Meeting Children’s Needs

Meeting Children’s Needs Chapter 9 Skills for Personal & Family Life Topics 1&2

Vocabulary & Notes • Caregiver –a person who provides care for someone else • These may include: • Child care in the parent’s home • Child care in the caregiver’s home • Child care cooperatives

Church or social group programs • Government-sponsored child care programs • Employer-sponsored child care services • Privately owned or franchised child care centers

School-sponsored or university-sponsored child care programs • Or may be: • Grandparents • Siblings • Friends • Neighbors • Guardians

Characteristics of Responsible Caregivers • Personal Qualities: • Enjoy children. • They find each child unique and fascinating. • Have a sense of humor and show love. • Are patient. • They know that children learn at different rates and can wait for children to learn to do things for themselves. • Allow children to ask “why?” many times. • Read the same book, tell the same story, play the same game again and again.

Are alert to children’s needs. • Must be supervising at all times. • Give aid and comfort immediately. • Meet emotional and social needs promptly. • Exercise self-control. • Should exhibit a calm and gentle demeanor. • Know when to take a personal ‘time out’ to calm down. • Keep their emotions under control.

Are consistent. • Establishes routines and rules that are regularly followed –becoming rituals. • Rules must be enforced-this gives children a sense of security (otherwise, children learn that rules are meaningless and can be ignored. • Set good examples. • Children like to imitate the behavior of adults, especially those they admire. • Children learn what to do-right or wrong-from watching others.

Are flexible. • Children can be unpredictable. • Caregivers must be prepared for anything and be willing to adapt to changing circumstances.

Personal Skills • Communication skills- speak clearly, use words children can understand, use simple language (children have limited vocabulary), use positive statements (tell them what to do rather than what not to do), and speak professionally to parents. • Judgment skills -know how to make decisions on handling situations involving children, know when to get involved in disagreements between children, know effective guidance techniques and how to use them, and make sure children have a healthy, safe environment with age-appropriate toys and materials.

Management skills –being able to plan ahead, be able to foresee possible needs and prepare for them (having extra diapers on hand, planning activities ahead, knowing where the first aid kit is located and make sure all supplies are available. • Responsible caregivers knows how to manage time well. • They can organize their time, set priorities, and distinguish between important and urgent matters.

Some knowledge about child growth and development is important. • Experience is often the best teacher-more experiences around children is better. • Helpful resources might be: • Parenting classes • Library for books and magazines • Computers • Chat room -provides a forum for a number of people to “chat” over the Internet at the same time.

Private and public agencies-look in yellow pages or blue pages locally. • In emergencies –call a hot line, a number people can call for information or assistance with a specific problem-usually open 24 hours a day—911 for medical assistance. • Support groups • Share- support for parents who have lost a newborn through miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death • Child Find- for parents trying to find missing children

The Role of Society in Protection Children’s Rights • Children are a precious resource. They are our hope for the future. • Children are easily hurt because they are physically weaker than adults and cannot reason as adults. It is society’s responsibility to protect them.

Parents are responsible for physical care and financial support, moral teachings, providing for their education, and make health care choices. • If parents do not provide for these needs, the state can act on the child’s behalf and provide protection. This might mean the state would require foster care in extreme situations.

Foster care –care provided for a child who needs a home temporarily. • Placement in Foster care may be made because child has been abandoned, abused, neglected by parents, or parents may be temporarily unable to care for child.

Laws are passed to help protect children: • School attendance • Labor laws • Child welfare services offering food and assistance to families who unable to make provisions on their own.

Meeting Children's Physical Needs • Serving Food • Nutritious meals(remember children have small stomachs) • Nutritious snacks (important part of a child’s nutrition in a day)

Mealtime Psychology • Try to avoid making an issue over food habits. Children eat best when parents praise their good habits. • Serve milk rich foods alternatives if a child doesn’t like milk-ice cream, custard, cream soups and cheese. • Children like small servings of food. • Children like bright colors. • They like foods made especially for them-mini pizzas, smaller biscuits and mustard and ketchup faces on breads.

Involving Children in Meal Preparation • Children like to choose their own food. Give them choices like between banana and apple. • Children are more likely to eat foods they help to prepare. • Snacks • Snacks should be served at least an hour before meals are to be served. • Children like snacks that can be eaten with their fingers (breakfast cereals, raisins, orange sections and crackers.

Choosing Clothes • Children like to choose their own clothes. Parents can offer two choices for child to select from. • Clothes should be warm and comfortable and intellectual too. (colors, shapes, sizes) • Fit • Buy clothes that fit, but also allow a little extra room for growth. • Must fit properly to allow for comfort and safety. • Children’s clothes are often sized according to the age of the child most likely to wear them. (not always a valid guide) • A child’s height, weight, chest, and waist should be considered when evaluating fit.

Fabric and Construction • Children prefer soft fabrics that feel good against their skin. • Knits are popular because they give with the child’s movement. • Play clothes should be made of absorbent fibers help to absorb perspiration. • Firm weaves and close knits help clothes resist the wear and tear children put on them. • Check the construction and sturdiness to withstand hard use and frequent laundering.

Self-Help Features –these are clothing design details that make clothes easier for children to put on and take off such as elasticized waistbands and large neck and arm openings and large buttons or snaps. • Being allowed to dress themselves encourages a child’s independence.

