The family van turned off the busy avenue into the access road of a monstrous building complete with cracked windows and heavy, steel doors. My mother, as the driver, patiently waits in the drop-off line. More than likely, she was focusing on the busy work day filled with spreadsheets and endless cups of unsweetened tea. Rain drops began sprinkling down against the window as the wiper blade glided to meet them. This was the best part of the day; no screaming toddlers, angry teachers, or loud bells to worry about. Just myself and the sound of nature. My mother gently kissed me as a wish of luck. As a parent, it must be troubling to know that I despised stepping out of the car every morning. I slowly pushed the door open only to be greeted with …show more content…
Leaves rattled across the pavement. Adults with bright, orange vests franticly directed us toward the words “Topeka Daycare” spelled out across a paint-chipped door. Children of all sizes rushed past me - all excited to start a new day in preschool. I, on the other hand, was filled with apprehension. The climb upstairs to the classroom always took longer than expected by my teachers. The more time I spent in the stairwell the less I had to interact with other toddlers. Once the teacher started the day, I rushed to the back of the classroom for the seat next to a large window. As I looked down on the city streets and across the treetops, my anxiety settled. Nature was my escape from society; a place in which I was free to wander alone. I remained silent throughout the entire day. At playtime, I grabbed a Tonka truck and drove it to the nearest corner. At lunch, I picked the emptiest table. And at naptime, I finally felt safe. I locked my eyes on the clock with a countdown to dismissal playing in my head: three, two, one. Freedom at last. My little legs pumped fast down the stairs in eagerness. Being away from home was extremely difficult. For example, on the first day of preschool, I wrapped my chubby arms around my mother’s legs as tears rolled down my …show more content…
I sat through lecture after lecture about methods and benefits to socializing. My stubbornness persisted as each school day started with the longest walk, farthest desk, and emptiest corner. I simply would not budge. If my parents introduced me to a stranger, I would stand behind them in fear. If I was approached by a family friend, I would not acknowledge them. This was not a sign of disrespect, rather a consequence of my shyness. Amongst themselves, my parents discussed several options. They wondered if it was a phase I would outgrow or bad manner I would learn to live without. But as I quickly graduated preschool, I was still regarded as a soft spoken child. With all options exhausted, my mother and father sought guidance from friends. They consulted teachers, medical professionals, and colleagues in an effort assist me. Most recommended that I become more interactive with my peer group, but my experiences in preschool proved that to be difficult. So, with an open mind, they then discussed my situation with a neighbor. A plan was finally created to grab my attention with a single
She thought about her family, and the neighbors, and the town, and the dogs next door, and everyone and everything she has ever met or seen. As she began to cry harder, she looked out the window at the stores and buildings drifting past, becoming intoxicated suddenly with the view before her. She noticed a young woman at the bus stop, juggling her children on one side of her, shielding them from the bus fumes.
Being able to understand the development of a child is vital in aiding that child during that process. Parents play a vital role in this regard by offering the necessary support. On the other hand, once the child has been enrolled in a kindergarten or a preschool, most of the responsibilities of shaping the child are transferred to the teachers. This makes it vital for teachers to be able to help the child during their developmental stage. In this field report, the learner visits one kindergarten and one preschool to assess the learning environment. A comparison is made between these two schools as well as comparison with those proposed in Meier in her book The Power of Their Ideas: Lessons for America from a Small School in Harlem. The fieldwork also includes interviewing of two teachers and one Principal of one of the kindergarten schools.
As shown in the situation above, there is a great deal of stress and money that comes along with sending your child to daycare. At Needham Heights KinderCare, in Massachusetts, where Ms. Couchon is the director, parents walk in to soothing classical music in the reception area. They are even encouraged to take a few minutes to relax, knowing how stressed they are. There are phone calls that are made during her lunch hour for paren...
The Child Development Center of College of San Mateo provides early care and educational programs for children between the ages of 3 to 5 years old. Children are divided into classrooms with a “master” teacher, a “regular” teacher, and two or three “associate” teachers. Klara attended Classroom, “A,” a stimulating and well-resourced classroom. Klara was observed for two hours on Monday from 9 am to 11 am and for two hours on Wednesday from 9 am to 11 am. During these two hours, classroom activities consisted of “free time,” “story time,” and an outside “play time.” A “master” teacher, a “regular” teacher, and two “associate” teachers were present during observations. Additionally, a total of eighteen children were in attendance during the observed days.
