NAEYC Standards
​"Education is the key to unlock the golden door of freedom."-George Washington Carver
Standard 1: Child Development and Learning in Context​
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1b: Understand and value each child as an individual with unique developmental variations, experiences, strengths, interests, abilities, challenges, and approaches to learning.
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1. Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is a Fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs) are a group of conditions that can occur in a person whose mother drank alcohol during pregnancy. The identification of FADS are distinctive facial features, including small eyes, an exceptionally thin upper lip, a short, upturned nose, and a smooth skin surface between the nose and upper lip. Deformities of joints, limbs and fingers. Slow physical growth before and after birth. Vision difficulties or hearing problems. Also, the characteristics are low body weight, poor coordination, hyperactive behavior, difficulty with attention, poor memory, difficulty in school, learning disabilities, speech and language delays. Students with fetal alcohol syndrome do best in a structured environment with a consistent daily routine. Students can best be helped by presenting information in clear, brief, and simple segments. reducing distractions in the classroom. The term fetal alcohol spectrum disorders refer to the wide range of physical, behavioral, and cognitive impairments that occur due to alcohol exposure before birth. Stress and alcohol use often go hand in hand, a concerning pattern on the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic. Researchers have found that alcohol use increased sharply during the pandemic, and there is some evidence that those patterns were present among pregnant women.
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1c: Understand the ways that child development and the learning process occur in multiple contexts, including family, culture, language, community, and early learning setting, as well as in a larger societal context that includes structural inequities.
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My name is Ms. Medinah Muhammad I am the lead teacher inside the butterfly Prek classroom at Thomas Learning Academy, and I love working with the PHLpreK older toddlers. I have been teaching here for 4 years now and have enjoyed every moment here. The theme for this week is Trees from the Creative Curriculum. I have ensured every child’s development after careful evaluating their Ages and Stages and social emotional skills to make sure they are all on the same page for the lesson plan for the month. For this week we will be working on the letter will be L for leaves, the number 5, and the color green. We will take a field trip to the Linvilla Orchard on the third Friday of October. We celebrate all the Holidays on the calendar which is not limited to Asian American and Native Hawaiian/ Pacific Islander Heritage Month in May, LGBTQ+ Pride Month in June, and Juneteenth. We are requesting some items to be donated to our classroom such as bleach wipes, pencils, crayons, markers, tissue, and composition books. The makeup of the children in Thomas Learning Academy is a total of 22 children enrolled and we have a capacity of 57 children. Majority of the families here are African American however we do have some families that are Hispanic, Latino, and Muslim. We need to know if children have allergies so we don’t give them food that can cause a flare up or stop them from breathing. Also, we need to know what families celebrate what holidays so we can incorporate that into our program effectively. Finally, we need to know what they need help with or is struggling with to give them the resources they may need for us to advocate for them. Some structural inequities that might be present in this child’s life that would have an impact on my need to advocate would be poverty, stress, the welfare system and racism. I always tell my staff you never know what a child may be going through at home. It is extremely important to show love, care, vulnerability, and patience. We have some children that eats everything on their plate either because the lunch is that good or because they last meal may have been slighted. We offer seconds and thirds to the children that are hungrier than usual. Therefore, some children may be experiencing poverty at home. One child’s living conditions are not the best at home because they heater may not be working properly so we allow the child to wear layers of clothing at school and helped his mother with the LIHEAP program. The children that are not African American we make sure that they feel welcomed and apart of everything we do at Thomas Learning Academy to ensure nobody is feeling left out or not a part of the program we have a zero tolerance for children experiencing racism. There is one family that is a family of 3 and they are all brothers unfortunately their mother lost their father through gun violence now she is raising them on her own. She does her best but somehow DHS managed to get involved and she was on the verge of losing her children to the system her helped her by providing her with toddler beds, apartment applications, and even a voucher to the farmers market to ensure the children are not malnutrition.
