Personal Advocacy Reflection

I find it quiet helpful to be able to assist others with connecting with local resources and services. Information can be at our finger tips yet some need a little bit of extra assistance and or  guidance getting to what it is he or she needs.

I can recall a situation in which a teen mom that I was working with had a need for childcare. It was important that she had childcare because she was still a student in high school and did not have much family support to assist her in caring for her daughter during the day while she was at school.

I transported her to the local department of social service building and we grabbed a number and waited until her number was called. Once called she had to go to the back and speak to a case worker and complete an orientation and was informed of the program guidelines and the process of obtaining a childcare voucher.

In the meantime the young lady and I called around to childcare facilities to find out if they had any openings, or how long the waiting list would be. Some locations she was able to complete an application to have on file for when her voucher from dss became active she could use it.

The process proved to be long and sometimes disappointing however to see the look on her face the day she received the call that she had received the child care voucher sounded like music to my ears, it was through the efforts and hard work that in the end proved to be successful.

Lets keep pushing

We are almost there, can't you feel it?

When I reflect about my collegial, professional Learning Community

I. Patience in my perspectives allowing time to take it's course, although all impactful changes happened over time and those changes in the works will eventually come to pass, I am a firm believer that when one is focused on the process of something the results will not solely matter yet the experience indeed will.

II. Not marginalizing people due to the lack of information, each person is an individual and it is important that they experience learning in a safe, supportive learning community. No one person should be the spokes person for a group of inviduals. In honor of World Aids Awareness month I am reminded of  how people talk about Hiv/Aids and always reference Magic Johnson and label his status as the ideal situation, because he appears "cured" and looks healthy;yet everyones reality will not model his. Many ignore the facts that Mr. Johnson has been living with the virus for 22 years, his lifesyle includes regiments of excersing, clean eating and taking his medication.

III. Enabling families or systems to feel powerful and competent with knowledge . It is my belief in doing these things I will strengthen my skills in being a competent advocate for children and their families. This can be achieved through welcoming children and displaying respect for their families. As a child I would always look forward to my 3rd grade teacher standing in the doorway in the morning ready to greet each and every student by name, she smiled, gave high fives or pats on the back and made me feel excited about someone anticipating my arrival at school.

I strive to be a chapion for all children and their families. To fight with the gifts I have been given to speak up and out on behalf of those that struggle with doing so for themselves. It's a gift and a curse somethimes becuae there are times that the asistance can be taken as enabling however I view it as a fine line of gathering parents towards self suffiency.

My Hypothetical Family Situation

Don't judge a book by it's cover, rang loudly in my ears as I sat on the floor in my bathroom with the pregnancy test in my hand and it read positive. On March 9 I found out I was pregnant. My life as a once knew it would forever be changed, a high school student, it's was my senior year i was ready to graduate, everyone always said i had a bright future ahead of me. Four mouths after finding out I was pregnant and the inital shock subsiding I not only found out the baby i was carrying was going to be a girl but would also be born with a birth defect called gastroschisis.

Gastroschisis is a birth defect of the abdominal (belly) wall. The baby’s intestines stick outside of the baby’s body, through a hole beside the belly button. The hole can be small or large and sometimes other organs, such as the stomach and liver, can also stick outside of the baby’s body.

Gastroschisis occurs early during pregnancy when the muscles that make up the baby’s abdominal wall do not form correctly. A hole occurs which allows the intestines and other organs to extend outside of the body, usually to the right side of belly button. Because the intestines are not covered in a protective sac and are exposed to the amniotic fluid, the bowel can become irritated, causing it to shorten, twist, or swell." (cdc, 2014
My belly grew larger and larger and my pregnany journey consisted of many doctor doctor appointments because of the baby's condition. There were so many test performed, I had to leave school early lots of times to make the doctor visits. While looking online at what to expect there were so many stories many in which scared me to read because i kept thinking what if my child's situation is worse.

In december I gave birth The defect was very complicated and no one knew how things would turn out. I remember the doctors letting me hold my precious baby and thinking all that i want to do was take the pain away from her.

Reference
Centers for Disease control and prevention (2014) Facts about Gastroschisis. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/birthdefects/gastroschisis.html

The Political will to improve Early Childhood Systems

First Lady Michelle Obama has used her position and stature publicizing to the public about the impact of raising a healthier generation of kids, through eating healthier, getting active, taking action, and joining in. 

