Well we made it through the first 8 week class of our Masters of Science in Early Childhood Studies.
I have learned much and been privileged to meet some very interesting people in my class.
I wish to thank all of my classmates for the interesting posts and want to encourage them as we forge ahead in our next class.

I especially want to thank Dr. Dartt for her guidance and comments on my discussions and papers.  I look forward to working with her again as I progress in my classes.

I hope all of you have a Merry Christmas and a blessed New Year.

Blessed Winter Solstic
Linda

Hell just froze over!!

This week we were asked to review NAECY and the Division of Early Childhood codes of ethics and comment on three of the points that we identified with.  

The points from the NAECY statement are:

1) "Base our work on knowledge of how children develop and learn."  

           As a Montessori teacher I recognize this in my classroom.  I have children who are chronologically one age and developmentally another age.  I have a little boy who is 41/2 but developmentally is about 3.  His favorite area to work in is the kitchen, dramatic play and the painting easel.  When he came to us he did not know his colors, letter sounds or numbers.  He does have awesome self portrait skills at the easel that other children don't posses.  Another of my students is tall for her age and advanced academically.  However she is an early 4 and has limited social skills. None of the children I work with has the capacity to work alone.  Constantly asking that I sit with them as they do their work even on things they know how to do.  I do have one child who at 5 has developed the ability to teach another child what he knows or help other children with lessons that they are having trouble with.  

2) "Respect the dignity, worth, and uniqueness of each individual (child, family member, and colleague)."

             I live in my own bubble.  Especially at work, I am in the classroom with the students and my co-teacher eight hours a day.  I have to remember that my colleagues, students and families all have a uniqueness about them that supersedes my thinking.  I strive to take perspective and observe my own behavior and theirs.  I need to remember to listen attentively and not formulate a response until I have thought about what has been said.  This is hard for me as someone who is always "on".  I am a goal oriented person and my approach is to find out what I want to know in a direct manner.  Sometimes asking a direct question is off putting to people so I have had to find different ways to communicate my needs and questions.  I am becoming better at this but still have to work to do.

The point from the DEC is:

3) "We shall strive for the highest level of personal and professional competence by seeking and

using new evidence based information to improve our practices while also responding openly to

the suggestions of others."

              I find reading research fascinating but as I continue the process of my career I find that the experience of my colleagues  trumps research.  Nothing proves research like a good old fashioned run through reality.  this is especially true with education.  Education is a theory that only works if you have the same kind of students the theory is based upon.  The trouble is that people are novel and unique.  Now two are alike so a one size fits all approach does not work well.  This is one reason I am drawn to the Montessori Method.  The idea of freedom with limits and following the child when correctly understood and applied with in the environment are wonderful things.  It takes observation and years of experience to be proficient at it.  

               Even with all of the evidence based research I have found that in some early childhood education programs some children just don't learn as well as with others.  I have two students in my classroom who can not use the Montessori environment to learn and resist every attempt to engage them.  After thirty years of believing the Montessori Method was for every child I have had to raise the white flag and say for these two students it would be better to place them in an environment where they can just play and hope that when they get to the public school they will have absorbed enough social graces to get along with others and be able to attend to academics.  Neither is cognitively challenged they just do not want to engage in any kind of challenging work such as learning to know letter sounds, numbers and how to write the rudimentary things required by the state for Kindergarten.  (If you heard a cosmic crack, Hell just froze over from my saying that some children can not learn in the Montessori environment.) 

Well friends its time for me to let my brain rest and think of other things such as how much snow we have gotten and what I am fixing for dinner. 

Namaste and do good work.   

Hello Class ED 6005 (Walden University)

    I hope all of you have a pleasant Thanksgiving and that you are safe and well out of the storms path.
This week we are asked to post the resources about early childhood learning to our blog.  I found many wonderful resources and am pleased to share them with you.

• YC Young Child ( journal)
•  Multicultural Education
• Developmental Psychology
• Early Childhood Education Journal 

In addition I would like to add a few that I have used over the years as well. 

• Montessori LIfe
• Autism and Aspergers Journal

Both have been invaluable to me in that they deal with two specific areas with which I am involved.  

 I do hope you have found this useful and enlightening. 

Two quotes and a thought.

Marilyn Friend is a person of influence in the world of Early Childhood Education.  She discusses the importance of  collaboration in the interview with Mary Brownell and Chriss Walther- Thomas in Untervention in School and Clinic.  Vol 34, No.4 March 2002 (pp 223-228)

Dr. Friend points out that "At the broadest level of collaboration is important in schools because it has become the defining characteristic of society in the 21st century"  She goes on to explain later in the article "Time is such a precious resource in school environments.  Teachers need time for planning and preparation, they need time for joint teaching they need time to share their perspective on the success of their efforts."  As a team teacher I find this to be so true I would also add that the team members have to be committed to spending the time for collaboration or it is a moot point.

