Working in a child care center you need to know the children
on an individual basis in order to properly care for and educate them.
Recently, we have been notified that we will be receiving a new child into our
program that has come from the country of Uganda. In order to prepare myself
and other educational staff to be culturally responsive towards the child and
their family we need to research and learn new things about their culture and
where they come from. Here is a list of 5 ways that we will prepare to be
culturally responsive.
1. I will research the country extensively and learn about
their culture and any religious beliefs that they might follow.
2. I will send the family a packet with regard to
information about the program and it will also contain a questionnaire for the
family to fill out so that we can get to know a little bit about them prior to
attendance. One of the more important questions in the questionnaire will be posed
as this….What do you feel is most important for us to know about you?
3. I will look into any communication barriers. If there are
any barriers I will research the language, look for an interpreter, and also
find any other reasonable means of communication that we can utilize.
4. I will reevaluate the classroom or child care setting.
Does my classroom display cultural diversity and do I need to add new cultural
material that helps the new student feel comfortable?
5. After learning what I can about the culture I would set
up a meeting with the family in the child care setting and in their home before
the attendance of the program would occur. This is the foundation to the
relationship which is vital to the growth and development of the child.
These preparations would benefit all parties concerned.
Educators will be prepared to effective care for and educate the new child and
the family will also have a foundation of a growing relationship with the
educators. It is important to have a strong relationship with families to
support one another through the educational process. These preparations will
also show the family how much we care about our position in the child’s life.
They will see that it matters to us how the child is being cared for and if the
family is comfortable with the new environment. Last, building this
relationship will create a foundation of trust so that the family feels comfortable
enough to rely on us in times of difficulties. You always want to be able to
have a close bond with the families of the children you are working with. You
are a team and should work together as such.
I think "What do you feel is most important for us to know about you?" is a very good question! I also think it is a good idea to look for an interpreter. A professional can also learn a lot by visiting a child's home.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing!
Liz
Home visits would be ideal in any early childhood setting, unfortunately it is too costly for many districts to implement without forcing educators to work without compensation. I really like how even though as educators it is our responsibility to cultivate the relationship with parents since we are often considered to be the dominant power in the relationship that the ultimate responsibility for educating us about home culture belongs to families. I know that with all the responsibilities placed on me in my current position I myself will not have time to research a child's culture. Home questionnaires are vital to helping educators to avoid a social faux pas regarding diverse cultures.
ReplyDeleteHi Frostablog.
ReplyDeleteTime is an issue! When I was at Head Start, we were not always able to get to all our home visits because of the endless paper work. We resorted to visiting with some families, who found it easier to come in than other families, at school. Can you think of a way to make it easier for home visits to happen?
Samantha,
ReplyDeleteI also thought that home visits would be a fantastic idea in order to learn more and become familiar with the family, but I see where time can be a factor. I sometimes think that if my company would spend some more money on hiring extra employees home visits and many other ideas could be completed. You can only stretch a director so thin. Making sure that the classrooms reflect cultural diversity and the culture of that particular family is important for them to see that they are accepted and it is a judgement free zone. I also included in my blog that the parents should tell us what they think we should know about them. I feel that is a wonderful question and where we can gain a lot of pertinent information. Great post!
Samantha it is very important to get to know your children and families on an individual basis because as every child's needs are different so are the needs of the families. You have very good strategies on welcoming your family. Yes in Head Start we do a Initial Home Visit at the beginning of the year, and at the end of the year we do a Final Home Visit. In the beginning of the year you learn so much about the families and their needs at the end of the year you are able to follow up and see have the needs been met and or growth.
ReplyDelete