The left hemisphere of the brain is especially active in children of preschool age and then levels off. Accounting for that fact is that between the ages of 2 and 6 the brain increases from 70% of its adult weight to 90% (Exploring Lifespan Development, Laura Berk, 165). Much of children’s gross and fine motor skills are developed and refined in the preschool years also.
When I was a child pre-school was called nursery school. I attended two days a week when I was four years old. As I grew, my mom put my younger brothers into a parent co-op pre-school. In this type of environment, parents are active participants in the preparation and implementation of weekly, age appropriate activities.
My own children attended the City of Roseville preschool offered at the local elementary school site for two days a week when they were 3 and three days a week when they were 4. In my experience children learn easily and really well during that age range. I put my kids in preschool for the socialization aspect. They learned to follow a routine and get along with others that were NOT their family members. It was also only for 2 hours, not an all day care giving experience.
Dual income parents today may not have the necessary time to teach their young children skills necessary for a successful transition to Kindergarten. For those families, preschool/daycare settings that emphasize curriculum, which our book defines as goals and objectives of a program (Berns, 197) are much more beneficial to children – in my opinion - than placing them in a care giving environment where grandma lets the kids do what they want with no dialogue, interaction, or instruction. Not to say that grandma can’t be a viable care option, but if the children receive no other socialization, or are not encouraged to interact and she simply places them in front of the tv, they will be behind the curve in Kindergarten.
But a substandard preschool/daycare center would do far worse damage to a child than grandma sitting them in front of the tv. In my own research of quality pre-school programs, the best programs were very costly and the reasonably priced ones had high staff turnover, low employee compensation, and low educational requirements for staff, a trait that our book suggests as common (Berns, 181). Many twenty-something college students think a career teaching preschool children will prove exciting, yet a mere 6 units of college course work, just two ECE classes which is generally the requirement for a pre-school assistant, does not adequately prepare them for the challenges of teaching preschoolers. Thus, a high turnover in staff ensues since they realize they aren't getting paid enough to deal with Johnny who hits all the time and Suzie who bites and Lisa who refuses to participate in carpet time and Billy who can't sit still.
In my experience as both a parent and a preschool teacher, the best type of curriculum content in one that is theme based. And the best type of learning environment is what our book calls developmental interaction curriculum (Berns 201). A classroom contains various learning centers and each learning center revolves around a theme. For example; apples – children use apples to apply paint to a picture. The eat apples for snack. A chart is made to graph the kinds of apples the children like. Apple seeds are planted. A book about apples is read. Rhymes are learned about apples. Math skills, language skills and writing skills are all incorporated into each theme.
However, I think that both learner directed and teacher directed activities are essential for preschoolers to be prepared for a Kindergarten experience. Much of elementary school is teacher directed. Children who have only been exposed to learner directed activities and been encouraged to learn at their pace and not have to do something they don’t want to – in my experience – struggle because they are expected to perform exactly as their teacher wishes right away yet lack the experience of practicing that skill. Yet children who have experienced a blend of both styles adapt better to the Kindergarten experience. But that is just my observation and my opinion as a volunteer mom in the Kindergarten classroom.
Monday, February 23, 2009
Thursday, February 5, 2009
Top 10 Stressors
The Top 10 Stressors on Families (and how my husband, kids and I deal with them) are:
10. Overscheduled Family Calendar - There is no down time when families are constantly on the go. My kids don't play every sport and have every minute of their day scheduled. I feel they learn just as much if we go to the park and they start up their own game of baseball or kickball.
9. Insufficient Family Play Time - My kids love to play board games with my husband and I - so we have a weekly game night. Most families I know are so over committed with activities that leave them in their cars most weeknights this would never be an option.
8. Spousal Relationship - There is a saying that says, "If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." My husband and I are sure to connect with each other every evening - we discuss what was positive and negative about our days and we both listen to each other intently. It helps that we are still friends and genuinely care about each other even after 18 years of marriage.
7. Guilt For Not Accomplishing More - If we always look at what we "could" have done, we will never enjoy what we ARE doing right now. For me when I began focusing on right now, instead of what should have been done, it was the most freeing feeling in the world. My kids won't remember my to-do list, but they will remember what I did with them at that moment in time.
6. Insufficient "me" time - I think this is more a stress for moms than for dads. Moms are the glue that hold a family together and for me, if I constantly give and don't refresh myself, I am running on empty and no good for anyone.
