Our America: Life and Death On The South Side Of Chicago

The story is told by LeAlan Jones. He grew up very poor but with lots of hope. In his jounal he talked about the neighborhood of which he lived. He described broken glass on the street, abandoned buildings, grass srowing out of the cement, broken windows, and even some abandoned churches. Violence was also prevalent in his neighborhood. It spoke about it as if it was if it happened on a daily basis. LeAlan and his sibkling lived with his grandmother. His mother was mentally ill and was not able to take care of him and his sisters. His older sister, 17 years old, already has a baby. This type of lifestyle can either spoil your dreams or inspire you to do better. In LeAlan's case, he is inspired to beat the odds. I really didn't know what poor was until I read these journal entries. This article has brought me to be more appreciative of what God has blessed me with. Also it has enlightened me to consider where my students might come from. There may be some students like LeAlan in my class. I could be his hope. Not only do teachers provide instruction for success but they also provide hope. As teachers it is important to realize the potential that some of our students may have. It is our job to help our students reach his full potential.

Fantasy and Storytelling: Children at Play

This article/story is a reflection on the author, Harry Crew's childhood. He "grew up in Georgia the son of a poor farmer." He and his friends Willalee and Lottie Mae spend all of their free time looking at the Sears catalog, or what they have named the 'magic book.' They do more than look at toys longingly. They take the models and create incredible stories about them. Harry and Willalee begin by opening the catalog to a random page, where they study the model. Then, they open to another random page and beging coming up with a story involving both of the models. The story they came up with in this article was about a dad that had an elaborate plot to kill the man that was dating his one and only daughter. He didn't trust him because he wore a fancy suit. Harry and Willalee said that men in suits couldn't be trusted and this particular one was a theif and that is why the girl's father had to get rid of him.
The time spent with the Sears catalog was very important for these children. Not only did they use it to get away from their lives on the farm, but they also used it to cement a lot of their feelings about the outside world. When they said the man in the suit couldn't be trusted they were expressing their fears and anxieties about people outside of their social class and used these stories to reinforce those ideas. I guess I never really examined the meaning behind
the things children imagine, but this one seemed pretty straightforward. I remember pretending, like most girls do, to be a mommy. I think the most important part is what we do when we're playing mommy. I would always clean or cook becuase that's what my mother did, but I'm sure it was very different for other girls. They might have gone shopping when they were playing mommy because that's what they think moms do.
The way these children used pictures of models they knew nothing about to create backgrounds and plots for each of them shows a real transformation from the sensorimotor child. A child that is still tring to grasp basic concepts like causality could not begin to invent such in depth narratives. This really sets them apart and shows their cognitive development. It also shows their views on punishment. Because they believe a man is untrustworthy and probably steals, they believe he should be shot. They want the worst punishment they can think of for him.
I could probably use this in my classroom to take a closer look at children's stories if they have a writing assignment and really examine what the characters in thier stories represent and how they solve their conflicts.

The Spatial Child

I read The Spatial Child chapter and enjoyed it. This particular child named John Dixon was not a good reader in the first grade. All of his classmates could read aloud and he did not understand why he could mot put letters into spoken words. John looked at his classmates as if they were co conspirators, simply because they were understanding something that he could not grasp. His teacher wanted to hold him back in the first grade and John was scared. The teacher made a deal with John mother that if she gives him special instruction in reading for the whole summer semester that he could advance to the third grade. John began to enjoy reading even though he read very slow. He would rush through test and reading drills just so he would not be the last one in the class to finish. John began to show that he had another type of intelligence. He was really good at constructing models of buildings and excellent at math. When John got to high school he was actually taking advance algebra classes. John states that as a child his teachers would always say that in his mind "Still water runs deep." He did not understand what this meant but as he got older he realized that he just had a different intelligence than most others and that he would just have to excel in the logical mathematical portions of school. I believe that this chapter shows that some children are considered slow learners or maybe even learning disabled when in fact they are just very talented in other ways. Children need to be tested in all areas on intelligence. I learned that calling on some students to read aloud in the classroom can be very embarrassing if they feel inadequate. I do believe that John's teacher did the right thing by having a special meeting with his mother and getting her involved in his learning how to read.

A Young Boy Becomes Man of the House cont.