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Standard 2: Family-Teacher Partnerships and Community Connections
2a: Know about, understand, and value the diversity of families
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​To work effectively with families from diverse backgrounds we as educators need to understand the culture of the families and design outreach and communication strategies that respond to the specific social, cultural and linguistic needs and values of that family. Such as getting to know families by asking them what's important to them and try to understand their experiences and cultures. Also, it is our job to be welcoming and accepting like being open to different types of families, and respect multiple ways of being. In Thomas Learning academy we strive to build positive relationships with diverse families because it develops positive relationships with the children and that helps you understand each other and work together. We teach staff members to avoid assumptions by not assuming families' backgrounds, cultures, or practices. We even Use interpreters like our Spanish teachers to help build partnerships with families where English is a second language. Here at this childcare center, we respect language all language. We have majority English speaking children as their primary language however, we do offer Spanish classes to the children twice a week from our African American teacher named Senora DeeDee. She is a train license teacher who speaks fluent Spanish that traveled the world to learn every type of way to speak Spanish. I plan to incorporate the diverse range of family dynamics into my classroom by having parents come read books to the class that is multicultural. Also, by celebrating holidays that make the entire class feel inclusive. To work effectively with families from diverse backgrounds we as educators need to understand the culture of the families and design outreach and communication strategies that respond to the specific social, cultural and linguistic needs and values of that family. Such as getting to know families by asking them what's important to them and try to understand their experiences and cultures. Also, it is our job to be welcoming and accepting like being open to different types of families, and respect multiple ways of being. In Thomas Learning academy we strive to build positive relationships with diverse families because it develops positive relationships with the children and that helps you understand each other and work together. We teach staff members to avoid assumptions by not assuming families' backgrounds, cultures, or practices. We even Use interpreters like our Spanish teachers to help build partnerships with families where English is a second language. Here at this childcare center, we respect language all language.
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2b: Collaborate as partners with families in young children’s development and learning through respectful, reciprocal relationships and engagement.
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I will keep families engaged by meeting with them at least once a month individually. This is creating a personal relationship with them to see if they need anything besides care for their children. Our purpose is to not only teach but to also help. I give them as much information as I can to ensure they are happy and healthy. I also keep my parents update with the latest information about what is going inside the classroom as well as free community events outside the classroom. Parents completing the google form have been very informative. Majority of all the questions were answered based of each family lifestyle. I learn a lot about one family ethnicity. This one family was Hispanic and Latino and they loved the idea of us celebrating their heritage on Cinco De Mayo. We had one family bring in multiple dishes in one week for the children to taste what it’s like being a part of their culture. For example, one day the children had Dominican chicken stew with Goya yellow rice and street corn, and then they had tacos with guacamole and tamales. This was a culture shock because not only did some children never experience these types of food but also because they recognized that different people consume different meals. Although the google forms were helpful with getting a better understanding of the families based off the data but it’s even better when you get to see it in the classroom hands on. We had a family that completed the google form and it was helpful to know their home language and culture values. I reached out to see if she would be interested in volunteering in the classroom to teach the children the basics of Arabic and why the Muslim family values the importance of covering up with a Shalah or Hijab.
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2c: Use community resources to support young children’s learning and development and to support families, and build partnerships between early learning settings, schools, and community organizations and agencies.
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Here you can see the Thomas Learning Academy Parents bulletin board and resources such as pictures of staff members and students brochures for WIC www.pawic.com, ELRC for subsidy https://www.elrc-phmc.org, PHLprek registration for kindergarten and applications https://www.phlprek.org , lunch menus, Keystone Stars https://www.pakeys.org/keystone-stars/ , Elwyn references https://www.elwyn.org , daily schedules, closed days for the year 2024-2025, Weather permitted days for outdoor play, Early Head Start Partnership https://eclkc.ohs.acf.hhs.gov/programs/article/early-head-start-programs , SNAP, TANF https://www.compass.dhs.pa.gov/home/#/ , LIHEAP LIHEAP - Low Income Energy Assistance Program , and CACFP.
