At morning group today, the sharing person brought a fairly large dinosaur toy. The kids thought it was extra cool because its mouth opened and closed. For after-school, we continued on the bunny art. I had one girl say that she didn’t like it and that she was going to make whatever she wanted. Usually, this is the same girl who asks what project I have planned every day. But I don’t think it was a reflection on the project that I prepared.
At morning group today, it was a child that usually brings new and “non-standard” toys. She brought a loom and some fabric to put on the loom. It was really cool and the other kids were pretty intrigued. For after-school, I decided on a bunny project. It’s almost an abstract bunny but the kids understood what the goal was.
Something that I feel is quite ethical at my agency is that a child is never left alone with an adult behind a closed door. We also have a sort of open concept building, we can see into all the classrooms. All the doors are non-locking. All bathroom doors have a foam bumper on the top to prevent the door from fully closing. Male employees are not allowed to change diapers. This one I feel deserves a little recognition because we’re the only day care/ preschool in town that has this rule in place. We have this rule in place to just avoid any possible situations that could arise. It’s just a precaution set in place to make everyone more comfortable.
I decided on a training today. Essentials of Leadership in Early Childhood Education, I feel like this training works on both my administrative and leadership goals. The first thing that I think is the most important to realize is that leadership is different than management. Leadership focuses more on trust, collaboration, and two-way learning. Whereas management is about telling people what to do. Out of the different types of leaders, I would most like to be a democratic and affiliative leader. A democratic leader builds their team through participation and involving everyone, and making sure they feel heard. An affiliative leader focuses more on creating bonds to make sure everyone feels like they belong.
We got a big shipment today, so I was tasked with unpacking and restocking everything that we got. We usually get lots of plates, bowls, utensils, and cleaning supplies.
It was even nicer out today. We did chalk, but had a plan for it. I had the kids lie down, and I outlined their bodies. They really liked that part. Then they got to draw on their faces and clothes, and hair, and just have fun with it. They came out really cute.
It was really nice outside today, so I decided to stay outside and do some free chalk. The kids really enjoyed it. Free art is always good for using imagination and creativity.
Last week, I had a child request a bee art project. I was thrilled to have a child request something. So today I prepped the materials for a cute little bee. I’m not totally sure the kid who requested it remembered that he requested it, but that’s okay. They turned out really cute, but unfortunately, I forgot to take pictures.
A goal that I have for next week, or the next two weeks, is to observe the other classrooms a bit. Focusing on group times in specific. I think it would be beneficial for me to see and further understand how kids at different levels are taught and shown things differently.
Mid-day group was good today as well. I wanted to do another training today. I chose child language development and signs of delay. I chose this training because we have several children with speech impediments and one non-verbal child. I learned about different types of language disorders and the difference between delay and disorder. I feel that there is a lot of overlap with language and speech delays/disorders with Autism Spectrum Disorder. I feel like if it’s too early, it’s possible to mis-diagnose.
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