Early Childhood EducatorR E F L E C T I N G O N O U R P R O F E S S I O N

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ALL THINGS EARLY YEARSSEPTEMBER, 2019

The

ALL THINGS EARLY YEARSTABLE OF CONTENTS

02WHAT IS AN EARLY CHILDHOODEDUCATOR?

Discover what kind of educator youwant to be and what kind of learningenvironment you want to create.

03IMAGE OF THE EDUCATOR

Carlina Rinaldi's view on the image ofthe edcuator and all it ecompasses.

04ROLE OF THE EDUCATOR

Discover the vast roles we play andhow they are all deeply connected.

05WELLBEING FOR THE EDUCATOR

Kate Moxley, an Early YearsConsultant, from the UK shares herpractice and ways to create work lifebalance.

07INCLUSION & DIVERSITY

Jeni Singer, InclusionSupport Facilitator, shares her practiceand how this role has influenced her asan Educator.

09FROM MY PERSPECTIVE

I share my story of how sometimes thelines between personal and work lifeneed to be connected.

AND MORE!!!

what is an early childhood educator...."What kind of people do we want to be?What kind of world do we want to live in?"(Pelo ,A., & Carter, M., From Teaching ToThinking, 2018, pg. 32). This is how the bookis started, two very big questions that groundyou. This is also a good starting point fordefining what is an early childhood educator. What kind of educator do we want to be?What kind of environment do we wantchildren & ourselves to grow in? How we view ourselves as educators willbe perceived by everyone else. If we don'thave a clear picture, then how can wecommunicate that to others? I believe thatwe can break through the glass wall and letthe world know how important our roles are,but it starts from us as a community of earlychildhood educators knowing it first.

I want to be an educator who is open tonew possibilities, questions, andexperiences. To be honoured by thepresence of children during my journey. Tobe respected in my profession, both insideand out of my community. To continueengaging my curiosities and new theories. Iwant a community where our work is valuedand understood so that the children andfamilies reap the rewards. Knowing what kind of educator we want tobe will motivate us to stay focused on thebig picture. I have created a space toanswer these questions, and I highly suggestto share your reflections with anothereducator, at a staff meeting, or in thefacebook group. These kinds of discussionswill connect us, and allow us to growtogether as Educators.

2 | All Things Early Years

image of theeducator"The definition of the teacher's professionalidentity is thus not viewed in abstract terms, butin contexts, in relation to her colleagues, to theparents, and above all, to the children; but alsoin relation to her own identity and her personaland educational background and experience."

3 | All Things Early Years

- Carlina Rinaldi

Edwards, C., Gandini, L., & Forman, G., The Hundreded Lanugaes of Children, 2011, pg 150

Role of theEducatorCO-CONSTRUCTOR OF KNOWLEDGE

Learning alongside the children does not justinvolve their interests. Although I have learntmore about I topics such as flowersand transportation. Learning alongsideothers does not mean you are learning theexact same skills or exploring the sameideas. It is being on a journey together takingin what provokes your interests.

SUSTAINED SHARED THINKING

Typically taking form through conversationwhere with a child you work together, bothsuggesting ideas and coming to conclusionstogether. This practice is invaluable toEducators becuase most often we are theones learning. “It opens your eyes tochildren’s potential and prevents you fromlimiting it", Kathy Brodie (Famly, June 12,2019)

BUILDING RELATIONSHIPS

This is key, strong relationships betweenourselves, the children and families. But Ithink the most overlooked relationship isthe connections between Educators. Welearn so much from each other whenengaged in collaborative discussion. Thishas been the most empowering aspect ofmy role.

ADVOCATE FOR PROFESSION

I will say it again, we are atheoretically researched evidenced basedprofession. We have decades of theory toback up what we do. This is our key toopening the door for others to see theamazing work we do. The milk lids andboxes are the tools we use to showcase thetheory. We have to be advocates of our ownprofession, we cannot expect others to do itfor us. We are the experts.

CURATOR OF THIRD TEACHER

We take all of the collaborations,discussions, images of the child, family,ourselves and reflect this into our learningenvironments that is carefully curatedand designed. This is when they can speakfor us and become our third teachers.

