Share a positive example of the effects of research on children and/or families: Perhaps you can provide real-life examples of research benefits to children and/or families; maybe you are familiar with stories of people who have been positively affected by research; or you came across a published research article concerning children or families which you find exciting and would like to share with your colleagues.
I almost chose option 2 this week, but I have seen the benefits of research first hand with parents of children in my classroom.
When I decided to come back to school I had no clue how much I would grow not only as an educator, but as a person. I have a first time mother who has been with me since her son was 3 months and I noticed early on that she was having some attachment issues. Morning drop off was becoming a daily headache for me and I dreaded it everyday. She said goodbye at least 30 times to her son and if he did not cry for her then she would say it again until she got the reaction she wanted. As you can imagine this made my mornings AWFUL! I had no idea how to broach the subject with her and was starting to feel helpless.
One of my discussions during my Early Childhood Development course was titled "The many faces of attachment", and I saw the light at the end of the tunnel. I became a sponge and soaked up all the information I could on attachment. I knew that when the time came for me to have a conversation with this mother I was going to have to present her with facts. During my conversation I shared several articles and we had a open and honest conversation. A week later I noticed a huge change in morning drop off. Instead of spending 30-45 minutes for drop off it got down to 10 minutes and I was just fine with that. I watched the video “ Building Adult Capabilities to Improve Child Outcomes: A Theory of Change”, the narrator said “The most important thing children need to thrive is to live in an environment of relationship that begins in their family, but also extends out to include adults who aren’t family members, childcare centers, and other programs” (National Scientific
Council on the Developing Child. (2009). If it had not been for research on attachment, I would have never known how to handle this situation. I have now created a research folder in classroom that my parents have access to and it has been really beneficial.
Resources:
Miller, S. (2008). Secure attachment. Published by
Ounce of Prevention Fund. Retrieved from http://www.ounceofprevention.org/includes/tiny_mce/plugins/filemanager/files/Secure%20Attachment.pdf
National Scientific Council on the Developing Child. (2009).
Excessive stress disrupts the architecture of the developing brain.
Working Paper #3. Retrieved from http://developingchild.harvard.edu/library/reports_and_working_papers/working_papers/wp3/
Riley, D. (1996). Helping Form A Secure Attachment. Retrieved from http://www.nncc.org/Child.Dev/dc25_secure.attach.html
Hi Keli,
ReplyDeleteI remember you discussing this in one of our earlier courses and how unsure you where of how to approach this mother. I am so glad to read about the outcome of this. Kudos on your research into the subject of attachment and being able to reach this mother :)
BethAnn
Thank you for sharing a personal story! I have too appreciated how we have each been able to grow and mature within our professional and personal lives due to the research we've been asked to do. A research folder, what a great tool for parents! We have documentations for re-calls and such, but an area where parents can access for content of matters, this might be a great tool.
ReplyDeleteHello Keli,
ReplyDeleteI think that is wonderful. I love how you applied what you learned in your professional environment and how it benefited not only you as an early childhood professional but how it benefited you parents and the children. I love the idea of a research folder in the classroom. You are exposing your parents and your community to information that otherwise they may not have access to which is extremely beneficial for both parents and children.
Attachment is an important part of the lives of children and families. I am observing my granddaughter establish herself as she transitions from living with her mom and living with me. We have supported her through providing her with positive praise and assurance she is loved. Thanks for the information. Our desire is have her grow to be an emotional secure child.
ReplyDeleteWow, what an experience when you can relate to issues like attachment and use what you have learned in research to apply to situations at work. Attachment is very important is establishing relationships and I think parents will have a great appreciation when we as early childhood professionals can apply our knowledge to real life situations and it actually works.
ReplyDelete