My Supports

Factors within my daily environment that are supportive to me are my husband and my children. My husband is supportive to me in everything I do.  he is supportive with my job, school and my future goals. I decided to go back to school and get a se4cond maters to help me promote within my job. It hasn't been easy coming back to school. I have had many challenges before and since I have started and many times I have said to myself and to my husband that maybe going back to school was a bad idea. I'm still here because when I'm down and struggling my family is there to support me and cheer me and to do whatever they can to make things easier for me. My husband and I are also supportive for each other when it comes to exercise. We work out together, set fitness goals and then support each other and push each other to achieve them. 

My co-workers are supportive in every way in our classroom. We are a good team, we know each other well and help each other out. When one of us is sick, tired or stressed we step in to help with the children and help take a load off. We support each other with goals and ideas for our classroom which has been a positive impact for our children. My military/church family is one of a kind. They are supportive to me and my family in every way possible. I can't explain how this family shows love and support for me and my family spiritually, mentally, physically and emotionally. The benefits to these supports is that no matter what I'm going through, good or bad I have a great support system and I know I nor my family will never have to go through anything alone and will never be alone. With out these supports it would be difficult because in my family if we don't support each other then our marriage would struggle and so would our family. At work if we don't support each other and help each other then there will be friction and it would uncomfortable to work with each other and the ones who will suffer are the children.  If we would not have me the people we have the past two years which are my military/church family, I'm not sure I would be where I am today. My family went through a difficult time a year ago and we didn't know where to turn or what to do. With out the support we have we would have been lost and may have handled the situation differently and could have mad it it worse with long term effects on all of us. If these supports were gone my life would be turned upside down and i would feel alone and lost.

The challenge I chose is being a single mom. I chose this because I have friends and family who are single moms and I see so many single parents at my job. It is hard to raise kids, work and go to school when you are married and have help and so I know it is so much harder doing it alone. If I was a single mom I would need all the support I could get. Emotionally I would need friends and family to remind me that everything is going to be okay and that no matter how hard things get I will get through it. Practically I would need financial support from former husband and I would need help with everyday things from chores, kids, school and work. Physically I would need the emotional support so that I could keep going physically. The single moms I know are such strong women and they do an awesome job each and everyday. Times get tough and those gloomy days sometimes seem to never go away but having a strong support team always makes everything so much easier and reminds them that they are not alone they are special and deserve to have the best.

My Connections to Play

Childhood quotes:

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."

                                                                                                           - George Bernard Shaw

"Children learn as they play. Most importantly in play children learn how to learn." 

                                                                                               - O. Fred Donaldson

      When I was a child play was a must. We didn't think about if wanted to do it or not it was just done on a daily basis. It was all we knew to do. Parents and teachers made i mandatory for us to play. I remember as a child if I was indoors for too long my parents would question me why I wasn't outside playing. If there wasn't a good reason for me being inside I was told to go out and play. In school we were outside for Physical Education and for play time. Outside play was given to us several times through out the day too. Now as an adult I see and understand how important it was for us to go out and play, especially during school hours. 

      Through play I remember learning how to play sports, climb on money bars, run, skip and so many other skills. I was a very shy girl when I first started school, but when we played outside I slowly began to socialize and make friends some of which I still have today 33 years later. I think play today is very different compared to when I was a child. Today's world is different and not as safe as it use to be when I was growing up. We could run around the neighborhood and play outside until it got dark and our parents had no issues with that or didn't have to worry about us. Today we are afraid to let our children outdoors alone or for too long.

     I think play in my life was a positive influence and helped me learn developmental skills especially social skills. What I didn't know then is that I was that not only was I learning developmental skills, I was also staying healthy by being physically active. We have taken away play from our children at home and in our schools. In school we expect our children to learn all these academic skills and pressure them to be at certain academic levels by a certain age but have taken away their play which helps them be successful in the classroom. Taking aways play is causing health issues too. We have too many young children who are obese and have medical problems from being overweight. As an adult I realize the importance of play and when I had my own children I wanted to make sure they were active so I enrolled them into sports as soon as the were old enough to play. Today as teenagers 17 and 16 years old we work out as a family. I want to show the importance of exercise in their lives. For them play is still used in our family. For us play is taking a walk together being active with us or their friends by going swimming or bike riding. Play is not just for children. As adults we need play time as well to keep us going and give us energy and focus in our lives.

Relationship Reflection

Relationships are something we all get to experience through out our lives. They start as early as birth. We form a bond and relationship with our parents and that relationship is one we will always remember. They are like anything else and can have its ups and downs but they our parent relationships teach us how to form relationships with others. I have been lucky to have had many wonderful relationships through out my life. Even today in adult hood I am making new friends and forming great relationships on my own and as a family. I think relationships keep us strong and keep us going. Not just the good ones but the bad ones too. With out the bad ones we wouldn't learn how to get up and be stronger and wiser. 

I have different relationships in my life now. I have relationships with my co-workers. These relationships are good but not as intimate and close as other in my life. Co-worker relationships serve their own purpose. We relate and help each other at work and sometimes outside of work. We keep each other motivated and help each other get through good and bad work days. Then I have my biological family relationships. These are bonds that were formed immediately which were parents, brothers and sisters. I also have my own family which is my husband and my two children all of whom mean the world to me. My husband and I have a bond that will always be no matter what happens. We know each other so well and connect in so many ways. We love and support each other always. We have had a difficult times in our marriage but always work and fight for our marriage and have made it work. As a military family we move every few years which makes it very difficult. Making new friends and then having to leave them is not easy. We are away from our families back home and  a lot of times feel alone. We got stationed in Mississippi two years ago and we thought it was going to be the worse move ever. At first it was hard. Our kids had a hard time making friends and so did we. After about six months I got a job at a child development center and to make a long story short I met some wonderful people who we now consider family. They are family to us more than our own families. It is a relationship and bond that happened quick and easy. We have all been there to help each other through so much is such a short amount of time. 