4 | All Things Early Years

https://famly.co/blog/management/what-sustained-shared-thinking-kathy-brodie/?fbclid=IwAR0BhgmygXi8X-H7R1z0U6j2ZVmjwpQYefdZcB6c36bzvGafP30FumKPTWI

There are many different definitions ofwellbeing but perhaps the most agreeable is"the state of being comfortable, healthy andhappy". Wellbeing within our workplacesrelates to all aspects of working life, such ashow we think and feel about work andfactors that can impact on our ability to fulfilour responsibilities. Ultimately our level ofwellbeing at work is measured by howcomfortable, happy and healthy we are in

WRITTEN BY KATE MOXLEYEARLY YEARS CONSULTANT

our job roles. There is a growing awarenessand understanding  of the need forprioritizing wellbeing in the workplace ashealthy and well-motivated employees canhave a positive impact on the productivityand effectiveness of a business. Working in Early Years isn’t all aboutbusiness though, it is the most critical andimportant stage of a child’s development. If we are not physically and mentally healthy,we cannot reach our full potential and whilstworking with children can be described asboth rewarding and a privilege, it could alsobe described as stressful and emotionallyexhausting. Working within the early years environmentcomes with a large amount of legal andstatutory responsibilities that are in place toensure the highest standards of quality andcare. With that responsibility comes theoften-overwhelming pressure ofdemonstrating how we meet, fulfil andindeed go above and beyond theserequirements when inspected and regulatedby Ofsted.

WELLBEING FOR THE EDUCATOR

From Another Educator's Perspective

©2019 RONNIE'S PRESCHOOL. ALL RIGHTS RESERVEDWWW.RONNIESPRESCHOOL.COM

Kate Moxley is a proud and passionate Early YearsConsultant and Trainer who empowers others to think and

feel positively about themselves, specializing in wellbeingand mental health, Kate provides a light hearted

conversation around an emotive subject.

https://www.facebook.com/katemoxleyeychttp://instagram.com/katemoxleyeychttp://www.katemoxleyeyc.co.uk/

HOW CAN WE IMPROVE OUR WELLBEINGAT WORK

We can make small adjustments that can goa long way to improve staff wellbeing healthand happiness at work, for example awellbeing audit or staff questionnaire is agood starting point to seek and evaluatestaff perspectives and identify current levelsof staff health and wellbeing and help you toput measures in place that have beencausing conflict or stress in the workplace.

Many workplaces now prioritise wellbeingthrough;

team building - linked to staff health andwellbeingpolicies - that identify long wellbeingstrategy and vision teams of wellbeing championsline manager training on mental healthfirst aid, wellbeing and resilience effective performance management promoting work life balance “achievemore do less”

6 | All Things Early Years

Ultimately going to work and fulfilling our jobrole should positively impact on our life,health, happiness and wellbeing, there is aMaori proverb ‘work brings health’, it goes usa sense of purpose, fulfilment andsatisfaction. In order to put ourselves in thevery best possible position to look afterchildren, we must take care of ourselvesfirst! Push wellbeing to the top of our to dolist and learn to prioritize self-care - after all,working with children is an enormousprivilege and what better way to enhanceour wellbeing than working with children.

Kate is based in the U.K and works with early yearssettings, nurturing teams to develop mentally healthy

working environments that improve outcomes forchildren. Kate has worked within the Early Years sectorfor over two decades, combining a BA (HONS) in Early

Childhood Studies with real-life hands-on experience ofworking with children and families in educational and PVI

settings, leading, managing and inspiring large staffteams. 

Kate is an approved Mental Health First Aid EnglandInstructor and delivers both the adult and youth mental

health first aid, mental health champion and mentalhealth awareness training courses.

My name is Jeni Singer and I am theInclusion Support Facilitator at RobertsonEarly Enrichment Program. My role involvesoverseeing our centre’s inclusion programand has a mixture of administration duties(coordinating meetings & visits, coachingeducators, etc.) and time spent on the floorwith the children.  I am classified as an ECE IIIwith a post diploma in Special NeedsChildcare. Over the course of my career, Ihave been really fortunate to have workedalongside many inspiring andknowledgeable mentors, colleagues, andinstructors. My current team members areamazing and passionate educators and Ilearn from their practices all the time.

7 | All Things Early Years

Inclusion &Diversity

WRTITEN BY JENI SINGERINCLUSION SUPPORT FACILITATOR

Inclusion is something that I am particularlymindful of. Inclusion matters. Children maynot recognize the terminology of inclusionbut they do recognize that some of theirpeers have different needs. They seedifferent accommodations, different ways ofparticipating, modifications, and educatorshelping particular friends more than others.

When I think of families I see them as the experts on their children and their child’s bestadvocate. I try hard to build good relationships with all of our families.  I prepare informationpapers prior to intake and review meetings so parents know what to expect. I prepare slideshows and school transition books using photographs and documentation created byclassroom educators to showcase the strengths we see for both parents and new schoolsettings. In my role I also work closely with our specialist teams, and I consider myself to beso lucky to work in partnership with them. They bring so much additional knowledge andexpertise to our centre.

