Early childhood educators…parents…meet MESS: MESS: Marvelous Explorations Through Science and Stories. MESS is a guide to introducing scientific discovery and concepts to young children.
The introduction to MESS discusses the value of science and discovery for early childhood education. It also describes the goals of MESS and how to most effectively utilize the guides in an early learning classroom.
The nine guides include the following topics:
Animals: Fur, Fins, Feathers, and More
Insects and Spiders
Investigating Water
Kitchen Science
My Body My Senses
Our Natural World
Physical Science
Plant Life
Prehistoric Life
Take time to utilize these guides in your classroom and see what science can do for the development of your children.
“The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don’t have any.”
- Alice Walker -
This is how Holly Major, support specialist for Pathfinder Parent Center began her workshop on parent advocacy at the Region VIII conference in Fargo, ND. She had further expanded on a recent post regarding this topic, so I found it helpful to parents and families wanting to become more involved in their child’s lives.
Experiences are valuable and will go by very quickly. A parent will always be a childs first and most important teacher and parenting is the most important job that every parent takes on. Here are some tips to becoming an affective advocate for your child:
1 - Understand your childs needs/abilities
Know the services appropriate for your child
Have high expectations for your child and the service they receive
Find the right accommodations
Use resources to learn more!
2 - Know the Key Players
Find out who the decision makers are
How can you find their names?
What type of organization are you working with?
3 - Know your rights/responsibilities
Read websites
Ask how service is funded
Ask to see laws
Ask questions – It’s likely others have the same question
Join a group
4 - Be well organized
Keep records
Put everything in writing – email, letter, text, etc.
Keep a phone log
Have a meeting, keep accurate notes
5 - Use Clear/Effective Communication
Keep your eyes on the prize! – Find the right services for your child
Listen and ask questions – What is right?
Turn negatives into positives
Speak clearly, don’t make people feel defensive
Much of communication is non-verbal, remember that when meeting face-to-face
Show respect, be thankful, manage your emotions
Apologize if necessary
Separate the person from the problem
Remember that not everyone has all the answers
Check your facts
Choose your battles
6 - Know how to resolve disagreements
Talk to the right people first
Follow the formal processes for solving the problem
Remember, being fair is not about treating everyone equally, but about giving everyone what they need.
The first workshop I had attended at the Region VIII conference was led by Sandi Christofferson and focused primarily on the brain research that is having such an impact on the social and emotional aspects of infant development. She provides us with some ways to positively encourage the infant’s early attachment experiences that are the building blocks for the mental health and wellness of the child.
Sandi began her workshop by mentioning that it is never to late to have a happy child. It’s important to be aware of the process of attachment, what happens when things go right, when things go wrong (effects of early trauma) and the positive models of care for young children.
What people need to know
• Brain Stem is apparent from very beginning ( 3 weeks) and is the first part of the brain to function
• Early childhood experience help make the connections between the stem and the other parts of the brain
• At birth, the brain has 100 billion neuron (potential for connections)
• At 2 years old, there are 1,000 trillion connections
• The brain gets heavier as cells connect and has great potential to develop as the baby grows
o The weight of the brain increases more in the first 27 months of life than it ever will.
o The brain is more malleable in the first 3 years than any other time during its development. The experiences provided by Head Start are very important at this state of the development process.
What regulates the brain is the Quality and Quantity of relationship. This means balance between social, emotional and mental experiences. Attunement of the caregiver or parent is so important. They must have the ability to read and interpret cues/signs given by the child and respond to them in a timely manner. This allows trust to develop between the child and the caregiver. Some parents may not be experienced in recognizing these sometimes subtle cues and will need the caregiver to provide some assistance in recognition of these subtle cues.
Emotional Development
Edward Tronick, director of the Child Development Unit at Harvard University, studied interplay between infants inner world and outside world. He found that young children develop emotions before they begin learning, so managing their emotions becomes necessary. Infants are less able to learn if they are not able to control their emotions. Properly regulating a child’s emotions requires dedicated/informed individuals.
