enganging families assignment

Imagine you are walking down the hallway one day and encounter one of the kindergarten teachers, Ms. Shannon, speaking with a parent during pick-up time, as shown in Video #1. Many families have expressed concerns about the activities that their children partake in while they are at Little Steps Early Childhood Care Center. These parents say that their children seem to be playing a lot more than learning. Imagine the early childhood professionals interviewed in this video are your colleagues at Little Steps Early Childhood Care Center. Video #2 shows how they have responded to the families’ concerns.

Using the information from the videos, the Little Steps Newsletter (Document #1), and the transcription from a home visit (Document #2), write a three-page response that describes how the Early Childhood Care center’s policies and practices either align with or need improvement in order to align with the NAEYC Principles of Effective Practice in Website #2.

Video #1 Website: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UivL7SB4cY4

Videos #2 Website: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=daaRw8DHFQc

Document # 1: See Below / Is The Newsletter

Document # 2: See Below

NAEYC Principles of Effective Practice in Website #2: http://www.naeyc.org/familyengagement/principles

Document # 1 Below:

December

LITTLE STEPS NEWSLETTER

Greetings, parents and family members! Welcome to Little Steps’ December Newsletter for our toddler program.

Reminders for Parents

Please remember to call and let us know if your child is going to be absent for the day.
Don’t forget to put extra clothes in your child’s cubby, in case of accidents or spills.
As the winter approaches, please make sure your child is appropriately dressed for the cold weather. We will make sure maintenance clears the sidewalks. However, if there is ice or snow on the ground, please use caution while walking to the center.

November Recap

The word of the month was “respect.” We learned about what it means and focused on ways in which we can respect each other.
We learned about the seasons and why the leaves change in the autumn.
We learned about the upcoming holiday, Thanksgiving. Then, we drew pictures of things that we are thankful for and took turns sharing them with the class. Below is our bulletin board with the amazing artwork we created!

enganging families assignment 1

Thank you to everyone who contributed to our annual food drive. Little Steps Early Childhood Care Center was able to donate over 200 cans of food to those who need it. Great job, everyone!

Dates to Remember

December 10 – Book Fair

December 21 – Holiday Show at 7:00 p.m.

December 24 – Christmas Eve (closed)

December 25 – Christmas (closed)

December 31 – New Year’s Eve (closed)

Don’t forget about our annual Parent-Teacher Conference on Wednesday, January 15, from 3:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Be sure to log onto www.littlestepsdaycarecenter.com/ptconference to sign up for a 15-minute time slot!

Document # 2

Document #2: Below is a transcription of the dialogue between a pre-kindergarten teacher, Ms. Bryson, and the mother of a child during a home visit. The mother, Ms. Rodriguez, and her daughter, Adela, speak English as a second language.

Parent:	Hi, Ms. Bryson, I'm Ms. Rodriguez. It's nice to meet you. Come in and have a seat.
Teacher:	It's very nice to meet you, too. Let's talk about Adela. She's a wonderful girl!
Parent:	Yes, I know!
Teacher:	OK, great. Well, like I said, Adela is a wonderful student. Her English is getting better and better, and she is a pleasure to have in class.
Parent:	I'm happy to hear that.
Teacher:	When I do home visits, I talk to the parents about five specific areas: Number 1: Physical and Emotional Health (Is your child happy and healthy? Are there any physical or emotional problems I should know about?) Number 2: Attitude Toward School (Is your child happy to come to school? Does she like school?) Number 3: Relationships with Others (Does your child have good relationships with friends, with family, and with other children and adults?) Number 4: Hobbies, Interests, and Special Abilities (What interests your child? What does she do in her free time? Does she have a special ability, for example in sports or music, or art?) And finally: Number 5: Learning Experiences (What learning experiences does your child have outside of school?) Do you understand?
Parent:	I think so.
Teacher:	Let's start with health. Tell me about Adela's physical health.
Parent:	Adela is healthy. She eats good food every day, and she is active—she has a lot of energy. Only, I think maybe she needs glasses.
Teacher:	OK. I see. Next week we will have a vision screening here at school. An eye doctor will come and check everybody's eyes. Then we will tell you if Adela needs glasses. Do you understand?
Parent:	Yes, that's great.
Teacher:	Anything else?
Parent:	No, I don't think so. Adela is a healthy girl. She has allergies in the spring, but she takes medicine and it's OK.
Teacher:	How about her emotional health? Is she happy? Sad? Nervous? Homesick?
Parent:	Adela is usually happy. Is she happy in school?
Teacher:	Yes, she is also happy in school. She is always smiling! Let's go on to your daughter's attitude toward school—like I said, she seems to like school. What do you think?
Parent:	Oh, yes—she loves school. Of course, she is happy when we have vacation, but she loves learning and is happy to go to school.
Teacher:	Good. About her relationships with others, Adela has good friends at school. Everybody likes her. She speaks and plays with Susie and Carla the most—they are her best friends. Does she have good relationships at home?
Parent:	Oh, yes. We have no problems. You know, she argues with her brother sometimes, but that's normal.
Teacher:	Yes! OK, about her hobbies, interests, and special abilities: What are Adela's favorite hobbies or activities? What does she do in her free time?
Parent:	Adela plays soccer and watches a little TV, but her favorite thing is animals! She loves animals. She prefers books about animals, and she wants me to buy her a rabbit for her birthday.
Teacher:	Yes, she told me she wants to be a veterinarian, an animal doctor!
Parent:	That's true—she says that is her dream.
Teacher:	Well, I'm sure she can do it. We have a pet mouse in the classroom, and she always remembers to give it food and water.
Parent:	That’s great! But also, Adela said there is a soccer team. She is interested, but I don't know what to do for her to be on the team.
Teacher:	The registration for the soccer team is next Friday—I will give you the information about that. And it's free.
Parent:	Oh, thank you. That would be great.
Teacher:	OK, as for learning experiences: Can you tell me about any special learning experiences outside of school—at home or after school?
Parent:	Learning experiences? I think everything is a learning experience—
Teacher:	Yes!
Parent:	But, for example, our family goes to the library every week to check out books and videos, and we go to the park, and we walk in the woods. Adela helps me with cooking sometimes. My sister, Adela's aunt, also helps Adela to write in Spanish sometimes.
Teacher:	That's wonderful!
Parent:	Is her English OK?
Teacher:	Oh, yes. Sometimes, new vocabulary is difficult, but she is learning very quickly. And she communicates in English with the other children with no problem. Does she show you her homework?
Parent:	Yes, she does. Sometimes we look in the dictionary together for the new vocabulary, and then we both learn.
Teacher:	That's wonderful. A very good idea. OK, I think we're almost finished. Do you have any questions for me?
Parent:	Let's see...well, just, is Adela doing OK? Is she a good student?
Teacher:	Yes, Ms. Rodriguez, Adela is an excellent student, and I really enjoy having her in class. She is doing fine, and I look forward to talking to you again in the spring. Please contact me if you have any questions before then, OK?
Parent:	Great, thank you very much, Ms. Bryson.
Teacher:	Thank you too, Ms. Rodriguez—have a wonderful day. And please contact me anytime if you have questions or concerns about Adela.