When I think of any child I see them as strong, competent and leaders of their learning.  Allchildren have strengths, interests, ideas, and things they are working on. When working withany child, I always consider their strengths and interests. I then take those things and usethem to help them reach goals and milestones. I personally find that I struggle with self care and finding balance between my home, work,and school life; many times it is easier said than done. I don’t think it is often realized howmuch of our work we may bring home with us or the preparation we may choose to dooutside of working hours.   When I reflect on my role as an ECE, and as the Inclusion Support Facilitator, I often think ofwho I am as a person and how my own experiences have influenced me in my role. It givesme the opportunities to not only learn from my mistakes but to decide which steps I need totake to further my learning (workshops, courses, etc.). I believe that we are always learningand growing.

©2019 RONNIE'S PRESCHOOL. ALL RIGHTS RESERVEDWWW.RONNIESPRESCHOOL.COM

Speical Needs Poem

They say that I have "special" needs, and while that's partly true,

the needs that matter most to me are the same ones you have too.

I need to be accepted. I need friends that make me smile. I need a chance to learn and grow

feeling valued all the while. Sure, I need some extra help,

and some things I can't do, but I hope you'll see beyond all that...

inside, I'm just like you.

- April VernonLiving By Faith Blog

From My PerspectiveTAKING THEORY TO PRACTICE

If I had followed that statement I would not be the Educator, parent, or human being I amtoday. While discovering our sons needs, my personal life and work life were so deeplyintertwined and a big ball of messy emotions and struggles that was affecting my work andlife. If I kept my two roles, parent and educator, separate and viewed my interactions withJoshua like that and not let the experiences blend together, he would not be the child he istoday. Personal life experiences deeply influence us as educators, and when we can find waysto incorporate them into our work that makes an impact on us and the children, the linesneed to be crossed. I despeeratly needed to understand my child, and I did byunderstanding his sensory needs. I leaned into the intense emotions I was feeling on a daily,hourly basis and I worked through them as a parent and a educator. The same emotions haddifferent effects, as a parent I was scared and as an educator I felt defeated. By embracingmy emotions, desires for my son and all the children in my program I began to untangle themess. But what happened as I pulled at each role I made new connections to became a neweducator and parent. One that the lines do intersect, sometimes on the same path ordifferent ones, but they work together and support each other. I am not one or the other, myidentities are not separate, they are deeply interwined and make new connections each andevery day. Being professional does not mean I have to forget about my personal life for the next 8-9hours of work. To be professional is to find ways to grow as a profession amongst ourpersonal adversities and experiences, To look for the connections, how each influence eachother and celebrate that. We all have valuable life lessons to learn from and discoveringhow this can be intertwined into our roles as Educators is a beautiful experience.

WHY I ABSOLUTELY DO NOT BELIEVE IN THAT STAEMENT

"Leave Your Personal Life At The Door"

Ronnie9 | All Things Early Years

RONNIESPRESCHOOL.COM

""Do not give up. Respect life and allhuman beings. Find dignity in yourselfand in your work. Be curious about lifeand interested in all of the experiencesthat life and its complexity will offer toyou. Learning does not end. Do not besatisfied about things - searchcontinuously. Use creativity as an aspectof your intelligence. Be rigorous,professional, and ethical about what youdo. Be aware of what you do withouttaking anything for granted. Be flexibleand responsible. Learn how to listen -how to speak up and collaborate. Find joyand pleasure in all aspects of your work.Welcome different emotions and feelings. Look at every situaiton as a whole, not inpieces. Always learn how to buildrelationships. Make a commitment andact on your beliefs. Be spontaneous,follow your intuitions, and be positive andoptimistic about life. Know how towonder and how to be amazed. Acceptwho you are, be yourself, and have thecourage to express what you think even ifit is different from what others think.Difference is a value."

Excerpt sourced from Innovations In EarlyChildhood Education: The International

Reggio Emilia Exchange, Volume 2, Issue 1, 1994Written by: Amelia Gambetti

Memories Between Past & Present

a reflective practiceA P L A C E T O R E F L E C T O N O U R T H O U G H T S

WHAT KIND OF EDUCATOR TO YOU WANT TO BE?

WHAT KIND OF ENVIRONMENT DO WE WANT TO LEARN IN?

IF YOU COULD HAVE SOMEONE FULLY UNDERSTAND ONE

ASPECT OF OUR ROLES, WHAT WOULD THAT BE? HOW WOULD

YOU ACHEIVE THAT?

A L L T H I N G S E A R L Y Y E A R S |   © R O N N I E ' S P R E S C H O O L

I am so grateful to each and everyoneof you for joining me on this journey. This issue marks the 1 YearAnniversary of this newsletter. WhenI started this I wanted to find a way toconnect with other Educators, sharemy thoughts, and curate qualityresources. It has become so muchmore than that, and I thank you. I look forward to the next year of somany amazing things to come!

Thank You...

Warmly, Veronica

find your path to curiosityR

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