SFL DAP #4

DAP #4

In the section on young infants, birth to 9 mo. (starting on pg. 54), mobile infants, 8-18 months (starting on pg. 60), and toddlers, 16-36 mo. (starting on pg. 65), the authors address three components during this time of development, the child, the teacher and the teacher-family alliance.
The first three years are an exciting time with growth and development proceeding rapidly and brain development making tremendous strides, particularly if the environment is stimulating and the care is sensitive and nurturing.

Included in this assignment is an opportunity for you to arrange to view a video which will heighten your awareness of the importance of what caregivers can do during these crucial early years. Plan to view the video, “Ten Things Every Child Needs.” The video can be viewed in the Lee Library LRC. Take notes on the ten items that the video presents. Then, include with this assignment a summary paragraph (2-3 sentences) for each item, describing what you learned about its importance to infant development. (Note: Since this assignment is more intensive than previous sections, more points are possible on this assignment.)

DEVELOPMENTALLY APPROPRIATE PRACTICES FOR INFANTS AND TODDLERS

Read pages 53-107 in the DAP manual and respond to the following questions:

PART 1:
1. In the section on young infants (starting on pg. 54) there are nine paragraphs that describe infant characteristics. List the main idea from any 6 paragraphs. (3 points)
a. babies are individuals with individual caregiving needs (54)
b. babies enter the world ready for relationships (54)
c. babies learn through movements. As they move their arms, legs, and other body parts and encounter the world (55)
d. babies delight in hearing language (55)
e. In a group setting, young infants like to watch other babies and older children, and they light up when a friend smiles and coos at them. Many young babies enjoy being “part of the action,” at least for short periods. (55)
f. babies use their senses and emerging physical skills to learn about the people and objects around them. They touch different textures and put things in their mouths. (55)

2. List three things you feel are important for a caregiver of a young infant to understand. (2 points)
a. the infant care teacher’s responsive interactions help infants believe the world is safe, interesting, and orderly- a place where infants are understood and their actions bring pleasure to themselves and others. (56)
b. To help make this task easier, each area where routines take place should be carefully planned so that the infant care teacher’s time in preparation and sanitation procedures, such as getting needed supplies and careful hand washing, can be handled efficiently, leaving more time for interaction with the baby. During diapering, for example, pictures and objects at the infant’s eye leave capture his interest, while clean, safe, and warm surfaces help him feel comfortable and secure. (56)
c. Intriguing objects rest on low shelves or hang where they can be watched, batted, kicked, or safely tugged. However, most important to the baby is having the trusted infant care teacher close at hand. (57)



3. In the section on mobile infants (starting on pg. 60) there are eleven paragraphs that describe infant characteristics for this age. List the main idea from any eight paragraphs. (4 points)
a. Freedom to move about safely in an interesting, inviting environment is vital for these busy infants. (60)
b. Mobile infants are fascinated by the daily activities of the other children and adults around them. (60)
c. Mobile infants find their peers very interesting. (60)
d. express strong emotional ties to the adults they love, and they are acutely aware of their vulnerability when their loved ones are gone. (60)
e. as they play, these young explorers can be totally absorbed. (6)
f. they can look for a person who is momentarily out of sight, enjoy a game of peekaboo, and learn to wave bye-bye as they gain an understanding that people and objects exist even when they are out of sight. (60)
g. using language helps mobile infants stay connected with their infant care teachers over small distances: sing-song rhythms, elevated pitch (61)
h. as they play and use their new physical skills, mobile infants learn the rudimentary rules of cause and effect. (61)

4. List three things you feel are important for a caregiver of a mobile infant to understand. (2 points)
a. an attentive infant care teacher can often interpret a child’s actions and babbling and translate them into words. This reinforces the infant’s sense that she can communicate her needs and wishes to others (62)
b. if her teacher learns some words of affection and songs from her family (primary language) and gets simple picture books with captions in the family’s language. The message to the infant and her family is that their home language and culture are acknowledged and respected. (63)
c. infants with sensory or motor impairments or delays can be helped by infant care teachers who give them lots of opportunities to explore and experiment with objects and discover the results. (63)

*As a caregiver of infants, you have a 6 month old child who begins coming to your center for 4 hours a day. The first day, he cries often for his mother. How would you utilize the caregiver/family alliance to assist the child to make the best transition possible into your center? (4 points)
5. In the section on toddlers (starting on pg. 66) there are eleven paragraphs that describe toddler characteristics. List the main idea from any six paragraphs. (3 points)
a. they do the things they see the important people in their lives do, or at least they try. (66)
b. once toddlers master walking, their motor skills grow by leaps and bounds. (66)
c. toddlers love to hear stories about themselves and the people and things they love. Illustrations of familiar objects and activities invite toddlers to join in the telling of the story. (67)
d. As toddlers’ verbal skills expand, so does their ability to use objects, to put together sa series of actions in play and to remember event for later reenactment. (67)
e. they are developing increasingly sophisticated mental representations for the real world and mastering them through using them in play. (67)
f. They actively seek out their friends and especially enjoy imitating each other’s behavior and engaging in group activities such as a simple game of follow the leader. (67)

6. List three things you feel are important for a caregiver of a toddler to understand. (2 points)
a. Toddlers need consistent limits by adults who can be counted on and who mean what they say. Clear rules and limits enable toddlers to learn to make good decisions. (69)
b. as the child becomes aware of other people’s thoughts and feelings, the care teacher helps him begin to understand how the experiences of others may also affect his feelings. (69)
c. they equip the setting with materials that facilitate self-help skills, such as small pitchers and serving utensils or easy-to-put-on smocks. They give toddlers opportunities to help with tasks such as setting the table and cleaning up. (69)

*How would you utilize the caregiver/family alliance to assist a toddler from a Brazilian family who speaks only Portuguese? (4 points)
I would first find someone who could help translate for the parents and I to have meaningful converstations about their child’s progression in physical, emotional and social, and cognitive areas. After asking for an assessment of were the child is their native language I would try and learn a few common words in Portuguese: words of praise/affection, numbers, colors, and common objects in the classroom. Then I would ask the parents of the child if they would come in and share something one day about Brazil with the entire class. For snack time I would look into a few common foods in Brazil probably fruits, breads, candy and try and have them for snack time. I would also encourage the student to develop friendships and try to have the parents interact with one another in an effort to arrange play dates.