5. Communicating with Children - My husband and I have a saying, "It's like talking to a brick wall." Enough said!
4. Lack of Shared Responsibility in the Family -I am so fortunate to have a husband who pitches in and helps. Of course, I had to get over the fact that not all of my kids or my husband perform their jobs the way I would. That doesn't make my way right and theirs wrong, it just makes them different ways to accomplish the same task - most of the time!
3. Insufficient Couple Time - When my kids were small and my mother in law watched them at my house (my father in law didn't want them at his) my house would look like a tornado hit it - so that was a major stress factor in itself and I never wanted to go out. But now teen babysitters have become my salvation for this stressor. I found a sitter that all four of my kids adore and look forward to their time with her. That takes the stress out of leaving them - plus she picks up after the kids so I come home to a spotless house. (And, no, I don't give out her name.....I might need her the same might you do - lol!)
2. Children's Behavior - This is a tough one. My kids know what we expect and we try to let them know why. That helps. But kids will always test the limits to see how far their poor behavior will take them. Another one of my favorite sayings is, "Negative attention is better than no attention at all." I try to remember that when my kids are acting up and see if part of the problem is because I haven't paid enough attention to them and they are acting out because of that.
1. Economics - Our book tells us that a downturn in a family's economic well-being produces less affection toward our kids (Berns, 122). And in today's economy, where furloughs of government employees and parents being laid off or terminated because a company can't afford to keep them, certainly does play a part in parent attitudes. Worry can creep in. But I find that if I keep a positive outlook, no matter how trying the situation, my kids pick up on that. They also pick up when I am stressed.
These stressors are taken from our text (Berns, 123) and the author lists them in this order. In my family, I think the order varies somewhat, but these are certainly things that can cause stress if they aren't dealt with in a positive manner.
10. Overscheduled Family Calendar - There is no down time when families are constantly on the go. My kids don't play every sport and have every minute of their day scheduled. I feel they learn just as much if we go to the park and they start up their own game of baseball or kickball.
9. Insufficient Family Play Time - My kids love to play board games with my husband and I - so we have a weekly game night. Most families I know are so over committed with activities that leave them in their cars most weeknights this would never be an option.
8. Spousal Relationship - There is a saying that says, "If momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." My husband and I are sure to connect with each other every evening - we discuss what was positive and negative about our days and we both listen to each other intently. It helps that we are still friends and genuinely care about each other even after 18 years of marriage.
7. Guilt For Not Accomplishing More - If we always look at what we "could" have done, we will never enjoy what we ARE doing right now. For me when I began focusing on right now, instead of what should have been done, it was the most freeing feeling in the world. My kids won't remember my to-do list, but they will remember what I did with them at that moment in time.
6. Insufficient "me" time - I think this is more a stress for moms than for dads. Moms are the glue that hold a family together and for me, if I constantly give and don't refresh myself, I am running on empty and no good for anyone.
5. Communicating with Children - My husband and I have a saying, "It's like talking to a brick wall." Enough said!
4. Lack of Shared Responsibility in the Family -I am so fortunate to have a husband who pitches in and helps. Of course, I had to get over the fact that not all of my kids or my husband perform their jobs the way I would. That doesn't make my way right and theirs wrong, it just makes them different ways to accomplish the same task - most of the time!
3. Insufficient Couple Time - When my kids were small and my mother in law watched them at my house (my father in law didn't want them at his) my house would look like a tornado hit it - so that was a major stress factor in itself and I never wanted to go out. But now teen babysitters have become my salvation for this stressor. I found a sitter that all four of my kids adore and look forward to their time with her. That takes the stress out of leaving them - plus she picks up after the kids so I come home to a spotless house. (And, no, I don't give out her name.....I might need her the same might you do - lol!)
2. Children's Behavior - This is a tough one. My kids know what we expect and we try to let them know why. That helps. But kids will always test the limits to see how far their poor behavior will take them. Another one of my favorite sayings is, "Negative attention is better than no attention at all." I try to remember that when my kids are acting up and see if part of the problem is because I haven't paid enough attention to them and they are acting out because of that.
1. Economics - Our book tells us that a downturn in a family's economic well-being produces less affection toward our kids (Berns, 122). And in today's economy, where furloughs of government employees and parents being laid off or terminated because a company can't afford to keep them, certainly does play a part in parent attitudes. Worry can creep in. But I find that if I keep a positive outlook, no matter how trying the situation, my kids pick up on that. They also pick up when I am stressed.
These stressors are taken from our text (Berns, 123) and the author lists them in this order. In my family, I think the order varies somewhat, but these are certainly things that can cause stress if they aren't dealt with in a positive manner.
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