Journal 12

The child has made the most improvement in the following areas:
The child's social skills have improved since the past conference. I have observed the child interacting the other children daily. She loves to play with babies in dramatic play with other children. They love to put the diapers on the dolls and dress up in fire man hats. She is also doing great using her words when she wants or needs something. She asks when she wants water and expresses her feelings to her friends with words rather than getting angry and hitting.

The activity the child loves the most is:
She loves it when we turn on the music and sing and dance. She loves to dance and learn the movements to songs such as the Itsy Bitsy Spider and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

The child is most excited and attentive when:

She gets most excited when we go outside to play. She knows when she is instructed to go to the door that it is time to go outside. She loves to get fresh air and run around. She uses outside time to use her outdoor voice and run around with her friends. She loves the riding toys and loves to swing.

The best form of redirection for the child is:
When I have to redirect her from a situation I usually find another activity for her to participate in. She does best when she is removed from a situation and redirected to a quiet place to calm down. She usually chooses to do puzzles when she is redirected.

One objective the family could work on at home with the child is:
One thing that the family could work on at home is using the potty. We take the children very often but consistency is important when potty training. We are working on keeping her pull up dry all day and she is doing great, but I think she would get potty trained quickly if we put her in underwear and worked on taking her at home as well.

Journal 11

I am a very visual person. I remember things best when I see them written down in front of me. There are times when I also need to discuss something with another person to remember it. The parents we work with need to be told information in several ways because they are all different. For parents who are visual I would post flyer's around the center if there is an event going on or an activity. I would also write it on a white board in the lobby or on their child's daily sheet to help remind them. Other parents are auditory. They may remember something more easily if the teacher brings up something in conversation that they need to remember. This way they can recall the conversation. Some parents are kiniesthic learners which means they are do-ers. For these parents I may suggest working with your child in order to see areas that needed to be worked on rather just mentioning areas of improvement to them. I may also have them sign up to help for an event so they may remember. All parents remember information differently that is why it is important to share information with them in several different kinds of ways.

Journal 10

Health Alert:

It has been reported that your child may have been exposed to whopping cough (Pertussis) at the center.

What it is:
Whooping cough is a contageous disease spread by bacteria. It is most common in children under 5 years of age. It causes severe coughing spells. Whopping cough can also lead to pnemonia, convultions, bleeding of the brain and sometimes death.

How is it spread:

Whooping cough is spread through the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. It is contageous from the beginning of the cold until 5 to 7 days after treatment with antibiotics starts.

What to look for:

It begins with an irritating cough, cold and a runny nose, the cough becomes more servere and ends with a high pitch whoop. Thick, clear, sticky mucous may be coughed up.

What you can do:

Medical supervision is recommended.

If you suspect your child has been infected:

Seek medical attention. This is a very contageous disease.

What we are doing to prevent the spread:

Proper hand washing, not allowing children to share food or drinks, advising children to cover thier mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing. There is also a vaccine to prevent Whooping Cough.

Journal 9

Drop off and Pick up Times:

Our center is open from 6:30 A.M. to 6:00 P.M Monday through Friday. We ask that children be dropped off before 10:00 A.M. daily in order to maintain the routine and structure of the classroom. If your child has an appointment or special curcumstance and may need to arrive late,  please speak with the office to make arrangements.   If your child will not be attending the center on a particular day please notify the center Director for attendance purposes.

We have an open door policy so children may be picked up at your convenience but we do ask if you wish you pick them up during resting time please notify the office so we can make arrangements not to disturb the other children in the classroom.

Our center closes at 6:00 daily. There is a late pick up fee of $1.00 per minute per child. Please notify the office if you are running late.  We will notify the Police Department if you are more than 30 minutes late to pick up your child.

Journal 7

After watching the What Not to Wear Video I got some tips on how to dress for success. It is very important to dress appropriate at work. First impressions are important, and if you are a director at a childcare center, you meet new people daily. Often times, you may be the first thing a potential client sees after entering the facility. Your appearance can make a huge impression on new families. Dressing professional is as important as acting professional. If you dress  too casual you can be perceived as unprofessional. When working in this field, you should definitely not show much skin. We work with children and therefore childcare workers should be appropriately dressed. Also, it is important to look clean and energized when arriving to work. When childcare employees come to work with there hair not brushed and thrown up, it gives the impression that you are not well rested, you were in a rush to get out the door, and perhaps you are not "put together." Unfortunately in this field, we are often not respected or appreciated for the work that we do. We want families to see us as professional early care providers, not babysitters. After watching the episode I noticed how a persons confidence can be boosted when they dress nice. They feel happier with themselves which is very important in this profession. Also, wearing clothing that is torn, stained, wrinkled and extremely old is unprofessional. We want to feel good about ourselves so others feel good about us also!

