Blogg 2 Social Emotional

Observing and Interacting With Professionals, Children, and Families in an Early Childhood Setting

 

Name: Rosalinda Nava de Espinosa

 

Title:  Social/Emotional:  Understanding Attachment in Toddlers

 

What I learned about … As I have been observing in the classroom, I have noticed that bilingual education in a toddler setting will be too tough to observe.  At this age I have seen attachment is what the children and parents struggle with on a daily basis.  As I sat and observed I noticed that several toddlers had a hard time detaching from their parents.  I saw crying, holding on to a parent, children looking for conform zones within the classroom, holding on to a comfort object for the rest of the day and/or looking for a teacher in particular to feel comfort.  So as I continued to observe I noticed that although language is very important, I felt that attachment is by far more important to support a toddler to progress.  I also noticed by observing that many parents do not see the importance of saying goodbye to their children before leaving.  I saw that many parents come in rushing and upset and leave their children without wishing them a good day or a “see you later.” 

 

As I continued to observe my primary question is: “How are toddlers supported to build secure attachment?” This question came to me as I read an article called: Understanding Attachment in Young Children (http://www.education.com/reference/article/Ref_Attachment_Young/.)   Within this article a statement caught my attention.  It stated: “the way in which a parent responds to and interacts with a young child is the key factor in how an attachment develops.”  How far away from the truth is this statement?  I noticed that how parents and caregivers respond the child will also respond.  This statement stood out more when I observed two cases in particular.

 

The first child was brought in by his mother.  Mom came in rushing, placed him on the floor, signed in and said by to the teacher.  Although the child has been in the program for a few months, he was still left crying and screaming for his mother.  He walked to the door and looked out of the window.  I have seen him do this for a while and mom has the same routine.  I saw one of the teachers get close to him; she rubbed his back and told him that his mother was coming back later.  He quickly turned around and put his hands out for her to pick him up.  The teacher picked him up and he hugged her for a while. 

 

The second child was dropped off by his father. The father came in and said good morning to all of the teachers.  Placed the child on the floor, signed the child in and then took his child’s coat off and placed it in his cubby.  Dad then bended down talked to his son.  He told him that his mother was going to come to pick him up and then they will all see each other at home to eat.  The child gave him a hug and then walked towards his teacher.  As he stood next to his teacher the child waved good bye to his dad.

 

Immediately I saw the difference from these two children.  Throughout the day I saw the difference in the children’s day.  For child one, he had a rough day.  He was not following the routine and was walking all around the classroom.  He cried a couple times a day and was not happy with anything.  On the other hand the second child was very calm, followed the routine and interacted with his classmates in a positive way.  Although, I saw the teacher’s have the same positive interaction with both children, child one seem to have the toughest time.  He did have a good connection with the teachers but that did not seem to cut it.

 

Two insights, experiences, or quotes that I will share in my blog this week… Through my observations and even though I have worked in this field for some time now, I have realized and continue to learn how social/emotional stability is important for a child.  I am seeing how children who have a secure attachment are more stabled and have a smother day than the children whom have no attachment stability.  Children who have anxiety seem to have a rough day and become upset and frustrated. 

 

I am excited to see that through observation I have learned a bit more about the children and their attachment.  As I observe I have kept in mind that all children are unique and have different ways of coping.  I am looking forward to continue observing these two children in particular and hope to work with the teacher’s to plan to support the parents and point out how important attachment is.

Rosalinda Nava de Espinosa Bilingual Education

            The first teacher I interviewed was Ms. Norma Garcia, she has been working in the early education field for twenty years in El Hogar del Nino day care.  As I started my interview I thanked her for letting me conduct my observation hours in her classroom.  I informed her about my internship class and I shared that for this class I had an assignment which will need 10 hours of field experience.  I also shared that although there will be many things happening in the classroom my focus was going to be in the area of bilingual education.  My question to her was to share her thoughts on bilingual education.  She said that today we are living in a world filled with diversity and as caregivers/teachers, we play an important role in helping children learn to communicate with others in their home language; and at the same time the children can learn another language little by little.  Ms. Garcia mentioned that it is also very important for the teacher’s to communicate with the families in their native language. Ms. Garcia informed me that the classroom has labels both in English and Spanish.  There are also bilingual books and they sing bilingual songs.  Ms. Garcia feels that as long as she is in the field she will advocate for bilingual education and promises to always respect her student’s home language.

            The second person that I interviewed was Ms. Yolanda Salazar, she is a Kindergarten teacher.  She has been a teacher for 16 years.  I also started by thanking her for the opportunity to interview her and I explain the reason for my presence.  I shared with her about my research on bilingual education and I proceeded by asking her thoughts about bilingual education.  Ms. Salazar believes that the first years of school are the most important for the children to receive services in their native language.  She believes that with such support the children will learn more and interact with more consistency during class.  Ms. Salazar believes that children that know more than one language are wiser and can eventually learn more than two languages.  She shared with me that she has a student whose mother is Mexican and his father is Greek.  Being only six years old, this child speaks Greek, Spanish and English.  She is amazed of the capacity of this child.  Over all she feels that bilingual education is very important and feels that she will advocate for her children to receive services in their home language.  She will motivate and encourage families to help their children learn a second language.  Her only worry is the funding cuts.  Ms. Salazar is worried that these funds will affect the bilingual students and will not receive the education that they deserve.

                        Overall I enjoyed talking to both teachers’.  I learned that even though they are in different settings they both are aware on the importance of bilingual education.  I enjoyed seeing their passion and respect for diversity. As I proceed with this research I hope to continue to find more benefits on why it is important to continue advocating for bilingual services.