To me it’s about taking your personal strengths and teaming up to make a difference, everyone has something that they can add to this society in making it a better place to live, especially for our young people. The pillars of the First Lady’s initiative consists of 

1. Creating a healthy start for children

2. Empowering parents and caregivers

3. Providing healthy food in schools

4. Improving access to healthy, affordable foods

5. Increasing physical activity 

In doing these things and creating bench marks to check status for sucessfulness it means it’s a step in the right direction of families making smarter food choice decisions and giving children long and lasting life style habits to show their children. What drives anyone to do something and be sucessful at it is passion. In the words of Harriet Tubman, “Every great dream begins with a dreamer. Always remember, you have within you the strength, the patience, and the passion to reach for the stars to change the world”. 

Parent family and community engagement

I watched the interview with Melinda George as she discussed the role of parents as teachers in the home and reaching goals.

      The professional and personal significance you drew from this story.

In listening to Melinda speak it sent chills up my spine in hearing how dedicated, ambitious and inspired she was to one believe in her self, second take flight to an opportunity presented to her by challenging herself to obtain numerous degrees. She is a shinning example of allowing a system to work in your favor, in that Mrs. George reaped the benefits of staying faithful and allowing all things to work together for good.
     Professionally, hearing Melinda's story has aided me by being reminiscent of the families that we serve and how they come from various situations and backgrounds and in some cases have gone through troubling times. Having a circle of support can make all the difference sometimes in giving a person the respect and honor individually. In addition to being encouraged by family, friends, and the community, through maintaining positive relationships.

Why involvement opportunities for parents and family members benefit young children, families,and the early childhood field.

Connecting home and school can be a challenging effort however not an impossible one. Keeping parents involved in the learning that happens at school will help aid in parents being more involved at home. Allowing for opportunities of getting the parents voices heard through parent meetings, and increasing volunteer hours to stay informed in the day to day operation of the child's center by doing so will allow parents to connect with other parents.

Creating action plans for parents by goal setting is beneficial in many ways it open up areas of opportunity for advancement with jobs, and education thus encouraging the child to go further in life and not give up when life's trials or tribulations become to tough.

Quality Programs for all Children

It was very insightful to see the various forms of systems. I particularly learned more about Kindergarten and its origin. In the multimedia presentation I was able to learn about public opinion regarding the value of quality early care and education programs for all children and how these opinions have evolved over the last 100 or more years. It has streamed from a focus on the children, their individual learning styles, emotional needs, and their individual families, interests and strengths to a focus on testing, assessing, and scoring young children, thereby ramping up the academic demands and pressures on them. 

In today's society the standards have changed, I can recall children doing half day programs and being able to take naps because the day was too long for a child to have to stay alert and maintain positive behavior throughout the entire day. There is a national push, related to the push for increased academics in Early Childhood classrooms, to cut play out of the kindergarten classroom.  Many kindergartens across the country no longer have sand tables, block areas, drama areas and arts and crafts centers.  This is a deeply ill-informed movement, as all early childhood experts continuously report that 4, 5 and 6 year olds learn largely through play.  Play is essential to healthy development and deep foundational learning at the kindergarten level. 

Programs are sprouting up more and more than ever before based off a inclination to service children and their families. Early Head Starts, home childcares, schools for the gifted etc. Accessibility to such programs are making it easier for parents to sign up and allow their children to be included. Transportation is being provided, breakfast, lunch and snack, some cover the use of diapers, wipes, and offer programs to educate parents. Acknowledging parents face many challenges one being in the "working poor" where they earn well above the official poverty line and still barely stay afloat and maintain a quality relationship with their children. 

 I wish that over the next five years parents take a greater stance in their children's education and begin the process in the home first and not simply wait until the child is of age to attend school and believe they will learn everything there is to know from school, yet their exposure will greatly be balanced from home and school. 

I believe there are many benefits to a shift taking place in the family dynamic.  Family cohesiveness will gear and set the tone of making these units closely bonded while reducing issues and the need of programs such as "scared straight", boot camps, jails, etc and an increase in mentoring programs, camps, and the ability to expose the youth to positive more rewarding experiences. 

Children's first teachers come from the home and what they are exposed too that can set the stage to all other possibilities. I recently read an article where a child shot and killed himself because the lack of education and awareness of a gun being inside of a vehicle and the child gained access to it. As adults we have a say in who our elected officials are and we have to rally together to do a better job at voting and making our voices heard which being involved and active in our children's lives will be impactful.