Innovation in Early Childhood: Engaging Families

Who would have thought that a simple task such as engaging families in their children's education would be innovative in the early childhood field?  Early childhood professionals definitely understand the importance of engaging families into their classrooms and into their child's educational progress.  So why is this an innovative approach?  While we know it is good practice, unfortunately not everyone is putting this practice and there is so much more to just inviting families into your environments that can engage them in their children's education and development.

What I stumbled upon when looking for innovative strategies in early childhood education was IDEO, a global design company, and their support for a text entitled "Tangible Steps Toward Tomorrow: New Designs for Early Education, Ages 0-8."  The text not only supports engaging families in their child's education but engaging them before their child is born.  Providing support for new mothers and fathers to understand the importance of the impact parents have on their children in the early years of their child's life and how that impact can ensure a positive outcome for their children (W.K. Kellogg Foundation & IDEO, 2008).

IDEO and W.K. Kellogg Foundation challenge the early childhood field and elementary schools to take the human centered approach when designing programs for young children (W.K. Kellogg Foundation & IDEO, 2008).  Both organizations challenge us to create more collaborative connections with community resources and businesses in order to involve families and their children more in the community (W.K. Kellogg Foundation & IDEO, 2008).  When families know the resources that are available to them, they may be more inclined to become more involved in their children's education, development, and success.

I found this resource quite interesting and was happy to stumble upon it.  There is so much research in this resource supporting the involvement of parents and families in children's education and ways to accomplish that for the family who is able to be at school as well as the family that cannot be present at school.  I encourage you to check it out as it proves to be a valuable resource for any early childhood professional.

References

IDEO.  (2015).  Strategy for Improved Early Childhood Education for WK Kellogg Foundation. 
  
   Retrieved from https://www.ideo.com/work/strategy-for-improved-early-childhood-education-for-  
  
   wk-kellogg-foundation

W.K. Kellogg Foundation & IDEO.  (2008).  Tangible steps toward tomorrow: New designs for early

   education, ages 0-8.  W.K. Kellogg Foundation, Battle Creek: MI.

Go outside and commune with nature!

Children today are in need of more natural outdoor environments and outdoor play.  Children would rather watch tv and play on computers and tablets than play outside.  Why is that?  Various reasons actually.  Depending on the neighborhood you live in, it could be unsafe to play outside.  Some parents might not be able to properly supervise their children while outside.  Some children are so engaged in technology, they might not know what they are missing being disconnected from nature.

Talking to one of my colleagues at my school, she expressed how more and more children in schools are sitting in classrooms for longer periods of time.  School districts are eliminating recess times for children in kindergarten through fifth grade while junior high and high school students do not even have opportunities to engage in outdoor environments unless they participate in extracurricular sports.  The colleague indicated to me that she has noticed more that while we decrease children's time outside, we are contributing to increasing children's aggressive behaviors.  Time outside is time well spent to get fresh air, clear our minds, and exercise our bodies (Bailie, 2010).

When children engage in communing with nature, their brain activities are enhanced as well as their play experiences (Dowdell, Gray, & Malone, 2011).  So how do we bring meaningful nature experiences in the early childhood classroom and/or integrate outdoor learning environments into our early childhood environments?  Communities build houses and industrial buildings all of the time. How about if our communities invested in building more natural outdoor learning environments that are accessible to all children (Bailie, 2010)?

This summer, my family and I went to Okoboje, Iowa and found peace and tranquility being surrounded by lakes, beaches, and an outdoor music park.  The outdoor environment provided so many opportunities for us to bond as a family and commune with nature.  My husband and I were able to enjoy our children knowing that we were getting ready to send our oldest off to college and the dynamics in our house would drastically change.  The outdoors provided a stress reliever for all of us breathing in fresh air, feeling sand between our toes, and engaging in music.

It is time to bring nature back into our classrooms and inspire children to use the outdoor world to engage their brains, exercise their bodies, and inspire creativity.

References

Dowdell, K., Gray, T., & Malone, K.  (2011).  Nature and it's influence on children's outdoor play.  

     Australian Journal of Outdoor Education, 15(2), pp. 24-35.  Retrieved 

              from http://www.researchgate.net/publication/262180932_Nature_and_its_Influence_on_Children%2

7s_Outdoor_Play

Bailie, P.  (2010, July).  From the one-hour field trip to a nature preschool: Partnering with 

     environmental organizations.  Young Children, 65(4), pp. 76-82.  Retrieved from 

     file:///C:/Users/Nicolette/Documents/Walden%20ED.%20S%20assignments/nature%20education.pdf

Let's Start With Me

This little girl is me at the age of 2. This picture was taken when I went with my mother to visit relatives in Greece.

 

As you can tell from the picture, I look pretty happy with a cookie in my mouth.  Not just a cookie but a Greek pastry cookie nonetheless.  At an early age, I was learning how to travel and connect with some of my relatives that were part of my culture and heritage.  I could not have engaged in those experiences had it not been for the independence and strength of my mother.  At the time of this visit to Greece, my mother was pregnant with her third child after losing her second child to SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome) almost to the year before and was traveling with a two year old to Greece. 

 

As a child, I learned independence, kindness, strength, patience, and love from my mother.  While I also learned from my father, it was my mother who I learned from the most.  My parents divorced when I was eight and my sister was six.  The divorce was stressful for my sister and I and of course our parents, but I often felt like I was in the middle of a constant battle between my mother and father.  I managed to maintain a close relationship with both of my parents, appreciating what each had to offer me in my development.  Both of my parents could agree that family was important and gave my sister and I plenty of opportunities to visit with each side of the family.  The closest relationships I have are with my sister and mother because we depended so much on each other through the most difficult times.

 

Was it difficult being a child of divorce?  Absolutely!  I am not going to sugar coat it.  At the time my parents got a divorce, I was one of maybe two kids in my school that had divorced parents.  My teachers did not know how to react or connect with me because they had not experienced divorce themselves and did not know a lot of families that had experienced divorce.  This caused a great deal of difficulty for me trying to concentrate being a student while not having anyone to talk to what was going on in my life.  Being the oldest child, a lot of pressure was put on me to know what was going on and somehow relay it to my younger sister.

 

Forward thirty-eight years later and I am married with four children with one of those children in college.  I have been able to pass on some of those important values that were important for my mother to pass on to me.  Family is also important for our family and I strongly believe that our children are able to have strong relationships with others because of our closeness as a family.

 

As I continue my life journey and especially my journey in education, I want others to understand that relationships matter, whether negative or positive, and can have an immense impact on a person and his/her development.