child in my class. Last but not least, the child will feel more comfortable in the class and will also feel welcomed. 

 

The Personal Side of Bias, Prejudice, and Oppression

One memory I have of an incident when I experienced on facebook. I had commented on the page of my of my parents who is white, and her boyfriend's cousin who is also white responded by calling someone the "N" word. It bothered me so much that I had to speak my mind. Needless to say, she look the comments down.

The "N" word was used as a way to discriminate against black people. How can we expect to make a positive change if people are still insistent upon using language that is so degrading and hurtful?

This incident made me extremely mad. I know that the world is alot better than it used to be but there's still alot of changes that need to be made.

Clearly everyone who feels that that word is appropriate to use needs to change their way of thinking in order to turn this incident into an opportunity for greater equity.

Practicing Awareness of Microaggressions

I detected racial microaggression this week. I over heard someone tell a baby that she was cute to be as dark as she was. The first thing I said was, "why did you say that"? Of course she did not think she did anything wrong but I explained to her that she basically told that child that darker skinned children are not as beautiful as white and light skinned children.  It bothered me to hear someone say something like this because I have experienced racial microaggression most of my life and I don't want anyone else, especially not a child, to go through this.

I realize more and more that discrimination, prejudice, and stereotypes on people still exist.  It made me want to be more aware of my surroundings and what is being said along with what I said. I am just as guilty as many other people when it comes to having stereotypes. I don't think I discriminate against anyone but I will focus more of my attention towards being a better more self-aware individual.

Perspectives on Diversity and Culture

For this assignment I contacted my aunt, my brother, and one of my co-workers. All of their definitions for culture were relatively the same: Culture is what you believe and what you are taught. Their definitions where similar as well. My aunt said it was what makes us unique. My brother said diversity is what makes the world more interesting because no two people are the same. My co-worker did not have a definition.

Some of the aspects of culture and diversity are included in their answers such as culture being ideas of what we are taught and that it makes us who we are. Also that diversity makes us unique and different from others.

I don't think other people's definitions of culture and diversity influenced my own thinking about these topics. I have learned the meaning of the definitions on my own and have formed my own understanding of each one.

My Family Culture

A description of the three items you would choose
The three items I would definitely take would be family pictures, CD player with CD's, and a comb!

How you would explain to others what each of these items means to you
I would explain to them that the pictures are of my family and they represent memories from my past that I do not want to forget.  The CD play and CD's are for entertainment and they represent my culture and my interests. The comb is important as well because I like my hair to be neat, clean, and put together. Without a comb I would go insane.

Your feelings if, upon arrival, you were told that you could only keep one personal item and have to give up the other two items you brought with you
I would be devastated if I had to give up any of my items. Each item represents me and what I am about. They are a part of me and what makes me unique.  At the end of the day, if I really had to choose, I would always choose the photos because a picture is worth a thousand words and it is an eternal way to keep a memory alive.

Any insights you gained about yourself, your family culture, diversity, and/or cultural differences in general, as a result of this exercise,
From doing this exercise I realize how important my family and my culture are to me.  Its not everyday that you are faced with the question of "if you had to choose, what would you choose". 

My Supports

In my life I have several different supportive factors. I have my faith and religion, I have my family, my friends, and I also have the support of some of my Colleagues. Each one plays a different role in my life but it is all centered around my faith.  My family loves me unconditionally and will be there for me no matter what. My colleagues support me while I work and during those difficult times when I am on the clock.  My faith and religion keeps me grounded.

                                                                                                          

There are many benefits to having support. Where it is a person, place, thing, or idea, the support is there no matter what goes on in your daily life. Your support is there to pick you up when you fall, to hold you when you are scared, and to wipe away all your tears when you are upset. The support system is there to celebrate your successes and to help pick you up when you fail.

Without support, I don't know where I would be. Prior to December 16, 2008, my most supportive influence was my mother. Now, I am relying on a memory and prayer. She was always on my side and believed strongly in me not matter what I did or what I was going through. If she felt like I believed in whatever or whoever I was dealing with, she supported me even if she did not completely agree with my choices.  When she died, she took the biggest piece of my heart with her. My family and friends have attempted to fill the void in my life. Through it all my faith has remained strong. Faith in God and the endless support I have received have gotten me through so many rough patches in my life.

At this point in my life, I feel like I still need more support. I am 26 and I still feel somewhat lost. My faith is the only constant thing I have. Can will not change, disappear, or leave me for any reason. It cannot be taken from me or altered to fit the mood of the day.  I need to feel loved, wanted, and needed. I have a job in which I am needed, family that loves me, and friends who seem to want to in my presence. I pray every day for my continued strength and support.

My Connections to Play

 

Quotes about play:

You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.
Plato

Life must be lived as play.
Plato

In our play we reveal what kind of people we are.

Ovid
Roman poet
43 BC–17 or 18 AD

Play is our brain's favorite way of learning.

Diane Ackerman
Contemporary American author

 The true object of all human life is play.

G. K. Chesterton
British author
1874–1936

Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning.

Fred Rogers
American television personality
1928–2003

A child loves his play, not because it’s easy, but because it’s hard.

Benjamin Spock
American pediatrician
1903–1998

Play fosters belonging and encourages cooperation.

Stuart Brown, MD
Contemporary American psychiatrist

Play has been man’s most useful preoccupation.

Frank Caplan

Contemporary American author

1911–1988

 Items that were essential to my play as a young child

                          

 

                                                    

                                                        

Others' roles in my play as a young child

When I was growing up, play was not an option but was mandatory. One of my aunts would take control of the televisions so our only choice was to go outside and play. There were 6 of us grandchildren at the time (now there is seven of us). We would ride bikes, make up crazy games, or play ball. We would also play video games in the back room. We had so much much fun growing up. 

My mother and grandfather encouraged us to play, which is the opposite of one of my aunts, she gave of absolutely NO choices. They would come out and either play with us or watch us. It was so much fun. 

Play then and now

There is definitely a difference between the play that occurred when I was young and the play that occurs now.  A lot of the kids these days do not seem to know how to play. They are more into watching television or playing video games.  They do not seem to have an imagination either. We knew how to turn scraps of wood and old clothes baskets into usual items. A lot of the children I work with see items for whatever they are and not what they could be. I get down on the floor and try to encourage them to play but, honestly, how do you teach children how to play when they are being watched and entertained by electronics?