Linda's ECE World

Relationship Reflection 

Week 2

Ed 6161

Walden University

"Human relationships, and the effects of relationships on relationships, are the building blocks of healthy development" (Shonkoff & Phillips, 2000, p. 4).

     I think we as humans are made to live in community. At least I find it true of me and most of the people I know.  Even the most introverted of my friends need companionship once in a while.  

     The first relationships I consider vital in my life are the relationships I have with my children.  Two of them have moved out of the home and are living in states other than Ohio.  Maintaining a close connection with my children is a challenge because when I am busy working and going to school my time is pretty much spoken for and I find I have to carve out time to spend with my kids.  Having a Facebook account helps to keep up with my kids as does texting on the phone.  But the face to face connection is limited.  Many times my daughters have to say “Mom we need to go to tea” My sons check in often to and I have committed to keeping up with my kids as they grow and mature but not so much as to be a nuisance.     

     My Facebook friends are the people I hang out with most.  I belong to several groups on FB and I check in regularly. But I feel something is missing.  I need and want the face to face interaction. So I am learning to make my own community and develop friendships.

After my family and FB peeps I have relationships at work.  I have a co-teacher and while we have taught most of this year she was gone 12 weeks for maternity leave.  We had to get to know each other all over again when she returned.  Our class is a busy one and we don’t have much time to develop a close friendship. 

I think the challenge in any relationship is proximity and time to connect regularly having things in common.  The one thing I find when working with young children is that you must be present and that goes for talking to a child, a parent or your partner in the classroom.  I think this is one of the most important things in a relationship and the one I need to work on the most.  At the end of the day I am done and maintaining any form of presence takes work. However when I value any relationship I have I must commit to doing it. It does not matter if I am talking or spending meaningful time with a child, a parent or a partner being present is the only way authentic relationship and communication can be developed. 

It is my commitment to myself to offer up presence to the people I live and work with.

Here are pics of my awesome children. 

                                                                               Ambrose- World Wildlife Manager  

David the water bender!

Jeremiah future law enforcement officer

Ariel aka Movie Star & Author and Sarah Ms President    

       In regards to my relationships in early childhood education I think there are a few guidelines I can follow.

1)      Be open minded as to understanding the family dynamics of the child’s experience.

2)      Observation is the best way to understand a child.

3)      When talking to the child or parent (or other care giver) be aware of how your words might sound and observe body language for feedback. Maybe run what you are going to say to yourself out loud or a fellow teacher to see if your true message is coming across clearly. 

4)      Be present no matter how many other pressing things you have to do learn to place them in a box with a lid (in your mind) and listen with the intent of understanding, so others will feel comfortable to speak and value your perspective once you respond. 

I have been working on these skills for a long time but especially this year because the success of my classroom and each child in it depend on my being able to develop and foster relationships and communicate clearly with their parent(s).