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Supportive technology for early literacy in a classroom can include tools like text-to-speech apps on tablets or computers, audiobooks, digital picture books, interactive whiteboards, specialized apps for letter recognition and phonics practice, visual timers, and tools like large-print books or adapted writing utensils depending on individual needs. Parents can partner with us in the classroom to advocate for student needs by actively communicating with teachers, volunteering in the classroom, attending school events, participating in decision-making processes, and helping to raise awareness about important educational issues. The PA Parent and Family Alliance supports parents by hosting weekly online support groups where parents can connect to share their experiences and advice with one another. Also, The Lucy Project helps advance children who struggle to read and provide full and fair access to evidence-based literacy intervention. In inclusion set up in our program is not only important but also it is helpful for parents to understand this policy. We encourage our parents who have special needs children to trust us with their child's well-being. We use an app called Brightwheels and it allows parents to get daily updates on their child’s meals, changing, potty training, naps, personal matters, finance, and emergency alerts. This is one of the best ways for us to communicate with our parents and they love it. Educating themselves and others about oppression, discrimination, privilege, and other social justice issues and combating these issues on a personal level with our parents. The Arc of Philadelphia; arcphiladelphia.org William Penn Foundation williampennfoundation.org
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Standard 3: Child observation, documentation, assessment
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1. 3a: Understand that assessments formal and informal, formative, and summative are conducted to make informed choices about instruction and for planning in early learning settings.
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Formal assessments are systematic, pre-planned tests that assess student learning of a unit or major concept. For example, term papers, final exams, and class presentations. Informal assessments are intuitive method of evaluation where a teacher or instructor tests students' knowledge toward learning goals without using standard rubrics or criteria. For example, asking open-ended questions and observe students' performance. Formative assessment is teachers conduct in-process evaluations of student comprehension. For example, exit tickets, essays, worksheets, research papers, and projects. Summative assessment is administered at the end of an instructional unit in a course. For example, student learning by comparing performance to a standard or benchmark.
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2. 3b: Know a wide range of types of assessments, their purposes, and their associated methods and tools.
​Newborn/Infant (0-1) assessment is Ages and Stages this would get used to assess where the baby is at developmentally using a questionnaire. Toddlers (1-3) assessment tool is The Ounce Scale. This method is an interactive system of documentation, monitoring, and evaluation of development. Preschool (3-5) assessment is The Work Sampling System. For example, a series of evaluations, which allows their teachers to make informed decisions about how to guide instruction. School Age (5+) assessment is the Assess Plan Improve. This is an example of strengths & challenge areas, & build safer, more supportive, interactive, & engaging environments for youth. Newborns/ Infants Ages and Stages would be the best assessment because it provides reliable, accurate developmental and social-emotional screening for newborns. Toddlers The Ounces Scale is a better assessment because it observes, assess, and tracks the development of all toddlers. Preschool The Work Sampling Scale is the best assessment because of the classroom learning, solving problems, interacting, and creating products. School Age the Assess Plan Improve is the best assessment for school age because it supports children's experiences with intentional planning in the following areas: Physical safety, emotional safety, and inclusive practices. Ages and Stages might implicit bias’s present for these assessments because it can be used for multiple ages. For example, Ages and Stages assessment tool starts at ages 20 weeks premature to 5 ½ years. It is highly valid, reliable, accurate, and easy to score in just minutes.
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3. 3c: Use screening and assessment tools in ways that are ethically grounded and developmentally, ability, culturally, and linguistically appropriate in order to document development progress and promote positive outcomes for each child.
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One assessment method for the child in my childcare center would be Ages & Stages because he is a young a toddler with ADHD. This will allow me to see how he is doing and where he should be developmentally. Some development trajectories I must keep in mind when thinking about Ages & Stages assessment is the six different patterns of social, communication, and repetitive behavior functioning. The limitations of this assessment for this particular child is the ability to complete all of the tasks that are required. Most of the time when a child is diagnosed with ADHD it can give them anxiety to complete each category to see where they are for their age. This assessment impact on a child's family is having them considered for extra services and get evaluated by their physician to see if an IEP need to be put in place. Most families’ cultures don’t believe in therapy and will deny the services which is normal. The strengths of Ages & Stages for this child is to helps catch potential delays or issues early. Therefore, this child does need some extra support, follow-up, or intervention, they can get it now, when it makes the most difference. The ethical process is to understand what the child may need to succeed later down the line. This assessment will allow you to see if a child needs extra help in a early age.
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4. 3d: Build assessment partnerships with families and professional colleagues.
