ECE 313 Week 2 Assignment: Resources

Resources

Ashford University

ECE 313 Collaboration with Parents & Community

Resources Essay

A community resource that I use and love to share with my parents is the library, Suffolk Public Library. The parents and educators can gain access between three local branches Morgan Memorial, Chuckatuck, and Northern Suffolk. The local library offers a free membership card which allows the public to check out a variety of online resource (universal classes, e-books, and e-magazines), music, books, movies, games, and it has access to computers and the internet. (Suffolk Public Library, n.d.). The main branch Morgan Memorial is located in downtown Suffolk. The resource can be found on the website, https://www.suffolkpubliclibrary.com/

• As an early childhood educator, it is important to find outside resources that offers help to the families that are in our program. The Internet is a key instrument that offers access to these assets. “Resources provide wonderful materials to assist teachers and caregivers working with young children.” (Wardle, 2013, section 3.6). These resources the Suffolk Public Library, PBS Kids website and National Association for the Education of Young Children are just three resources that I found to be reliable and have great information for both parents and professionals in the early childhood field.

Suffolk Public Library supports the community, parents, and provides early childhood educators with an unlimited number of books for children to encourage literacy. Niklas, Cohrssen & Tayler (2016) states, “distal elements of a child’s ecological system such as extended family, community, and society have some impact on a child’s development”. The library is a great source to encourage or enhance the developing literacy skill for the children as well as interacting with friends who attend the library. The library encourages the children to complete an application for membership (linked through parent/guardian account) and receive a library in their name. Parents, who sign their child up for their child first library card is a great way to help promote self confidence and become comfortable in the library around books. The library also provides a variety of toys to promote Science Technology Art and Math (STEAM). These toys included for science to investigate the world around them (sensory bottles, variety of science games, and magnetic discovery boards); for Technology to provide fun, creative and challenging applications (little scholar tablets, and listening center with flexible headphones); for Engineering to explore shapes, colors, and fine motor skills (gears, magnetic blocks, and legos); for Art to provide fun and creative ways to express their imagination ( easels, play dough, paint, stamp pads, crayons, markers, natural materials etc.) and for Math to develop shape recognition and spatial relationships ( abacus, scales, links, and dominoes). (Suffolk Public Library, n.d.).

The library is valuable to both parents and early childhood educators. Educators can provide parents with unlimited resources to help promote the child’s development. Parents taking their children to the library to check out book to read at home. Niklas, Cohrssen & Tayler (2016) states, “Children learn through observation and interaction with knowledgeable others in social contexts. In the context of language and literacy the importance of parents modeling literacy activities and supporting their children’s emerging literacy skills”. Introducing the library to the children will help the parents to encourage a well balance of literacy skills and promote self confidence within the children.

As an early childhood educator, I will use the library in a variety of ways. I will use my library card to check out extra book to enhance my weekly lesson plan and at the end of the week reward the children with high fives. I will provide my parents with calendars and flyers that will encourage them to participate in various events and activities that the library may sponsor. I will encourage the parents to start a reading log at home. This reading log would encourage the children to read book and reward them with stickers. I would ask the library if they would have books to donate. I would extend the centers with a variety of different books. For example the dramatic play will have books on multicultural people and food; how to take care of baby; how to do laundry etc. For the block area will have books on cars, how to build homes, taking road trips, etc.

A fun and interactive resource that I use and share with parents is the PBS Kids website. The PBS KIDS website provided links to parents, children and early childhood educators to promote early literacy. The PBS KIDS provide programs to “promote education articles, games and activities on emotional and self awareness; social skills; character building, math, art, and science” (PBS KIDS, 2020). The PBS KIDS program provides the children with an unlimited source of materials to encourage them to strive for the very best. The source can be found on the website https://pbs.org/parents.

As an early childhood educator, I will use the website to sent information home to the parents in the weekly newsletter. The newsletter will give highlights to a variety of articles, games, activities and television shows that encourages their child’s development. It is important for early childhood educators and parents to work together to form a bond that inspires the children to become future doctors, lawyers, teachers and presidents.

Another virtual resource for parents and early childhood educators to use is The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC). This inspiring website provides assistant to parents and early childhood educators about children and their developmental growth. The National Association for the Education of Young Children (2020) states, “they strive to promote high-quality early learning for all young children, birth through age 8, by connecting early childhood practice, policy, and research” (National Association for the Education of Young Children, 2020). The resource for this website is www.naeyc.org.

The National Association for the Education of Young Children encourages the educators and parents to work together and provide an excellent support system for the development of the children. The National Association for the Education of Young Children provides early childhood educators inspiring practices through online training, conference, workshops and articles to help us become highly qualified educators for the children. As educators we can participate in these conferences, online training, and workshops to get credit for their 20 hours of educational training (or the number of hours designated by your state).

References

National Association for the Education of Young Children. (2020). National Association for the Education of Young Children. https://www.naeyc.org

Public Broadcasting Services (2020). PBS KIDS. WHRO Public Media. https://www.pbskids.org/parents

Niklas, F., Cohrssen, C., & Tayler, C. (2016). The Sooner, the Better: Early Reading to Children. Sage Open. https: doi.org/10.1177/2158244016672715

Wardle, F. (2013). Collaboration with Families and Communities. [Electric version]. https://content.ashford.edu