As a child growing up in a rural county, I didn’t have soccer practice or dance recitals; no play dates or playgrounds. I had trees to climb, woods to explore, bikes to ride and adventures to be had. I had bare feet in the grass, wincing on the gravel driveway, rocks digging into my soles. I had walnuts to crush, plums to eat, flowers to pick, bugs to catch. I had my little brothers to bug me, my mom to take care of me, my dad to laugh with me and my grandparents to hold me. I had books to read, worlds of words to get lost in. I had Saturday morning cartoons, Sunday morning church, and fireflies to catch every night.
As I drove up to the Acres Homes Head Start Center, I noticed that the facility was in an impoverished neighborhood. I was surprised to discover that the Acres Homes Head Start Center is not a stand-alone building, in fact, it is located inside of a recreational center that provides various services to assist the surrounding community. I entered the main building and followed the signs that led me to Acres Homes Head Start Center. Aside from a few colorful caricatures on the see-through glass entrance, the exterior of the childcare center was not eye-catching, and did not appeal to my inner child, which led me to assume that the interior design would not encourage growth, learning and development. However, after observing the staff and children
For the majority of my preschool observation, the children were outside. It was very hard to get a good idea of what they did at this preschool and what the kids and teachers were saying. Just from my observation, I realized how different my preschool was. I went to St. Vincent DePaul Catholic Preschool in Shepherd. It was very different because my class was very small. It had eleven people in it, while the class I observed had about twenty people in it. Also, these children go to school all day and they will not all end up in the same graduating class someday. At my preschool we only went for half days and the majority of the students that went to my preschool graduated with me. I think both of the preschools had pros and cons. All day school is most likely better because students will get used to going to school all day and be more prepared for kindergarten. Having a smaller class may be better because it is more one on one. The one thing I think that was really good about my preschool is that we all graduated high school together. I think that it is very fun to get to grow up with the same people. I think both preschools are very good, they are just very different.
Social and emotional development served as the primary purpose for a semester-long observation report of a preschool child. The observer used various observation tools such as checklist, running record, anecdotal record with Desired Results Developmental Profile (DRDP) – Preschool to analysis the observation data and gather information of the child. The observations were in two parts, both lasting for an hour and in various locations and settings. The child demonstrated social and emotional development during the observation.
As I saunter onto the school field, I survey the premises to behold people in coats, shielding themselves from winter's blues. The sun isn't out yet, but the place bursting with life and exuberance, with people gliding across the ice covered floor almost cat-like. The field is effervescent and despite the dire conditions, the field seems to have taken on a life of its own. The weather is bad and the ice seems to burn the skin if touched, yet the mood is still euphoric. The bare shrubs and plants about the place look like they've been whipped by Winter himself. The air is frosty and at every breath the sight of steam seems to be present. A cold, cruel northerly wind blows across the playground and creates unrest amongst some. Crack! The crisp sound of leaves is heard, as if of ice splitting and hissing. Squirrels are seen trying to find a point of safety, scurrying about the bare trees that lie around the playground. Mystery and enigma clouds the playing field, providing a sense of anticipation about the place. Who is going to be the person to spoil the moment? To kill the conversation?
We all remember these grey gloomy days filled with a feeling of despair that saddens the heart from top to bottom. Even though, there may be joy in one’s heart, the atmosphere turns the soul cold and inert. Autumn is the nest of this particular type of days despite its hidden beauty. The sun seems foreign, and the nights are darker than usual enveloped by a thrill that generates chills to travel through the spine leaving you with a feeling of insecurity. Nevertheless, the thinnest of light will always shine through the deepest darkness; in fact, darkness amplifies the beauty and intensity of a sparkle. There I found myself trapped within the four walls of my house, all alone, surrounded by the viscosity of this type of day. I could hear some horrifying voices going through my mind led by unappealing suicidal thought. Boredom had me encaged, completely at its mercy. I needed to go far away, and escape from this morbid house which was wearing me down to the grave. Hope was purely what I was seeking in the middle of the city. Outside, the air was heavy. No beautifully rounded clouds, nor sunrays where available to be admired through the thick grey coat formed by the mist embedded in the streets. Though, I felt quite relieved to notice that I was not alone to feel that emptiness inside myself as I was trying to engage merchant who shown similar “symptoms” of my condition. The atmosphere definitely had a contagious effect spreading through the hearts of every pedestrian that day. Very quickly, what seemed to be comforting me at first, turned out to be deepening me in solitude. In the city park, walking ahead of me, I saw a little boy who had long hair attached with a black bandana.