Some things that may interrupt attachment:
• Trauma of the infant brain
• Environmental safety
• Medical/birth defects
• Parental and/or caregiver mental health (depression, anxiety, etc.)
• Family support
• Loss of caregiver
One of the most interesting experiments relating to this process was done by Dr. Tronick. The still faced experiment shows a mother interacting with her child, and shows what happens when she “interrupts” interaction. Take a look.
Mrs. Christofferson continued on the topic of infant trauma. Any, or all, of the following may be considered trauma:
Some myths about infants related to trauma include:
They’re too young to understand
They don’t take it in
They don’t feel
They won’t remember
We are emotional creatures that think! All experiences must pass through the brain stem and up through the various parts of the brain. There are ways we can enhance this experience for our children, models of care we may all participate in. They include:
Enhancing the attachment experience (modeling for parents as early learning specialists)
Holding and containing
Being a secure and predictable base for both parents and infants
Watch, Wait, Wonder – a form of child/infant and parent interaction
Attending to adult mental health (yours and the parents)
Thanks to Sandi Christofferson for the educational workshop. Here are some links she provided that may be of some use:
Usually when you visit Fargo, ND, the only stampede you’ll have to worry about is that of the NDSU Bison. From Oct 13-15, however, 600+ Head Start parents, staff and administrators converged upon the city to learn, network and grow at the Region VIII Head Start Conference.
Day one was filled with encouragement, music and education. North Dakota’s entire congressional delegation joined the group for the opening presentation. Senators Byron Dorgan and Kent Conrad and Representative Earl Pomeroy took time out of their busy schedules to support the work of Region VIII, more specifically, North Dakota’s Head Start programs. It was a very impressive sight to see. Here is a little bit from Senator Dorgan. I apologize for the poor quality.
After a short break, we were entertained by the music and message of Jana Stanfield. Jana is an award-winning recording artist, speaker, humorist and songwriter. He music has been described as “Heavy MeNtal” or “psychotherapy you can dance to.” She had the audience dancing, singing and smiling for much of her presentation, but she also shared many positive messages with us. My favorite went along with her song, “I’m not lost, I’m exploring.” If we see ourselves as explorers we won’t be expected to have all the answers. Her recommendations:
Be open to learning new things.
Let yourself have a beginners mind
Turn grief into growth
“We cannot do all the good the world needs, but the world needs all the good we can do.”
– Jana Stanfield -
I watched a video recently from the Community Driven Institute regarding sustainability. It made me think of Head Start and the services we provide to families with children pre-natal to age five. I believe the presenter said it best when she mentioned that sustainability takes much more than just money. She discusses the need for a strong foundation, individual support and, eventually, monetary support. Head Start providers are a great example of this phenomenon.
Head Start families are all capable of becoming sustainable and breaking the cycle of poverty. The almighty dollar is viewed as a key variable in the breaking poverty equation. Many families (young and old) are unaware that, even with money, lacking a foundation and strong support group makes the road to sustainability very rugged. Head Start programs provide the support these families need to take a step toward sustainability. Head Start services help build the foundation for these families, teaching them fundamental concepts needed to live comfortably in today’s society. They provide the parents with knowledge that they can then pass to their children when they are at an age of understanding and rational. Without Head Start services, many families would not have the support or fundamental knowledge necessary to take that next step toward sustainability.
“When we change the way we see things, things change.” Take a look at the video and let me know what you think.
You are a parent. You’re working two jobs and taking night classes. Fortunately, Head Start provides you with the peace of mind knowing that your children are receiving the valuable early childhood experiences they need to excel at the next level. Most, if not all parents, however, want to be more involved in their childs lives. If you have a child in Head Start, you may be wondering how this increased involvement is possible.
That’s the real beauty of Head Start. It not only provides you with access to valuable childcare services, but it provides you, and your children, with education. Head Start programs welcome parents into the classroom and can educate them on creating an early learning environment in your home. Here are a few more ways to become more involved within your Head Start program.
Communicate with Head Start staff/teachers
Attend Parent/teacher meetings
Serve on Head Start Policy Council or Advisory Council
Tell your story to individuals who influence how education or other programs for children operate.