Journal 6

Pg. 66 in textbook

Discussion questions:

1 & 2. The confidentality code was violated which the mother and Eric in a few ways. First, the director got all of Eric's records without the mothers permission. Also, the teacher was planning to tell all of the parents of the children in the room that Eric was a biter. The teacher also forced Eric's mother to fill out information about Erics father even though it sounds like she left his name off the forms intentionally. The director also basically diagnosed Eric with ADHD before even meeting him, and Erics teacher was also having a conversation about his physical features with another teacher.

3. I do not think the directors should have spoke about Eric's disability prior to enrollment. This resulted in Eric being labeled as a hyper child who has behavior problems. The director of Erics new center already had her mind made up about his before she had ever met him. She also self diagnosed him with ADHD.

4. I believe the new director and Erics mother should have been included in this meeting. His mother could have informed  the director of any disabilities or behavioral issues that Eric may have.

5.  I do not think it is fair to Eric to have a conversation about him with others. That would give the other children in the classroom an opportunity to talk about Eric with out him being there. I think that would be unfair.

6. I think Erics mother could have brought him to his new school and let him visit before dropping him off for an entire day. Also, I think the teacher could have helped him feel more comfortable by letting him have his Elmo doll during resting time. I also think the teacher could have spent some time getting to know Eric and she could have introduced him to the other children and encouraged them to play together.

7. I think the teachers conversation at the restaurant was out of line. I understand a teacher wondering what is going on at home when a child's behavior changes. However, this conversation could have lead his mother to be afraid that the teacher was talking about her son to a group of people. This could have resulted in Erics mother to not trust his teacher.

8. I think if this conversation was in the staff lounge in would have been different. There would not have been any potential parents around to hear the conversation. Also, it could have been more of a discussion about the cocerns of the "biters" home life rather than sounding like a hot topic for the dinner table.

9. I would apoligize to the mother and reassure her that her son would be treated fairly. I would also be sure the teacher remembers confidentaility and understanding when dealing with children. Each child is an individual and is unique in thier own way. I would also let her know she is welcome in my office any time to discuss any concerns she is having.

10. I think the mother should leave the child at that school. I do not love the school based on the scenario but the child seemed so nervous on the first day and if the teacher and director gave him a chance he may surprise them.

11. I feel that Eric deserves a fresh start with a new group of childen. If the teacher remembers we are here to help children grow and learn than I think Eric will be okay.

Journal 5

 

 

Staff Meeting

September 21, 2013

6:00 P.M.

 

• Fall Carnival
• Our annual Fall Carnival is Friday October 25th from 7:00-8:30 P.M.
• Please encourage your families to let their children dress up in their Halloween costumes.
• Every teacher must sign up to run a booth- please see the list in the office
• Each classroom will create a themed basket of items to auction off at the carnival. Please choose your theme and post a flyer asking for donations.
• Please make a list of items you may need for the booth you are running and turn it in to the office 
• Lesson Plans must be turned in to the office each Friday. This is in order to ensure they are developmentally appropriate and posted on time as well.  
• Cell phones- please stay off of them. We have a no cell phone policy in the classrooms. This includes resting time.
• Outside cleanup- please clean up outside after your class has been outside. This includes pushing in chairs, lining up all push toys against the fence, putting all balls back in the crates, and cleaning up all trash. We want to ensure that our facility is clean and safe for families.
• Please greet each child and parent when entering the classroom in the morning! The children feel more welcome when you greet them, speak to their parent and have a friendly attitude. It makes the drop off process easier for everyone involved.
•  CPR/ First Aid training- October 15th at 10:00 in the school age room.
• You must have current CPR/First Aid to be employed here. It is required for all staff.
• Please see the sign up sheet in the office if you need this certification.
• Thank you all for everything you do. We appreciate your dedication and hard work each day.

Staff meetings are very important. It is one of the only times you have an opportunity to discuss important issues with the entire staff. It is also a time to do trainings on issues specific to your facility. The staff get to know each other better and see who their co-workers are. Many staff member are only morning staff or only afternoon so it gives them a chance to meet everyone and ask any questions that they may have.