Early childhood education is an issue that is examined both by media and academic professionals, both of which are represented by Alison Gopnik, a writer and professor (Gopnik, 2013). Gopnik (2011) found that over the years, parents and teachers work to their fullest to instruct children to read at very young ages. It can be Interpreted that reading skills take priority over creative skills, since children are instructed to read even in the womb (Gopnik, 2011). “Thus, the pressure is rising to make kindergartens and nurseries more like schools” (Gopnik, 2011). This pressure has come from the law since 2001, when preschools were pushed to become more academic (Gopnik, 2011). Creativity is a key component of success in later adulthood for problem-solving and cognitive abilities (Plucker, 2010). Creativity used to be the central focus of education studies (Plucker, 2010). At the turn of the century, and more recently, problem solving took first place along with creative thinking (Gruber, 2011). This essay will prove that the current education system tends to eventually pull children away from creativity. It will demonstrate how there is a greater amount of creativity in younger children as opposed to older children. This will be shown through the theories of Howard Gardner and Jean Piaget. In order to prove that education has moved away from a creative focus, this essay will examine the three phases of creativity, multiple intelligences and the U-shaped curve by Gardner, as well as Piaget’s constructivist theory and beliefs on retrogression, which is the idea of growing to show how we eventually pull away from visual art (Nolley, 2010). While this paper focuses on the development of visual arts in reference to the works of Howard Gar...
As a child, no matter where you grew up or what race you are, you had fun. Obviously not all of the time, as you have responsibilities at all ages and times of your life, but children still have fun. May it be playing with dolls, joining a club, or playing sports, children find a way to enjoy themselves. As well as any aged human, children are creative. Some children might be more creative than others, but all children have a sense of creativity. Being creative can be a positive or a negative feature of a person, as creativity could cause you to find crafty ways to get around the law, while it is also possible to use your creativity to solve problems in stressful situations that could be potentially life threatening. As a child, you
The fleeting changes that often accompany seasonal transition are especially exasperated in a child’s mind, most notably when the cool crisp winds of fall signal the summer’s end approaching. The lazy routine I had adopted over several months spent frolicking in the cool blue chlorine soaked waters of my family’s bungalow colony pool gave way to changes far beyond the weather and textbooks. As the surrounding foliage changed in anticipation of colder months, so did my family. My mother’s stomach grew larger as she approached the final days of her pregnancy and in the closing hours of my eight’ summer my mother gently awoke me from the uncomfortable sleep of a long car ride to inform of a wonderful surprise. No longer would we be returning to the four-story walk up I inhabited for the majority of my young life. Instead of the pavement surrounding my former building, the final turn of our seemingly endless journey revealed the sprawling grass expanse of a baseball field directly across from an unfamiliar driveway sloping in front of the red brick walls that eventually came to be know as home.
As a young child I was a non social person, and did not like to participate in anything. I liked to be an individual person, and do things on my own. I was shy and not outgoing like all my other friends were. When I enter a situation for the first time, I have a hard time speaking up until I feel comfortable. As being as shy as I was, my school work was affected a lot because I would not raise my hand to ask questions if I did not understand something, or go to the teacher for help. It was hard to transition from that stage to being more outgoing and talk more with my peers. It was difficult to communicate with others becuase of this as well, i was not able to be the perosn that i really am.
Early childhood education plays a key role in a child’s academic development because he or she learns soft skills, job skills, and develop positive traits. Preschool is not like kindergarten, but instead a stepping-stone that prepares young students for the years of schooling they will have later in life. As more schools began to open families wanted to be able to verify that programs would benefit and protect their children. In response, the National Association for the Education of Young Children was made to help families find the best care for their children, by providing the early childhood educators with training and ensuring the quality of children’s daily experiences. (“NAEYC”5).