Parent and family involvement is as important in the classroom as it is out. Head Start programs need parents to be engaged and involved just as much as the children do. Get involved today so getting involved tomorrow is a snap.
Bridges to Benefits is a valuable resource for individuals and families in need of assistance. Sponsored by the South Dakota Voices For Children and the Children’s Defense Fund of Minnesota, Bridges to Benefits is designed to improve the well-being of families and individuals by linking them to public benefit programs and tax credits.
The service utilized a confidential and user-friendly Eligibility Tool making it quick and easy for South Dakota residents to determine if they may be eligible for public benefits. The program pulls information from, and determines eligibility to, the following programs:
Child Care Assistance
Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP)
Energy Assistance (LIEAP)
Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)
Sales Tax on Food Refund Program
School Lunch Program
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) (formerly known as Food Stamps)
WIC Nutrition Program
While the program will provide you with information about possible benefits and if you may be eligible, it will not automatically apply for benefits and will not guarantee you receive any benefits described.
Please take some time to check out this great resource. You or someone you know may be eligible for support programs and tax credits.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) proposed new safety standards for full-size and non-full-size baby cribs. The proposed new crib standards are in response to numerous incidents of injury or fatality to infants involving such cribs. The Commission is requesting comments on these new proposed standards by October 6, 2010. The proposed new crib standards will apply to all owners and operators of child care facilities, including family child care homes. Once the new standards are in effect, it will be unlawful to provide a crib for use that does not meet the new standards. We encourage you to review these proposed new standards and make comments. The Commission has proposed the new standards to be effective six months after the publication of the final rule (which is unknown at this time, but could be as early as this fall). The Commission is also seeking comments regarding the sufficiency of this six month effective date. To read the notice of proposed rulemaking as well as instructions for submitting comments please click here: http://www.cpsc.gov/businfo/frnotices/fr10/cribstd.pdf.
A story recently released in the New York Timesfeatures a study published by University of Illinois researchers confirming that active children may, in fact, be smarter than inactive children. This is great news for Head Start and a large reason for its success over the year.
As early childhood educators, parents or education professionals, we are all aware of the benefits activity based learning can have on a young child. If you are unaware of the benefits, this study may help shed some light on the situation. In Head Start, activity based learning and providing valuable early childhood experiences is an essential part of the social, emotional, mental and physical development of our young children. This study further emphasises the importance that play and activity based learning can have on our young children.
While the study focused on 9 and 10-year-old children, it is difficult to imagine these findings not relating to younger, or even older children in similar situations. The main point of the New York Times article? GET KIDS MOVING!! They showed active children, with similar backgrounds, will have high IQ’s and will perform better on tests than their inactive counterparts. This evidence further emphasises the need for early childhood education and the role it plays in the development of the future leaders of our country. I hope Washington D.C. and the leaders therein are listening.
If there is someone out there who hasn’t heard of Head Start Body Start, I’d like to provide a brief introduction. Head Start Body Start National Center for Physical Development and Outdoor Play (HSBS) is a collaboration between the American Association for Physical Activity and Recreation (AAPAR) and the National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) and is funded by a grant from the Administration for Children and Families. Their goal? To improve the health of all Head Start and Early Head Start children, parents and staff. They do so by providing valuable resources, services and assistance to Head Start programs around the country, informing OHS of changing policies and trends, and last but not least by providing grants to programs allowing them to construct or improve their outdoor play centers.
Recently, 380+ grants were awarded to Head Start programs nationwide to improve their outdoor play spaces. These grant recipients also have access to online training as well as on-site targeted training and technical assistance from a Head Start Body Start Physical Activity Consultant. The best news…three South Dakota programs were chosen to receive grant money!! Congratulations goes out to:
Murdo Head Start, SD
TREC – Badlands Head Start: Prenatal to Five Lemmon, SD
Watch Puppy Depot Head Start, SD
To see the complete list of grant winners, visit the Head Start Body Start website. Congrats again to those South Daktoa programs who will be upgrading or improving their outdoor play equipment. Keep up the great work for the children and families of South Dakota!
