Linda's ECE World

So Long, Farewell, Auf Wiedersehen, Goodbye

Well now comes the hard part.

Saying so long to my colleagues. 

You know where I was raised out in the west the term So Long really meant See You Soon. 

That is how I like to say goodbye to others.   

So what have I learned the past 20 months?

Culture is important.  We all have culture, learning to recognize that and respect that is vital to harmony in the world.

Bias must be overcome. The mass killings in our country we must get to the bottom of it and make it right.  What a child experiences in the early years 0-6 forms the foundation for the rest of our lives.  One could almost say we live and die by what we learn as young children.  What we learn about the world and our place in it and what we learn about ourselves. 

It is all about relationships.  Forming strong attachments and trusting relationships is foundational for young children. I have worked with children who long for that and don’t have it in their environment.  Now when I see a child I smile.  Even that brief contact in a positive form is a place to start.  My work in parent education is just beginning, I feel though that this is important work helping the parent be able to form those attachments and relationships with their child. 

Long Term Goal

        The last 8 months I have been dealing with a medical problem. One which has prevented me from working and following the path I wanted.  I plan on working on getting my full health back so I can pursue my goals.   My long term goal – there is so much I want to do.  I see the possibility of developing my cap stone project into a real program and present it to independent preschools for social – emotional behavior management training. This is something no one address in training of preschool teachers and other staff.  I think it could be a valuable thing to offer and possibly it could be part of a plan to provide for myself.   I am still thinking of using Montessori some way.  I have talked with the pastor at the church I attend about using the Catechesis of the Good Shepard for Children’s Church.  If I can extend the program to last from Sunday school the children will have two full hours to work in the classroom and I can incorporate other Montessori work into the space.  Finding a job that will give me long term employment is another goal.  While that may seem like a short term goal I live in a very depressed area and finding a decent job here is very difficult.  Traditional preschools here pay minimum wage for a teaching position to start.  Rather hard to make ends meet on that but it would be a start.  I am also going to write about my experiences being suddenly disabled for a local newspaper here and a Montessori Chat for them too.  So I don’t have one big long term goal but lots of small ones that I hope can meld together and turn into a good life that is satisfying and fulfilling while keeping me financially solvent as well. 

I want to thank my instructors for the past classes and Dr. Embree for the Capstone class.  She was a great help when I had questions. 

I want to thank my classmates.  Always nice to work with you in the classes. 

I also want to thank my kids.   They have put up with a lot the past 20 months and have excelled in their own scholarly pursuits as well.  The one goal I had for my children was that they go to college and all have done so.  I am proud of all of them. 

I want to leave you with Maria Montessori’s thoughts on the child and teacher relationship.

The teacher, when she begins to work in our schools, must have a kind of faith that the child will reveal himself through work. She must free herself from all preconceived ideas concerning the levels at which the children may be. The many different types of children . . . must not worry her. . . . The teacher must believe that this child before her will show his true nature when he finds a piece of work that attracts him. So what must she look out for? That one child or another will begin to concentrate" (The Absorbent Mind, p. 276). 

One of the most notable differences between Montessori teachers and traditional teachers is the enormous trust Montessori teachers place in the developmental abilities of the children. It takes a tremendous amount of faith to “follow the child”. It is so much easier to say to the children, follow where I lead and no one will get lost. Nonetheless, with careful observation and planning, Montessori teachers remain constantly alert to the direction each child is heading and actively works to help them succeed.

Montessori teachers are not the center of attention in the classroom. Their role centers on the preparation and organization of learning materials to meet the needs and interests of the Montessori children. The focus is on children learning, not on teachers teaching.

Know thyself and follow the child. Two very important things in my Early Childhood Education World.

You can contact me on http://ww.Linkdin.com . My identity is Linda Bale.  I’d be happy to connect.

Peace and all good.

Thanks for stopping by.