We are all of different race, religion and culture but you would think we are all one with the way we love and support each other. We help each other spiritually, emotionally, financially and everything in between. We have all laughed and cried together. This relationship has helped me and my family grow in so many ways. I am a better wife, mother, daughter and friend because of them. We support from each other in anything and everything we do in our lives. 

Several of these family members work with me so we support each other at work too. I have become a better teacher because I have learned new things from them. I am happier and at peace which in the long run helps me with everything else in my life. 

THANK YOU

I wanted to say thank you to all of my classmates this semester. I know online courses can be difficult and it is hard to connect with each other and get to know each other when we do see or hear each other. It takes discipline to do online classes and I think we all did great and suppported each other. I wish you all well in the future. 

CHILDRENS QUOTES

Intelligence Testing

Testing our children's intelligence has been performed for many years in our school systems. I remember as a child testing at school too. I don't remember teachers being obsessed with it or being stressed out or worried about the tests. I think the testing is beginning to get out of hand. The schools are being looked over to see how well their children are doing and sometimes it results in the funding the schools get. These days we want to test our children for everything. How good are they in math? science, reading, thinking, problem solving, can they run, jump, and so on and so on. Then parents, teachers and sometimes the children have to hear that their child is behind or should be walking or talking or jumping or should no 10000 words by now. This puts a lot of stress on the parents and child. My own son came home when he was in 4th grade and said that his test scores in reading weren't good and his teachers told him he doesn't read fast enough. He was upset for a long time and thought he wasn't as good as everyone else. He is now going to be a junior and has never failed or had any issues in school.  I believe when we put too much stress on our children they will not do well. I am not against testing our children but the stress should not be on them to perform better or else..

Children can be tested or observed to see where they are academically and then teachers and counselors can discuss the results with parents and together come up with a plan to help the child if needed. The child should not be pressured to test well or perform well. Every child learns and develops at different levels, Even as adults we learn different. We don't want to be labeled or left out because we may learn different or faster or slower than someone else. For example as an adult we wouldn' want to be passed up for a dream job just because we learn or perform the duty different from someone else. We are willing to learn and train to perform. We should not treat our children this way either. 

In Japan children are not tested or even given homework in early elementary years. These years are for them to learn social skills, manners, respect. Pressure of testing and homework does not help them and it is not a priority in the early years of school. Play and exercise is important and in Japan the children get plenty of it. They have several times during the day that the children play outdoors or exercise. They believe it helps them relieve stress, the children are happy and it is healthy for them.  Testing is not exempt in Japan. The children do start testing hard in Junior high and high school years and it is difficult and stressful because it is something the school teachers and parents are involved with but the support of the family and school is helpful and the children are older and understand what the testing is for.

I believe our children should not be tested until they are older so they understand what is going on, what is expected and how to prepare for it. Just last week in our center we had people coming in to test the children. The children as young as 1 were being observed and tested and when they were done they mentioned to us as teachers who they thought was behind. Comments were made that certain should be walking or talking by now and I had to disagree and comment how these children all learn differently. 

Natural Disaster Experience

The stressor I chose is Natural Disaster. The natural disaster that affected many family and friends is Katrina. 

Katrina Hit Mississippi and tore the state apart. There were so many casualties and those that did survive were affected emotionally, spiritually, mentally and financially. To this day Katrina has affects on so many people. Living here in Mississippi I have heard many stories of survival and death and hearing these stories even from my own family makes it so hard to believe how anyone survived that storm and even the aftermath. 

My nieces were 5 years old when Katrina hit Biloxi Ms. My sister and her family chose to evacuate before the storm hit so they were in a safe place. What they were not prepared for was coming back home or to what use to be their home. There wasn't much of a home left for them. Their car was under water and their house was almost under water too. When my nieces saw their home the cried because they were scared, didn't understand what was going on and all of their toys beds pictures ect. were gone, destroyed. It was an emotional roller coaster for the whole family. Within a matter of a couple of weeks they had to prepare to take the little that was left to salvage and get ready to move to another state because they were told by the military they could no longer live here. My nieces took a little while to adjust. They went through a mix of emotions still trying to understand what happened. They cried a lot and they began to act out. My sister and her husband had to talk to my nieces everyday helping them understand what happened and why they moved and to remind them that they were safe and were going to be okay. 

     Another story is from  a good friend who I consider an Aunt. Her sister lived in New Orleans and their house was getting flooded. They had no choice but to get up on the roof outside the house. It was the mother and her 4 young children. One child fell into the water everyone else panicked and got scared seeing the water rise. They all jumped in except for one daughter who was 11 years old. No one survived. The mother and children drowned and the 11 yr old was the only one who made it. The death or her family and the traumatic experience affected the young girl so much that even today she struggles. She could not cope with the pain and chose drugs to help her pain. She is still struggling today with drugs and does not allow anyone close to her. 

     The country I choose is Mexico. I chose this country because where I grew up in Texas the border was only about 20 min away. Today it is being overtaken by drug cartels. I'm sure everyone has heard on the news about families and children alone fleeing into the United States trying to get away from the violence there. My brother who works in customs has seen children as young as 5 coming across the border alone. Their parents and sending them with strangers hoping they make it across to the United States for a better, safer life. The type of stress these children in Mexico face is fear, anxiety, hunger. Drug Cartels are taken over and killing people for no reason. The children and families were being allowed to come into the United States for safe haven at one time. I would like to do some extensive research to find out what else is being done and what happen to those families and children who were allowed into the US. 

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