Research has shown that the best care environments for young children include caring adults who engage in what is known as reflective practices as well as self-reflection (Can Reflective Practice Guide Me in Making Better Decisions for my Early Childhood Classroom? is a lovely account of the subject.) Mostly, folks talk about reflective practice in early learning environments concerning two things: 1) thinking about what you are doing and why in the moment, and 2) thinking back on your day after the children have gone home. This practice has been shown to improve the life (and outcomes for children) in an environment for small children because when we think about what has happened, we can make better choices in the future.
In this article, I am taking reflection a step further. I would like you to consider who you are as a caring adult in an early learning environment and how your identity interacts with those in your community through self-reflection. Here is the opportunity to take a personal inventory on your general beliefs and values, and then more specifically, your beliefs and values regarding your work with children.
Knowing where you come from will help you frame who you will be in the early learning community. This reflection can lead to writing an introductory letter for the families that talks about your approach to the education and care of their very young children. A simple letter about yourself and what they can expect will go a long way toward building trusting relationships, and maybe help families make the tough choice of whether or not they are a fit for your environment. Yes, not everyone will find your space a match for them, and that’s okay! Consider my conversation on how people see things differently here.
Looking Within
Take some time to journal the answers to the questions below. This is a long list of questions, but it’s not an exhaustive one, so as other ideas come to mind, notice what comes up and go with it.
- What did your childhood look like: Who was in your family? What were their beliefs about child rearing? The environment where you grew up? Did your parents work outside the home, if so, what did they do? What is their education level? What were the religious/spiritual values in your home? What did you do in your free time? At school? What did you do with friends?
- Who you are as a person, teacher, and care provider: Political beliefs? Beliefs about men and women/boys and girls? Beliefs about racial identity? Spiritual beliefs? Beliefs about children (not to speak until spoken to; obedience is primary; free will and exploration is primary; they are the lowest rung on the hierarchical ladder of life; have equal status as human beings, just different needs; don’t need adults really, will develop and learn with no adult intervention)? Do you believe that building relationships with children is primary or that keeping emotional and relational distance is primary? Is this a passing job in your life or will it be your life’s work?
- Who is in your care: How many? Ages? Cultural dynamics: socio-economic; race; heteronormative; academic, country or urban home lives; developmental ages and the norms relevant to that age; large or small group; gender balance or not; English speaking or not?
- What is your intention: Implementing an intentional classroom that assesses children to create a rich environment based on those assessments and getting to know the children and families? Home based intentionality (trying to replicate a home environment)?; Intentional scheduling that includes a consistent daily schedule and consistent weekly events or activities? An environment that is solely based on age norms? Spontaneous play-based environment where there aren’t assessments nor curriculum planning practices? Care a few mornings a week, or every morning but not afternoons, or all day?
- Where are you teaching: Home based environment? In a church? An athletic club? Corporation? University? Franchise chain? Non-profit organization? For profit business? Government?
- Will your needs be met: Living wage? Breaks? Appropriate ratios? Support from volunteers, other teachers, and the administration? Time to plan? Respect for your work? Sense of community and belonging? Appropriate time off for family or illness? Continued education supported?
Do you love this sort of reflective practice or hate it? Are you confronted? Are some questions easier to answer than others and why? Do your answers match the philosophies of where you are working, and if not, is there anything you need to do about that? Also, remember, that the answers to some of these questions will change over time or change in a simple conversation or never change–there are no right or wrong responses because the answers are subjective and have value because your thoughts, ideas, and opinions are important (given that we do no harm to others.)
What It’s All About
Children are born and need care. This is one of the most fundamental realities of our existence and part of your job. Exercises like above will help guide you on the decisions you make in this role.
An Example
Here’s a bit of my reflection of where I came from:
I grew up in the Midwest of the United States in a college town that draws faculty and students from all over the world. In my late teens, I moved to Florida where I lived, learned, and worked for 10 years, and moved back to my home town in my late twenties. I am oriented to politics that prioritizes the care of society’s most vulnerable communities like the developmentally disabled, aging, children, mothers, folks from a lower socio-economic status, the LBGQT community, immigrants, and more of course. This orientation comes from a childhood influenced by two high achieving academically trained parents.
My mother was a psycho-therapist and my father a chemist: a nice blend of honoring the affective side of life and the objective practical side of life. They divorced when I was five years old. They did not have guns and tacitly taught me to advocate for non-violent ways of being in my personal and social life. I was also taught to be brave and engage in the difficult conversations that come up in close relationships. Consuming to consume was frowned upon.
My brother, sister and I tended a large garden every summer at my mom’s house. My dad took us around to kid’s events in the larger city he lived in on the weekends. My dad also took us on trips to national parks, the beaches in Massachusetts, Florida, and Hawaii, and Disney World. My mom took us to local parks and the big lake near where we lived. I don’t remember my dad ever discussing religion with us, and my mom was openly anti big religion. I pieced together spirituality from being in nature and feeling the love of family. My life story has a lot more to it, but this starts to paint the picture of my roots.
What Do You Think?
What if you were dropping your kids off to my classroom/care for the first time and you read this bit about my background? Would you turn and run? Stay and give me a hug because you could relate? Accept who I am but not really care because you put the emphasis of your concern on what I do every day with children? Consider this: children and adults cannot leave their identities at the door when they enter a learning environment. This bit is something to remember as a professional in an early learning environment. If you have deep religious beliefs and you’re a taking a job as a preschool teacher in a secular classroom, will you be okay not praying at lunch time? Will you refer to scripture when working through conflict resolution, or will you be open to learning other conflict resolution strategies?
“It’s a lifetime’s journey to relate honestly to the immediacy of our experience and to respect ourselves not to judge it.” ~Pema Chodron