Honoring Diversity and Authentically Partnering with Families

1. Honoring Diversity and Authentically Partnering with Families Discovery 2013 Stone Soup The Impact of Race and Economic Status on Early Childhood: Opportunities for Community Transformation Tuesday, October 22, 2013 Elsa E. Jones, M.A. Assistant Academic Program Manager Early Childhood-Post University Independent Early Childhood Education Consultant

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3. Workshop Objective • Explore intentional strategies for • supporting families as their children’s first teachers and advocates • honoring diversity • building and sustaining daily, authentic family-staff-community partnerships

4. Challenge Ourselves! • Examine our thinking and behaviors • Feel safe if we become uncomfortable • Strive to: • be more knowledgeable and understanding, • be more culturally competent, • provide higher-quality care and education for the increasing numbers of diverse children, families and staff. Tap our ZPDs! Use our HOTS!

5. Cycle of Intentional Family & Community Engagement requires knowing and understanding children, families, staff and communities & celebrating daily the rich knowledge and diversity we all bring to our programs!

6. NAEYC Early Childhood Program Standards and Accreditation Criteria Program Standard 7: Families Establish and maintain collaborative relationships with each child’s family to foster children’s development in all settings. Relationships are sensitive to family composition, language, and culture. Criteria: 7.A. Knowing & Understanding the Program’s Families 7.B. Sharing Information Between Staff & Families 7.C. Nurturing Families as Advocates for Their Children Program Standard 8: Community Relationships Establish relationships with and use the resources of the children’s communities to support the achievement of program goals. Criteria: 8.A. Linking with the Community 8.B. Accessing Community Resources 8.C. Acting as a Citizen in the Neighborhood and the Early Childhood Community

7. “Casserian Engeri” “And How Are The Children?” The Mighty Masai African Warriors http://www.ctfalliance.org/images/pdfs/TN_ParentGuide.pdf

8. 813,398 Children in CT Race and Ethnicity • 495,973 are White, non-Hispanic • 96,515 are Black • 159,753 are Hispanic • 35,108 are Asian/Pacific Islander • 1,946 are American Indian/Alaska Native • 43,589 are two or more races Children’s Defense Fund, March 2013 Nationwide More than one-third of today's public school students are people of color. • By 2025 it has been projected the figure will reach 49%. • The number of minority teachers is decreasing: • Approximately 13% of teachers are of minority descent; • More than 40% of the schools across America have no minority teachers. White-Clark, 2006

9. Linguistic Diversity in CT 161 dominant languagesother than English were spoken by public school students in grades K-12 during the 2007-2008 school year. CT State Department of Education Division of Assessment and Accountability Bureau of Data Collection, Research and Evaluation DATA BULLETIN – July 2008 Child Welfare in CT • 21,444 grandparents raising grandchildren • 4,926 children in foster care • 611 children adopted from foster care Children’s Defense Fund - March 2013 Homeless Children in CT • 4,683 were homeless in 2010 The National Center of Family Homelessness, 2010 Facts about Homeless Children • One-half of homeless children attend 3 different schools in one year. • 75% of homeless children perform below grade level in reading. The Institute for Children & Poverty

10. Bioecological Theory Urie Bronfenbrenner, 1979 Biological predisposition and environmental influences interactively affect human development Five systems impact our daily lives: • Microsystem • Mesosytem • Exosystem • Macrosystem • Chronosystem Bronfenbrenner’s Ecological Systems Theory-Impact of Special Needs (n.d.). Retrieved from http://impactofspecialneeds.weebly.com/bronfenbrennerrsquos-ecological-systems-theory.html

11. Sociocultural TheoryLev Vygotsky, 1962 • Human knowledge is rooted in one’s culture. • Much of what we know comes from our families and society. - Much of young children’s behavior is grounded in family expectations. Families, Schools and Communities Together for Young Children 2008 Thomson Delmar Learning

12. Frameworks and Systems • Funds of KnowledgeLuis Moll • Strengthening Families Protective Factors Center for the Study of Social Policy • Parental Resilience • Social Connections • Knowledge of Parenting & Child Development • Concrete Support in Times of Need • Social & Emotional Competence of Children • Help Me Grow Children’s Trust Fund, DSS • Family & Community Outreach • Child Health Care Provider Outreach • Centralized Telephone Access Point • Data Collection and Analysis

13. Rita’s Stories: A companion piece to A Framework for Understanding Poverty “My Mamma Said” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bndCdOeMO3Y

14. 5 Family-Centered CarePrinciples • Recognize and respect one another’s knowledge and expertise • Share information through 2-way communication • Share power and decision-making • Acknowledge and respect diversity • Create networks of support Janis Keyser. From Parents to Partners: Building a Family-Centered Early Childhood Program

15. Take Home Strategies • Welcoming Banner: “Families are Their Children’s First Teachers!” 2. Strengthen Key Messages (written and spoken) “Invite  Invest”; “Participant  Partner” 3. Intake Form: “Who is this Family?” Families help create. 4. Environmental Messages: “Who lives here?” 5. Family Engagement Activities & Events “WE planned. THEY didn’t come.” 6. Self-Assessment: Beyond the Bake Sale Questionnaires (Internet) • 4 Versions of Family-School Partnerships • How Family-Friendly Is Your School? • How Well is Your School Bridging Racial, Class and Cultural Differences • Home Visits • Favorite Books: share with families • Avoid the Tourist Approach: cultural history months • Dance!

16. “Family-Staff Partnership” Cinquain Partnership (1 word or 1 syllable) Home School (2 words or 2 syllables)   Communicate Collaborate Celebrate (3 words or 3 syllables) Success for Our Children (Be The Change Needed)(4 words or 4 syllables) Dance! (1 word of 2 syllables)