Dr Meisels notes in the critique of the NRS "In short this test teaches us very little about young children's preschool skills.  It provides no authentic literacy evaluation and little infor information about math skills."  His critique of the NRS test for young children resulted in this particular part of standardized testing to be eliminated for very young children even from No Child Left Behind standards.    He goes on to note that "because the NRS will be used in making decisions about the continuation of Head Start, it is an example of a test in which indicators of learning can overwhelm learning itself, since potentially successful programs may be classified as failures based on an invalid and poorly constructed test".  As a Montessori teacher I can see how this test especially if administered in a public school setting with a Montessori setting could spell the demise of a ECE Montessori program.

Lousie Derman-Sparks states in the multimedia segment that passion drove her to pursue a teaching career.
"I had a built in passion to make a real contribution to the world, to fix all the injustices in the world. I wanted to do that through teaching."

Now lets us hear from Maria Montessori who was a doctor and scientist and not an educator:
From the Tao of Montessori by Catherine McTamaney Ed.D.
In answer to the question, "Is Montessori a cult this quote is offered.  " And educational method which cultivates and protects the inner activities of the child is not a question which concerns merely the school or the teachers; it is a universal question."

So there you have it quotes to consider as we hone our craft as teachers.
Namaste ~

The web of life.

     In the multi media presentation I saw a young girl with an amazing support system.  I did not have that advantage.  Relationships were important to me but I had very few people whom I felt supported by.  As a child of the 50's I don't think anyone thought about supporting a child in the way Mahley family did.  I was expected to just obey the rules and go to school and then get a job.  No one expected me to have dreams or ambitions to do other wise.  Graduating from high school was the expected goal.  My mom had a two year business diploma from a women's college in South Carolina and my dad had 8 years in the Army with WWII under his belt.  And while education was highly thought of no one seemed to apply that to me beyond high school.  It wasn't until the summer after graduation from high school that my parents realized I was not prepared to meet the world in a meaningful way and decided I needed to go to college.  In contrast to Mahley I had not been prepared by my family to meet the world.  Even though I was involved in Girl Scouts and later 4 H my own parents did not have expectations of me that would give me goals and motivation to succeed.  Neither did the teachers in school nor the leaders in the organizations I was involved in.
 
    I did come up with five people who supported me in a way. My adopted grandmother, and three of my teachers in the 12 years I attended public school and one of the Girl Scout leaders that loved the out doors and took us camping and horse back riding. 

    Grandma Gilbert lived with her husband in an apartment of sorts.  There were two dwellings but it wasn't an apartment house like we think of them today.  They had the upper and a lady and her son had the lower place.  My grand ma always acted like she liked me and did not think of me as something to be taken care of.  She talked to me and played with me.   The people down stairs had a tortes and raised finches and the son (who was grown) had this amazing train set up and I loved to go down there and watch him and his trains and the birds and feed the tortes when it wasn't sleeping behind the refrigerator. 

    My fourth grade teacher Mrs Whittier, My 8th grade history teacher Mr. Hamptenstall and my 11th grade science teacher Mr Neubaur. All influenced me and for them I am thankful.  Mrs Whittier inspired me to read good books.  She would read chapter books to us after we came in form lunch.  Mr. Hamptenstall enlightened my love for history and treated me kindly and Mr Nuebaur saw that I could like and enjoy science and got me to open up to life sciences in a way that has served me well for the rest of my half-over life. 

   My Girl Scout teacher Mrs. Daniels was a person I could look up to and she kept our troop busy with lots of out door stuff.  I love the out doors and like any other young girl was horse crazy  Our region had their own horses so we went riding every other Saturday when the weather was nice enough to go.  She was a calm sort of person and was kind and fair.

    Even though these people has small parts to play in my life I can look back and see how they influenced me in ways that have lead me to succeed.   But in truth I know I have done the heavy lifting of getting to the point I am today. 

   As I raised my own children I made sure they knew I believed in them and I never told them "You can't do that" when they wanted to try something.  We tried it learned from it and moved on the next adventure.  All 5 of my kids have goals and dreams they are pursuing and even though the road has been rather winding I know they will out do me because I did seek out good supports for them in their growing up years and encouraged them myself as much as possible.  They are my true inspiration and support system as I have gone back to school and done my Montessori training and now going through the Masters program. 

    Now it's time to get ready to go to work for my second job.  Thanks for letting me share this bit of my world with you. 

A glimsp into the world of Montessori education

 

 

 

 

 

 

Our motto at Martin Luther King Montessori Dream school  is " It is easier to build a child than repair a man. " 

As a teacher this gives me pause when I am about to get aggravated at a child for his or her behavior )which at times is so inappropriate) I have to step back and  take a breath.  what we say to children and how we say it makes an impact that can last a life time.  If I want to impact the children I teach I must make my point with out tones and words that will hinder their p[personal growth and development. 

 

 

Tomorrow I am going to a workshop at the Montessori training center I attended to hear Catherine McTamany the author of The Tao of Montessori reflections on compassionate teaching.  I can't wait to fill up my inspiration cup. 

 

 

 

 

 

Myself at Goll Woods in 2012 

I am also passionate about getting kids out in nature so hence the picture of me in the woods. 

 

Enjoy your weekend everyone.  Get out and commune with Mother Nature. 

 

 

 

 

Ed 6005 WaldenU blog

Hello fellow students.

Welcome my blog for our class ED 6005.  I hope you will enjoy my musings on Early Childhood Education.  

TTFN Linda