Young Children - May 2008 - (Page 62) greet the parent and child; if a child sits with her back to the group, examining a car; or if a child clings to your leg and cries if you move. Then you’ll have notes to go back to over time. • Be objective. Don’t assign meaning to what you see; record only what is actually happening without offering interpretation. • Use all of your senses. Infants and toddlers respond to what they see, smell, taste, touch, and feel. What do you notice with your eyes, ears, nose, and skin? • Note your own responses. How are you feeling? This can give you clues to how a child is feeling. Think about Jiymeon’s reactions. Perhaps she is responding to Keisha’s feelings of frustration and uncertainty as well as her own. • Watch again and again. Do as many observations as possible over time. Watching a child once gives you a snapshot. To get a complete picture, you need to watch again and again. Each time you watch, you will learn something new! ask the children’s families and her coworkers are • I wonder how [baby’s name] usually reacts around strangers. • I wonder if [baby’s name] has a special blanket or toy here that provides comfort. • I wonder if [baby’s name]’s family told Tabitha about any special ways they use to hold, feed, diaper, and care for [baby’s name]. • I wonder if any of [baby’s name]’s behaviors were occurring before I came into the classroom. Think abouT iT Think about the definition of transition stated on page 60. How have you helped the infants and toddlers in your care deal with change? How would you use OAR to help you develop a transition plan if you don’t already have one? Try iT • Try one of the strategies of observing. • Wonder with parents or staff. • Use one of the listed responses the next time a child in your care is going through changes. Respond Your observations and “I wonder” questions will provide you with information that you can use to respond respectfully and sensitively to each child during a transition. For Keisha and the babies in her care, some responses might include • Encourage family members to stay an extra few minutes to allow the child to settle in. • Set up the environments so that there are toys and experiences of special interest available as soon as children enter the room. • Encourage family members to bring in a special toy or blanket that the child uses for comfort. • Accept the child’s feelings and proceed at his or her pace. Follow these routines as best you can until you have developed a positive relationship with each child. It is important for adults to recognize that even infants and toddlers react to the smallest changes in their lives. Caregivers are responsible for identifying those changes and providing sensitive, responsive, transitions that respect children’s individual abilities to cope. We can do this by using a transition plan and by implementing the three-step process of observe, ask, and respond. References Early Head Start National Resource Center. 2004. Transition strategies: Continuity and change in the lives of infants and toddlers. www.head startinfo.org/pdf/transition_strategies.pdf Early Head Start National Resource Center. 2006. Lesson 1: Watch. Part of digging deeper: Looking beyond behavior to discover meaning. Early Childhood Learning and Knowledge Center (ECLKC) Web site Online lessons. www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ ohs/eclkc/index.html. Select “Areas of Interest” in the Main Menu; go to Professional Development and select On-line Lessons. Parlakian, R. 2001. The power of questions: Building quality relationships with families. Washington DC: Zero to Three Press. Ask The second step of OAR is to ask questions. While you’re observing, questions will probably come to mind that you need to ask yourself and others. It is important that you include all of the caring adults when asking questions. Each adult sees a vital aspect of the child’s world. Looking at all the pieces helps put the puzzle together. Sometimes asking questions of others can be a bit awkward. It may seem like you are questioning their abilities instead of trying to understand the child’s view. Beginning questions with “I wonder” is a great way to ask without appearing judgmental (Parlakian 2001). Posing such questions allows all the adults to think about the child’s emotional well-being and offers them an opportunity to include additional information in their answers. Some of the “I wonder” questions Keisha might Recommended Resources Baker, A., & L. Manfredi/Petitt. 2004. Relationships, the heart of quality care: Creating community among adults in early care settings. Washington, DC: NAEYC. Elliot, E. 2003. Challenging our assumptions: Helping a baby adjust to center care. Young Children 58 (4): 22–28. http://journal.naeyc. org/btj/200307/ChallengingOurAs.pdf Gonzalez-Mena, J. 1998. Foundations: Early childhood education in a diverse society. Mountain View, CA: Mayfield. Lally, J.R., ed. 1990. Infant/toddler caregiving: A guide to social-emotional growth and socialization. Sacramento: California Department of Education. Morrison, G. 2001. Early childhood education today. 8th ed. Columbus, OH: Merrill/Prentice Hall. Seibel, N., D. Britt, L.G. Gillespie, & R. Parlakian. 2006. Preventing child abuse and neglect: Parent–provider partnerships in child care. Washington, DC: Zero to Three Press. Stonehouse, A., ed. 1990. Trusting toddlers: Planning for one- to three-year-olds in child care centers. St. Paul, MN: Toys N Things Press. Copyright © 2008 by the National Association for the Education of Young Children. See Permissions and Reprints online at www.journal.naeyc.org/about/permissions.asp. 62 Young Children • May 2008 http://www.headstartinfo.org/pdf/transition_strategies.pdf http://www.headstartinfo.org/pdf/transition_strategies.pdf http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ohs/eclkc/index.html http://www.acf.hhs.gov/programs/ohs/eclkc/index.html http://journal.naeyc.org/btj/200307/ChallengingOurAs.pdf http://journal.naeyc.org/btj/200307/ChallengingOurAs.pdf http://www.journal.naeyc.org/about/permissions.asp
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