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I will include the child’s family in the assessment process by setting up a parent meeting and showing them the assessment and give my educational view for the next step. Also, I will define what the assessment is about and what it is for in order to achieve a goal if needed. I will include my colleagues in the assessment process by having them observe the child. Also, to take notes if they see anything unusual. This will be good when it's time to have a parent meeting so two opinions are better than one in the best interest of the child. Inclusion I will keep the child's information confidential by not putting their first and last name on the form. Also, I will refer to them as their birthday or initials. This is important because of HIPAA. Besides the colleagues the other professionals I would seek out about the assessment from the Pediatrician, Child Link Services, or Elywn.
Standard 4: Developmentally, culturally, linguistically appropriate teaching practices
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4b: Understand and use teaching skills that are responsive to the learning trajectories of young children and to the needs of each child, recognizing that differentiating instruction, incorporating play as a core teaching practice, and supporting the development of executive function skills are critical for young children.
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4c: Use of broad repertoire of developmentally appropriate, culturally and linguistically relevant, anti-bias, evidence-based teaching skills and strategies that reflect the principles of Universal Design for Learning (UDL)
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Standard 5: Knowledge, application, and integration of academic content in the early childhood curriculum
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5a: Understand content knowledge--the central concepts, methods and tools of inquiry, and structure--and resources for the academic disciplines in an early childhood curriculum.
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Math game- The name of the game was counting sequence on the website SplashLearn.com I found this game by typing into google free online math games for preschoolers. The one that caught my attention was SplashLearn.com. The age range for this game counting sequence specially was for preschoolers. The direction for the game is to start off with taping a purple flower in different columns to create a sound 1-3. Then the next one is having you pick out the number using a different sequence to connect the numbers together that aligns with 1-3 to help identify what the numbers are and they end up making a musical instrument. The help is needed on this online website all you must do is go to the help button. Also, it is super easy for the user to change activities they just have to hit the X button to exit and the main page comes up to pick another activity or age group. The level of difficulty depends on how many you get wrong, and it will decrease. The speed of the activity depends on how long a student takes to answer the question. The educational value is good for the students. The activity promotes creativity because it makes you click each number and the lines connect to one another to create different things like an apple. The games don’t offer different levels of difficulty. The sound and quality is HD. The activity is highly interactive it keeps the students wanting to do more. Overall, this website is run smoothly. Yes, I would recommend this game because it will help student learn their numbers, comprehend their numbers, understand the sequence and learn how to count. This game is targeted for preschoolers. The game matches for the preschoolers in terms of developmentally appropriate practice.​
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5c: Modify Teaching Practices by applying, expanding, integrating, and updating their content knowledge in the disciplines, their knowledge of curriculum content resources, and their pedagogical content knowledge.
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Standard 6: Professionalism as an early childhood educator
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6a: Identify and involve themselves with the early childhood field and serve as informed advocates for young children, families, and the profession.
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Inclusion is important to create an environment where every child, regardless of their abilities, background, or challenges, feels welcomed, valued, and has equal access to participate fully in all activities and learning opportunities.
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This link has a good inclusive curriculum for early learning. Early childhood educators at Thomas Learning Academy use developmentally appropriate practices and consider the unique needs of all children when planning. Staff will make every attempt to make any adaptations or modifications necessary to meet the needs of the children. Schedules, routines and activities are flexible and early childhood educators will work with therapists, special educators and other professionals to integrate individual accommodations, modifications and strategies into classroom routines and activities. Any adaptations will be reviewed with families and other professionals supporting the child.
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6b: Know about and uphold ethical and other early childhood professional guidelines
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PACCA The Pennsylvania Child Care Association is a statewide non-profit membership organization. We exist to be strong and effective advocates for high-quality early care and education programs. The NAEYC code of conduct will uphold the standards of confidentiality and privacy, sensitivity, and respect for young children and their families while also advocating for them by understanding the core values, ideals, principles and ethical responsibilities to children.
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6d: Engage in continuous collaborative learning to inform practice.
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My colleges provided information about the Boys and Girls Club for our after-school program children to get them involved with activities, trips, and mentor. I will implement this advice into my advocacy plan by taking my afterschool kids to the Boys and Girls Club so they can get a better understanding about what the program has to offer and how they can get involved in it. The First Up Conference was good to attend because it has been making a significant, positive impact on the early childhood education (ECE) sector in Southeastern Pennsylvania. Their coaching, training and technical assistance teams have helped hundreds of early childhood programs reach statewide or national accreditation standards.