10/30/2007 Why is my mommy not here?
It's a wonder I ever became an ECE professional. What I really wanted was to become a spy. In college I took foreign language classes, read Kafka, wore sunglasses inside...the whole nine yards. I just thought that maybe someone at the CIA would decide that a chubbie, giggly, talkative operative would be just what they needed! I waited and waited for that mysterious tap on my shoulder to indicate that I had been selected. Nope, never happened. What's a girl to do? I changed my mind. I'll become an interpreter! I talk so fast in English, imagine how efficient I would be with other languages!
Oh...I could see it now, me....a high powered interpreter. I saw myself working at the UN, wearing suits with high heels, carrying a briefcase and talking to world leaders in French and Russian. (This fantasy was so rich that I would try on suits at the mall, just so that I was prepared, in case the UN couldn't wait and wanted me to start while I was still in college!)I will never forget the day that my mom changed my life. I had come home one weekend, and she took me out to lunch. She told me that being an interpreter for the UN was a very important career and that she was proud of me for pursuing something, however, maybe I should be taking Education classes so that I would have something to fall back on.
Huh? Education classes? Me? On campus we called Education courses Mickey Mouse classes because they were so easy and trivial. I might as well take basket weaving..... But, one never argued with my mom. Actually, I'ver heard of people who did, but I am not sure they lived to tell about it.... My first class was multi-cultural understanding, and when my professor told us that children are a product of not just their family but of the environment they learn in, I was hooked. Something clicked and I never looked back.Thank G-d and mom.
Now, onto my comment for today.
This Sunday at 2am is when we set the clocks forward. It will get darker earlier on Monday. Jimmy's mom usually picks up Jimmy at 4:30, and Jimmy knows this because at that same time every day, the sky has a certain color. Now, at 3:30, the sky is going to have that same color and mom is not going to be there to pick up Jimmy. This is not good if you are Jimmy. But you, fair teacher, are aware! Being aware of this is half the battle. Make sure on Monday you discuss the time change with the children, (not in an overwhelmingly boring circle time, but in small groups.) If your children tend to rely upon looking out the window for their folks, be sensitive to their plight. Re-remind them about the sky getting darker earlier around 3:00 so they are prepared. You are such a great teacher!
12/27/2007 In Celebration of 10
Whoo hoo! We have 10 subscribers to our blog! In honor of 10, I thought I'd give you a 10 of my own.
Here are 10 things I learned this year:
10. A dog is a blessing wrapped in layers of hair.
9. Walking isn't such scary exercise.
8. Young children need to be included in the design of your classroom.
7. If you ever lose track of your goals, take a break and start again.
6. If you tye dye in your washing machine, be prepared for several loads of pink clothing afterwards.
5. A toddler is capable of dancing well into the night, long after the grown ups are exhausted.
4. When making peanut brittle, following the directions EXACTLY or suffer the consequence.
3. The tags on your clothing contain useful information; read them before washing sweaters.
2. You don't really need to know EVERYTHING that your teenager does.
1. If you fall asleep every time you read, maybe you just needed to sleep.
Happy New Year! May the best of 2007 be the worst of 2008.
1/15/2008 It's all in a day's work.
My morning with a 2 year old....So, I go into a class room of 2 year olds and am introduced to the class by the teacher who says, 'This is my friend, Miss DJ, and she is very nice." I walk next to Bobby, who immediately looks at me, smiles and says, "Did I poop my pants?" He says it the same way you might ask yourself, "Did I leave the coffee pot on?" You know, not too worried, but a bit contemplative. I look at this 2 1/2 foot foot tall little man and say " Well, gee, I don't know, do you want me to check?" Without a beat, he says "Sure", and stands up and puts his tush in front of my face. I very seriously take a sniff. (Of course, only praying that he didn't indeed poop his pants, or that sniff could have made me very uncomfortable!) With relief I announce "Nope, your good to go." He says, "good', and we high five. OK, this little guy is now my best friend.
We sit down next to each other along with the others for a brief circle time, and we hear the teacher tell a story. As she speaks, I get a case of the giggles. Yes me, getting the giggles. I know that I am supposed to be there observing another child, but for some reason, this little guy's attitude tickled me and I just could stop giggling. I look over at him and he smiles. Then the funniest thing happend. He starts laughing. Not giggling, laughing. Loud. He starts to slap his legs and hold his belly as he roars with laughter. I cannot contain myself any longer and start to laugh so hard that I begin to cry. I actually had to get up and leave the area in order to contain myself. I love this business!
1/16/2008
I want to share with you something great that happened yesterday. I teach a small part of the "we are about to become parents" class several times a year. Last night I had 10 sets of new parents. Usually I just share brain delevopment stuff. However, for some reason I was feeling a bit cocky. You might say I was on a roll. I made jokes, played around with them, and then decided to go for the big guns. Here we are, talking about brain development, and how the first 5 years are the most critical for social and emotional growth. I assure them that the teachers in our system understand the importance of developmentally apporpriate learning, but just in case, "if you ever go into a school and the director/teacher tells you that they teach reading and do worksheets in the 4's room, then you just turn around and run out of there and never look back!"
Well, I have to tell you....these parents were hooked! I watched as they took notes reminding them to read and sing to their children, to severly limit tv and videos, and to promise to help each other when one of them falls into the trap of "pushing the academics too early." I even heard one dad say to his wife as left the room, "well, we'll just turn around and not look back!"10 families educated, 8 million to go. Get me on Oprah!
2 comments:
DJ,
I have to respond to your post because the word "basketweaving" was also a word that was used in my life.
When I graduated from high school, my uncle had a job lined up for me at Hopkins. (Ihated school and would rather be at all the parties than studying for a test). I had to make a decision...college or secretarial job at Hopkins. I waited until the last possible minute to decide. When my unncle asked me I told him that I had decided to go to college. He looked at me while I was sitting next to my grandmother and said , "What are you going to college for? Basketweaving?". Well, needless to say that has stuck in my mind over the years.
So, I went on to get my BS in Early Childhood Ed and then my Masters in ECED. So, if you equate my career and my education to "basketweaving", I am an expert in "basketweaving" (which, by the way, does not pay very well and requires you to have many hats to wear depending on if you are the teacher, the cook, the van driver, the teachers aide, the maintenance dpeartment, etc). So, this "basketweaver" is proud to be weaving the threads to the future!
Thank, Jenn, for your note. And for making the better of the two decisions. Our world is better because you did!
Now, how do we get other amazing people to join our ranks?
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