Size of Wardrobe • How many clothes a child should have depends: • Climate • The availability of laundry facilities • Family’s personal priorities

The Role of Play in Physical Development • Active-physical play help children develop their large-muscles for movements; like walking, running, hopping, jumping, and skipping. • Children can learn concepts like: • Front • Back • Side • Up • Down • High • Low • Through and • Between

Manipulative-constructive play helps children develop small-muscle skills. These control the • wrists, • hands, • thumbs, • fingers, and • ankles. • Then later, fingers. • These muscles develop • Stacking blocks • Picking up shaped toys to put into container • Writing • Drawing stacking stringing beads • Fitting puzzles together

Physical skills improve as a child grows and develops: • Infant will crawl after a rolling ball. • A preschooler might run after a ball. • An older, more surefooted child might kick a ball. • Games and play activities can help build physical skills: • Walking • Running • Jumping • Balancing • Swinging their arms • Throw, Catch, Roll and Bounce balls • Riding tricycles • Playing with outdoor equipment These activities will stimulate growth in other areas as well.

Creating a Healthy and Safe Environment • Health care: parents can teach children proper eating, sleeping habits, dressing skills and good health care by setting the example.

Guidelines for establishing a healthy routine: 1. Maintain a clean environment. 2. Teach children the importance of body cleanliness. 3. Take children for regular medical checkups. 4. Keep children’s immunizations up to date. 5. Keep children away from people who have communicable diseases.

Immunizations- injections or drops given to a person to provide immunity from a certain disease. • Communicable diseases – are illnesses that can be passed on to other people, such as colds and sore throats. Discourage habits that might spread communicable diseases, such as sharing drinking cups.

6. Have a knowledge of common childhood illnesses and diseases. Be familiar with their symptoms and how to treat them. 7. Treat wounds, bites, and stings promptly. 8. Avoid foodborne illnesses by carefully selecting, preparing, and storing foods.

Safety • Caregivers have two responsibilities regarding children’s safety. • Make the environment as safe as possible for children. • Must teach children to recognize and avoid safety hazards.

Parents need to look for safety hazards from a child’s low vantage point. • They should look for possible hazards to a child who is learning to sit, creep, stand, or walk. • Parents must remove all items that could be dangerous to young children. • They must teach older children to avoid dangerous items and to stay out of harmful areas.

Guidelines that will help parents maintain a safe environment for children: • Supervise children at all times. Their mobility, desire for independence, and curiosity prompts them to explore items that could be hazardous. • Teach safe use of toys and play equipment.

3. Avoid giving children toys that are sharp or fragile or that have small pieces that can be swallowed. 4. Place gates at the top and bottom of stairs to prevent falls. 5. Keep sharp and breakable objects out of the reach of children. 6. Keep hot water, hot food, and other hot objects out of children’s reach to prevent burns.

7. Keep medicines and cleaning agents in a locked cabinet. Do not remove product labels. 8. Place fencing around swimming pools, garden ponds, and other bodies of water to prevent accidental drowning. Supervise children constantly when they play near water. 9. Provide safe, sturdy places for children to climb. Watch children closely when climbing is allowed.

10. Keep plastic bags and large sheets of plastic away from children to prevent suffocation. 11. Protect children from electrical hazards. Unused outlets should be capped or covered. 12. Check fire extinguishers regularly and know how to use them.

13. Plan and practice evacuation procedures for the home in case of fire and assign a family meeting place outside the home. 14. Secure children in a car seat for even short distances. Older children should always use safety belts.

First Aid in Emergencies • First aid is emergency care or treatment given to people right after an accident. • Caregivers need to know basic first aid procedures so that they can treat minor injuries promptly. • The following are some basic first aid techniques:

Small cuts and abrasions: Wash area with soap and water. Apply mild antiseptic and bandage. • Deep cuts or puncture wounds: Place a clean cloth or bandage over the wound. Press the wound with the palm of your hand to stop the bleeding. Then get medical help. • Minor burns: Place the burned area in cool water for a few minutes until the pain subsides. Do not apply ointment.

Severe burns: Have the child lie down. Do not put anything on the burn or try to remove any material stuck to the skin. Get medical help right away. • Broken bones: If you think the child has a broken bone, get medical help. Do not move the child. • Splinters: Wash the area with soap and water. Using a pair of tweezers, remove the splinter at the same angle it entered the skin. Cover with a bandage.

Insect stings: If the child is stung by a wasp, bee, hornet, or yellow jacket, watch for an allergic reaction. A rash or swelling is a mild reaction. I f the child is weak and collapses and has abdominal cramping, get prompt medical help.

Electric shock: Do not touch the child with your bare hands until the electrical connection is broken or you, too, will be shocked. Either turn off the electricity or use a wooden stick, a cloth, or a rope to pull the child away from the source. If the child is not breathing, give CPR if you are certified to do this. This technique includes rescue breathing and forcing the victim’s heart to pump blood. Get medical help immediately.

Choking: If a child cannot speak or breathe, he or she may be choking on something. Another sign is bluish lips and fingernails. You should immediately perform a abdominal thrust (Heimlich maneuver). ***Abdominal thrust is done differently on smaller people. Infant and Toddlers has a method. Older Children has a different method.

Have the phone number for the poison control cent posted near the phone. If a child swallows a substance that could be poisonous, you will need to call this number immediately. Be prepared to tell what the child swallowed, then follow staff directions. The end.

Meeting Children’s Needs