7. In the “Examples to Consider” section (pages 75-107), each age break down is addressed with accompanying ”developmentally appropriate” and “in contrast” examples of how children develop and learn. Indicate here if you completed the reading (or how much you completed) to receive your points for this question. ____completed______ (5 points)

*List four inappropriate practices which surprised you concerned you, or with which you disagree. (4 points)
a. infants are shifted from group to group or cared for by whichever adult is available at the moment. (76)
b. caregivers do not allow infants to touch each other, even gently. (77)
c. rattles and other noise-making and busy-box toys have hidden mechanisms, so any explorations don’t help the baby understand how the object works. (83)
d. Highchairs are used ot contain babies at other times during the day, too. (85)

PART 2:
The second part of this assignment is to watch the video, Ten Things Every Child Needs. In your typed notes, list each of the ten points with 2-3 sentences of notes that will help remind you of the importance of each of these points in the development of infants and toddlers. Attach your notes to this assignment.

Notes:
Interaction
It is important to interact with even a new born baby, because they are responding to their environment. Babies will turn their heads towards a voice, and respond to the physical touch. As they are soothed by a caring adult they begin to develop self-regulatory behaviors and are able to sooth themselves.
Twins
1: constant touch, easy to sooth
2: poor delivery, difficult to sooth
Turning head towards voice, colors-not lump of clay
Communicate needs and wants (prefer slow speaking)
Touch
All babies need to feel loved. Babies do not speak a verbal language, and so to know that they are loved they need to have a physical interaction that tells them they are loved. They are not able to understand symbols and so the best way for them to interact with their world is through sensory interactions: holding a book, putting a toy in their mouth.
Different textures, order world, interested in sensory
Sends signals to brain
Not able to understand verbal love signs
Stable relationships
The simple presence of a trusted adult helps to lower the levels of cortisol in the brain, and make it so that the baby feels more confidants in their environment. Orphans in Romania are underdeveloped physically, emotionally and socially, and cognitively because of multiple reasons but the major contributor is that they do not have a relationship with an adult or even a name that gives them place a meaning in the world. Relationships are two way things, and a parent and child need to learn how to develop a trusting one.
Presence of trusting adult to interpret world/environment
Lower levels of cortical
Children did not have names in orphanages in Romania
Discipline means teaching not punishing
Safe, healthy environment
There are several basic house childproofing percussions. It is also important to check for lead exposure in the paint, and realize that everything in your house could end up in your child’s mouth. So, keep your home clean and organized.
Childproof house
Lead exposure
Wet moping floor, wet mopping counter, really cleaning
Healthy diet
Self-esteem
A baby is learning that they are valuable in these first few month and a baby who is told that they are great and worthwhile will believe that they are great and worthwhile. Children are sponges and soak up everything that their environment tells them about who they are, and what society expects them to become.
1 ½ year old can barely control feelings
“You’re great” children are sponges to environment
If you live in a violent environment but home is warm and safe child feels they are worth protecting
Quality-child care
Look for a child care that has a ratio of 3 babies for every 1 adult care giver, or 4 toddlers for every 1 adult care giver. There is an increase in the demand for child care, but it is important to have quality child care. The child care giver should be willing to interact with the students and provided opportunities that are DAP.
May be nurtured when missing nurturing at home
$1 invested in pre-school earns $7
Child care grows 50% last decided about
Ratio of adults to children: babies 3 to 1, toddlers 4 to 1
Communication
The language that a child learns in not important, but it is important that a child learns there are meanings to words. What a parent says to a child should not simply be verbatim quotes to expand vocabulary, but should express emotions and develop relationships that come through healthy communication. Children learn a language not by classroom rituals or bar charts, but through constant experience.
Not important of which language but that they learn to interact/relationships
Speed of language
Have interact with the language, not ritual reviews
Emotional response and reasons to communication
Play
Play is essential because it give the child an opportunity to display what they believe is important in the world. A parent can learn about their child’s thought process and perspectives by observing them in play. When a child plays they develop physical, cognitive, and social and emotional skills through interaction with peers, practicing gross and fine motor activities, and demonstrating their knowledge of the world around them in their activities.
Essential
Develop physical, cognitive, social and emotional
Sense of self accomplishment
Able to display what they think the world means; reality is what they are demonstrating
Music
The delivery of the music is important because it develops the emotional connection with music. Parents that sing to their children, cuddle them to a nursry rhym, or stomp their feet to the beat are teaching their child that music is not just a serious listening activity but that music is a fun and interactive apart of life.
The delivery of music-play
Timing, imagination, physical body, emotional connection
Parents need to share experiences of music not the seriousness of the music
Reading
It is not so important that a parent teachers their child how to read, but that the parent teachers their child that reading is valuable. When a parent shares a book with their baby they are teaching their baby that reading is something we enjoy, and do together. There is also the important cognitive development that comes from understanding that the spoken word has parallel symbolic letters that can convey meanings and ideas.
Parent’s relationship important such as sharing a book
Read some book over and over; concept of spoken word with symbolic lettering
Decoding: vocabulary of the squeals to symbolic meaning
Reasoning: messages, literacy, menus