The Sexualization of Early Childhood

When I think of the topic of sexualization in early childhood it makes me sad. I believe this is a time children should play and enjoy the essence of being a child. Children are exposed to a highly sexualized environment and are influenced by it in many different ways.
Children are exposed to technology at a very young age. The images which are depicted in games are very highly sexualized with sexy clothes, make-up, and over dramatized bodies. This can have a negative effect on a child’s social/emotional development. They may look at these women as role models and think they are what all girls should thrive to look like. The media also has a big impact on the sexualization of children at a young age. It focuses primarily on appearances and not intelligence or what they want to achieve in their lives. The media also portrays relationships between different sexes at a very young age. Boys and girls are no longer friends, but are involved in relationships.

On a personal level I have two girls ages 10 and 12. I watch programs with them and pay attention to the way the characters dress and also the relationships between the characters. I notice the decline from the days when I was little and there was a “moral” of the story. Most the time the female characters are dressing inappropriately and even worse the main character is portrayed as unintelligent.

When I think of this topic as an early childhood educator and mother I want to protect children as much as possible. In the case of my own children I choose to not have cable and manage what they watch on Netflix or movie rentals. We need to focus on children doing and achieving things rather than the need for commercial products to create happiness. When teaching young children I want to create an environment where children can challenge stereotypes and learn to truly play. Most of all I want to be a role model where children feel comfortable talking about these subjects with me and trust my advice and knowledge.
After studying the topic of sexualization this week many of my thoughts have been reconfirmed and I realize this is a subject we need to deal with as early childhood educators and as parents. We need to have strategies to deal with this topic and also feel comfortable collaborating with other adults on the subject.

Evaluating Impacts on Professional Practice

If I was working in the early childhood field and experienced an “ism” in my personal life it would be something which would always be on my mind and consuming my thoughts. I would feel an inner sense of sadness. I think this is one of the most difficult situations to deal with because it is the discrimination is happening for a reason which you have no control over. I would not be focused at work and have this as a sort of baggage weighing me down. My mental health would be poor and then in turn I would be less productive. When we have these negative thoughts on our mind it can also begin to harm us physically. Stress is not good for our physical or mental health and can lead to many diseases.

I believe the most difficult aspect of the “ism” is it would definitely impact my work as an early childhood educator. When we come to work dealing with young children and all the different energies in the room we have to put our best foot forward and be 100 percent. Our minds must always be thinking ahead and waiting to deal with unexpected situations. I also think we need to be positive and send out good energy to the children, families, and staff we deal with on a daily basis. If I was getting discriminated against it also may make me angry and without even understanding the underlying issue take it out on someone else. I hope by making more people aware through anti-bias education we can create an environment which is free of discrimination and fosters acceptance.

Observing Communication

          I had an experience yesterday at work watching interaction between a parent and child I have in my classroom.  The child had had a difficult day at school.  He was fighting with other children, had a bathroom accident and seemed not himself.  The mother rushed in to pick him and his brother up (they are twins), then rushed out so quickly I did not have a chance to talk to her.  When I was cleaning up the room I found his wet clothes in a bag in his cubbie which she forgot to check.  I put them aside and continued to clean.  I then saw her and the boys walk by the classroom going to their car from the playground.  I stopped her and opened the door.  I quietly said, “I’m glad I caught you,” and gave her the wet clothes.  She looked at her son and rolled her eyes.  She then said his whole name with a sigh.  He usually goes by a shorter nickname.  She then told me loudly that he had pushed another boy on the playground and that was why they were leaving.  She kept looking at him with a disapproving look.  She then told him she was not happy and they walked away. 

          The communication was very one sided.  When relating this to the media-presentation this week the “Communicating with Young Children” the communication was not reciprocal and respectful.  This boy has a problem communicating in the classroom and by relating it to the snapshot of the interaction with his mother it is easier to understand.  Talking negatively in front of another adult who the child respects makes them feel very unworthy. 

          I believe the adult-child communication should have been done privately where the issues could have been discussed in detail and worked out.  No knowledge came out of the communication which happened outside of the classroom.  I would have talked to both the children after the hitting happened, and not scooted him away from the playground.  If I needed to have a conversation with the teacher I would not have done it with the child present. 

          In regard to my own communication with children this week the main thing I have learned is I always treat children respectful and never put them down.  I try to have meaningful conversations and deal with problems as they present themselves.

References

Laureate Education Inc.(Producer). (2011). Communicating With Young Children. Baltimore, MD: Author

                

Creating Affirming Environments

If I opened my own Family Child Care Home I would want everything to look very natural and have elements of bringing nature inside. I believe it brings a calming effect to the room and to the children. I would find beautiful real pictures of multi-cultural children and hang them on the wall in frames to make it feel very homey. The photos I chose would also show pictures crossing typical gender roles. For example: girls playing cars. I would also show different family dynamics in photos, like single parent households. I would have multi-cultural dress up clothes in the dramatic play with all different types of pretend food from sushi to pita bread. The baby dolls would have all different skin colors from light to dark. I would have elements in my classroom from other parts of the world. For example: a wall hanging from Indonesia. The language displayed around the room would be in every language my families used. If there were four home languages I would use all of them in correspondence. Anyone who entered my care center could tell immediately who was in the program at that time (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010 p.43). The books in my center would have personalized topics to relate to the children and we would make them ourselves if needed. The puzzles would have real photos of children who represented the classroom. I would have a family board where photos of the families were displayed in frames. When playing music I would choose music with different languages as well as culturally diverse music. In my dreams I would create a beautiful classroom where all children were represented and respected.
References
Derman-Sparks, & Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-Bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington D.C. National Association for the Education of Young Children( NAEYC).

What I Have Learned

One hope I have when I think about working with children and families who come from diverse backgrounds is I as an Early Childhood Educator can embrace all cultures and ways of living. I also want to teach children about different ways of life and how each of us have our differences and similarities.

One goal I would like to set for the early childhood field related to issues of diversity, equity, and social justice is to foster the development of the whole child by helping them understand themselves and the world. They need to have cognitive and social-emotional skills developed to question the world and make their way through it.

Thank you to all my colleagues who have supported me through this class with meaningful discussions and feedback. I wish you the best on your journey.

Start Seeing Diversity Blog: Creating Art

"We Don't Say Those Words in Class!"

A couple of months ago I was standing in line behind a woman and her child. In front of us was a woman who was missing a leg and had a prosthetic with crutches. The child said loudly, “That woman has no leg!” The mother looked mortified and her face turned red. She then leaned down to the child and whispered something in his ear. After that the child did not say anything else.

I think the message communicated by the adults response to the child was to not say another word and her facial expressions also let him know this was not an acceptable comment. Once the child saw his mother’s face and also heard his words he stopped talking and stood there quietly.

An anti-bias educator might have responded to support the child’s understanding by giving the child a respectful understanding of others. Young children need caring adults to help them construct a positive sense of self and respectful understanding of others. They need adults to help them begin to navigate and resist the harmful impact of prejudice and discrimination (Derman-Sparks & Edwards, 2010 p.11).

References
Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.