Blog Journal #4

I sat down with a few of the parents who’s children attend the child care center that I work for and we discussed my advocacy plan on how children learn through play. Most of the parents were happy to give their insights to what their children learn and need to learn while in the classroom. One parent was under the impression that her child only played games in the class. She did not think the games had anything to do with academics and learning social skills. There was also a parent that understood that children were learning how to play with others before they were able to be successful in the elementary schools. The last parent felt she wanted to be on board with whatever the teachers were doing in the classroom to help their child be successful in the primary grades.
After talking with the parents I learned that the parents had expectations for their children that were the same as the professionals that were working with them. Many parents feel that the majority of the academic knowledge that children gain come from the school, but failed to understand that it is a joint effort to ensure that children reach their developmental goals.
One insight that I learned from the parents was when working with families it is important that there is a strong positive relationship between families and professionals to better understand the needs of the family.

Blog Journal #3

I had the opportunity to discuss my advocacy plan with a professional who works with three year olds. Her main focus is teaching children how to control their feelings, build their vocabularies, and learn to build positive relationships with others. I discussed my view on the importance of play for children in childcare, which is the same view she holds that play is important to the development of children. Ms. April explained to me that in many centers parents have the same focus on academics and not teaching children to interact with others.
Ms. April feels that when children are going to an elementary school the main focus is always on academics. If a child has a hard time controlling their emotions, using their language, and following simple directions then it would be difficult to get them to focus and take in the information that is being presented to them.
While observing the class it was apparent that Ms. April had the children in learning centers: dramatic play, building blocks, media table etc., she encouraged the children to problem solve, use their words to get their message across, and understand when they have to wait their turns. She also gets the children into small groups and helps them with counting, colors, letters, and shapes. I agree that these are the building blocks for getting children ready for the academic part of their learning careers. 

Blog Post 2

I had the pleasure of sitting down with Michele, who is the owner of a child care center in Illinois. Michele has been a childcare professional for over twenty years and has been a advocate for the quality care children receive while in the child care setting. I begin to introduce my topic for my research paper to Michele about the importance of play for children and their development. Michele has strong views that children should have the opportunity to explore their environment. Through play children are able to solve small problems, build their vocabularies, and learn to respect others and themselves.

One insight that I gained from Michele is her understanding of how children learn differently and how important it is that professionals create an environment for children to express ideas and learn from the people around them. Another insight that I gained from Michele was the importance of making the activities child directed and helping them learn from knowledge they already have.

Children need to have interactions with others in order to understand feelings, language, and cognitive thinking. Play allows a child to understand the different roles that people take on while talking, which helps in understanding words and their meaning. This is a skill that is needed to help children gain the skills of reading and writing, Through play children are capable of building life long skills to help them be productive members of society.

Blog Journal #1

I am thinking of focusing my research paper on the following area: Children Learning Through Play. I had the opportunity to talk with Jamie about her beliefs on different ways children learn. Jamie gave great insights on her understanding that children learn different aspects of life through play, such as language development, problem solving skills, cognitive development, emotional development, as well as physical development. Some issues that are related to this topic are families not understanding the importance of play, as well as the grade schools putting too much focus on standardized test. I often have issues with other professionals about the amount of play a child should have while they are in school. I feel that there should not be a limit on the amount of time a child has to play because this is the time when children are able to explore their environment and learn at their own pace. The advocacy efforts that are being made are getting more information to educators and families about the importance of children learning through play. I believe that this issue is the one that deserves professionals to become advocates because when children are not allowed to express themselves through play it can lead to negative developmental issues.

How children learn.

Hello~
Many parents who have never put their children in a child care center feel that there is not enough "school work" being done in the class. I want to get as much information out to parents and explain the importance of play in the child care setting. I am looking for any and all ideas to help parents gain more knowledge on the importance of play in the classroom.