I am not a Pre-school teacher yet, but once I obtain my degree I would love to eventually open my own Pre-school where children can get an education without parents having to worry about how to pay for their child's education. I am a strong believer in education and how important it is for young children to learn about themselves and about other cultures. I strongly believe in parent involvment in children's education and feel that children succeed better when their parents come to school and see how their child is progressing. I feel that racism and prejudice are issues that are still prominate in today's society and that in order to elinimate racism and prejudice educators need to teach young children about other cultures and races. I think that ways we can teach young children about other cultures is to introduce them to language, ethnic food, traditional clothing, and books that are written in other languages.
I want to hire a diversity of teachers from different ethinc backgrounds and also have a diverse classroom. I will teach my students that it is hurtful to make fun of other children and if I do hear of other children making fun of each other I will put a stop to it fast. I will use dolls as an example and have the kids discuss the importance of teasing each other and making fun of those who are different from each other. I feel it is important to have role playing games so children can see what it feels like to be teased and the one who does the teasing.
I think that you have a jump on many individuals working in the early childhood profession, because unlike many of us, you are starting out with the skills and knowldege needed to meet the needs of individual families. Many of us did not receive this knowledge until after we begin working with families. Hopefully this will aid you in not making some of the same mistakes we have in the past. I always say "Awareness is the key!" I know you will do well...((:
ReplyDeleteDarlene,
ReplyDeleteYou have a wonderful goal. So many parents have to sacrifice quality education for affordable education so good for you for not focusing on the monetary reward.
I think using persona dolls as a way to introduce different topics is a very effective way to help children become more empathetic towards others.
Good luck with setting up your program. It sounds like you have some wonderful ideas that all children and families will greatly benefit from!
Darlene I think your pre- school sounds great. I think parent involvement is the key to haveing an anti-bias classroom.
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