Relationship Reflection

Relationships are very important to me because they help make me who I am. Meaningful relationships are important to our health and success. I have several significant relationships including my husband, my sons (Jacob and Jordan), my mother, sister and brother, and many other family members as well as friends. Each relationship has its own identity and is cultivated in different ways.

It takes time to develop meaningful relationships. Spending time and talking with each other is a vital part in any relationship. Communication, respect, and honesty are  important factors when building relations.

My most ultimate relationship is the one I have with my Jesus, my Lord and Savior. Without this relationship, I would be nothing. I thank Him for this.

As an educator, I want to build relationships with my students and their families. It is important for teachers to communicate with parents regularly. Building parent/teacher connections can include making positive phone calls, inviting parents to participate in decision making for students, share student success stories, and listen to the parents and child.

Thank You To My Colleagues

I would like to thank each of you for the part you play in my success as I travel through this program. The encouragement and support you provide for me is exceptional. I have learned so much through your posts and discussions. You are truly an amazing group of people.I wish you the best as we continue with this endeavor.

Quotes About Children

We worry about what a child will become tomorrow, yet we forget that he is someone today.

~Stacia Tauscher

Our greatest natural resource is the minds of our children.

~Walt Disney

Children need love most when they deserve it the least.

~Susy Yelh

Children seldom misquote. In fact, they usually repeat word for word what you shouldn't have said.

~Author Unknown

If you want your children to improve, let them overhear the nice things you say about them to others.

~Haim Ginott

Children have never been very good at listening to their elders, but they have never failed to imitate them.

~ James Baldwin

A rose can say "I love you",
orchids can enthrall,
but a weed bouquet in a chubby fist,
yes, that says it all.
~Author Unknown

Assessment in Early Childhood

School readiness,  knowing how children are learning, to see if children are making progess, and to see how effectively children are be taught are among many reasons that children are assessed. After a child is tested, valuable information is provided to plan and individualize instruction. I think some assessing is required to know where the child is academically. Assessments should reflect the diversity of intelligences within the classroom. All children learn differently so one would think they would need to be assessed differently. Meaningful instruction includes singing, using hands-on activites, and other stategies. Educators could introduce assessments as a learning process and not a stressful painful event. However; I think we are assessing our children to death. I teach second grade and in the next few weeks we will start some major assessments that will last for three weeks. This is way too many! It is also unfair the way teachers are assessed and parents are held unaccountable.

When it comes to educating the whole child, many factors are present. When healthy children enter school feeilng safe, they are ready to learn. Children are more likely to stay in school when they have a connection with the school. Challenging and engaging academic programs need to be accessible for all children. Most importantly, children need to be supported by caring and loving adults. It is esssential, for educators, to know about children. What kind of environment do they live in? Do they have adequate food and sleep? Who takes care of them? Some children are raising themselves and face many issues that detours them from being successful students.


Assessing Children in Nicaragua

A few years ago I went on a mission trip to Corn Island in Nicaragua. I was able to visit one of the schools there, but I didn't know much about their testing procedures. After doing some research, I was able to find out that the Nicaraguan Govenment invests in education, but the student performance is poor. In many developing countries, children enrolled in primary school for three and as many as six years can barley read and are not able to comprehend or understand a simple text. RTI International designed a program, for International Development, to help educators in low-income countries break the pattern of illiteracy among the poor. RTI is administering the EGRA (Early Grade Reading Assessment) to first, second, and third graders across Nicaragua with the hope it will become a tool for their education system to obtain usable data on early-grade literacy. Finding out early the adjustments needing to be made is essential to overcome academic failure.

The Effects of Alcoholism on Children

Alcoholism is also known as a disease. Growing up, as a child, I had a friend whose dad was an alcoholic. This was a very sad environment that she lived in. I am almost positve that he was also physically abusive. I can remember her not wanting anyone to come to her house because she was afraid of what her dad might do or say. This was a huge embarrassment for her and her mother. My friend was abused mentally as well. There were many times that she was late for school or maybe she just wouldn't show up for a day or so. Her mother was a wonderful person and provided much support for her during her childhood and teen-age years. An alcoholic can totally disrupt family life and cause harmful effects that can last a lifetime. I think my friend suffered from low self-esteem and depression and most likely is still suffering today. 

The minimum legal drinking age varies dramatically around the world. Most such laws apply only to drinking alcoholic beverages in public locations. The only country with a minimum legal age for consuming alcohol at home is the United Kingdom, which prohibits drinking below the age of six.

Internationally, the average age at which drinking alcohol first occurs is 12 years and about 80% of young people begin drinking alcoholic beverages regularly at age 15 or younger according to the World Health Organization (WHO).


Hunger in Nicaragua

Nicaraguans are no strangers to hunger. The country is considered the second poorest nation in the western hemisphere. I was able to be part of a mission team and visit there in 2006. Hunger among the people was definitly an issue. Many of the children were not afforded the opportunity to attend school. Many children had to begin working at an early age. The more time the children spent working and out of school, the less likely they are to return. Therefore, their educational levels were very low.

Stop hunger Now is a hunger relief agency that is working on a commitment to end huger. Stop Hunger Now has shipped over 3 million meals to Nicaragua and more is on the way. Visit stophungernow.org
for more information.

Child Development and Public Health

Nutrition is a vital public health measure that impacts children daily. As an educator, I see hungry children daily. It is fortunate, in the United States and in public schools that there are programs that sponsor needy children and their families. Free and reduced breakfasts and lunches are provided for children in schools. Our district also has a food program that sends home a bag of food for children and their families to have over the weekend.  I have seen children be disappointed when inclement weather hits and they are out of school for several days.

However; nutrition in Africa is much worse. Food insecurity and malnutrition give rise to many consequences for health and development, with mothers and children most vulnerable to the devastating effects. Malnourished mothers are at a greater risk of dying in childbirth and of delivering low-birth-weight babies who fail to survive infancy. Children are vulnerable to the consequences of food insecurity and malnutrition because of their physiology and high calorie needs for growth and development. Malnutrition is the underlying cause of death of more than 2.6 million children each year, a third of under-five deaths, and a third of total child deaths worldwide.

My Childbirth Experience and Childbirth in Cambodia

The birth of my first son is not a story many people will want to hear. I would love to tell you it was a wonderful and uneventful experience, but it was not. My son went past his due date and due to his expected size, my doctor insisted that he induce labor. After 12 hours of intense labor I was finally dialated to 10 and could not deliver. The doctor told my family he was not sure I would survive and a C-section could not be preformed. After 4 more hours passed, I finally delivered a 9lb 13 oz happy and healthy baby boy. There are many other details, but I will not be sharing those. It is true that one forgets the pain after the child is born. I would absolutely do it all over again! I chose to share about this experience because I will never forget the happiness I felt after the delivery was over. Once you hold the precious baby in your arms nothing else matters.

After doing some research about childbirth in other places, Cambodia sparked my interest. In Cambodia after a woman delivers a baby she is not allowed to breastfeed the baby for 1-2 months, therfore someone else does it for her. Also, after a woman delivers a baby she is placed on a bed with a fire burning underneath the bed. This is called "roasting" and  the fire is supposed to heat up the body and prevent illnesses after the postpartum period. This process takes about a week.Cambodian women also sit on a hot rock each morning after delivering. Sitting on a hot rock is suppose to keep the uterus from coming out. Most Cambodians deliver at home using a midwife. These practices are much different than the ones we practice in the United States.