I plan on taking this story into my classroom because it will remind me of all the different home situations that my students are going through. In my classroom I want my students to be able to act their age and enjoy themselves the way they might not get to at home. I do want to push my students to do their bests, but I don't want them to lose themselves in the process.

A Young Boy Becomes Man of the House

In A Young Boy Becomes Man of the House, author Russell Baker describes his life after his father dies unexpectedly at a young age. His mother, after realizing that she will not be able to depend on an ex-boyfriend to take care of her family and her children's college, decides that she will have to make Russell "the man of the family." At the ripe old age of 8 years old, Russell is pushed to do things like "the man of the family" would. He has to get a job and put some of his earnings in savings and some for household expenses. He has to dress, go to church, and treat women like a gentleman. He was also punished like a man whenever he did something wrong. His mother would unnecessarily beat him because he wouldn't cry and therefore, as she thought, he didn't feel remorse for what he had done wrong. No matter how mad his mother made him or pushed him, he loved his mother.
This was a very interesting story. It was also kind of hard for me to relate to. I don't know what it is like to live in a single-parent home or to have to grow up fast like Russell Baker did. I did have to work as soon as I was old enough to have to pay for my own things, which I honestly didn't mind and I'm actually very glad that I did. It has made me into a better person I feel like. However, in this story, I just feel like 8 years old is way to early for a child to have to grow up. I feel like he missed a lot of his childhood by having to become "the man of the family." It honestly makes me sad that this little 8 year old boy had to become so responsible and demanded upon.

Madeleine's First Months of Life

"Madeleine's First Months of Life" by Brian Hall discusses the development of reflexes, language, and imagination throughout the sensorimotor stage of development. This article also discuses Madeleine's reactions to her environment. Upon birth, Madeleine had just a few reflexes, such as the ability to suck on objects placed in her mouth, grasp objects tightly in her hands, and move her limbs around. As she developed she gained the ability to recognize sounds, especially her mother and father's voices and see for longer distances. Madeleine also began to interact with her environment, especially when placed in front of a mirror by her father. In the first month of life she would recognize her father's reflection in the mirror, but by the second month of life Madeleine was able to recognize her reflection in the mirror and preferred to do so. Hall thought that this was a result of familiarity and simplicity in her face.

Madeleine's beginning speech consisted of "the easiest sounds to produce; the vowel sound ah; the labial consonants p, b, and m; and the tongue taps t and d." It was also at this time that she began tapping objects or creating a rhythm to vocalization. As she continued her language her autonomy increased. By nineteen months, Madeleine developed words to represent objects. For example, "Ba-bo" meant diaper to her and "Ch" meant chair. She also began to say "Daddy" instead of "Dada." Madeleine also communicated to those changing her diaper through her laughs and movements. Also, during a diaper change she insisted that the person changing the diaper also change her baby doll's diaper. If a step was missed she would yell the missed step until it was completed. For example, one day when Hall was changing a diaper, he missed the step of cleaning the doll's bottom. Madeleine immediately said "Bukreh!" Hall then took the diaper off and cleaned the doll's bottom.

Also, during sensorimotor development, Madeleine began to use her imagination. While playing with a wooden car in the living room she would often pretend that it was the car her parents drove around town by saying "Brrm!" as she pushed it across the floor. By sixteen months she was used her imagination with her baby doll. At meal time she would force her doll into a cardboard cylinder, which represented a highchair, and then feed the doll in a similar manner of which she was fed. By doing this she pretended to the be the caregiver to her doll as her parents were to her.

Upon reading "Madeleine's First Months of Life" I was able to reflect back to my toddler days and remember how I often imagined things. For example I always had an imaginary friend everywhere I went. Her name was Stacey. Everything I did, Stacey did. Everything I got, Stacey got. By having "Stacey" as an imaginary friend I was practicing the same idea of "caretaker" as Madeleine. It was my responsibility to make sure "Stacey" had everything she needed, as my mother and father did for me. Also, "Stacey" allowed me to never be left alone, something I was extremely afraid of.

As an elementary school teacher I will have children who use their imagination in multiple aspects. I will also be able to see how their imaginations change and develop throughout each school year as they grow and mature. Also, I will be able to assist my students in language development by teaching them new words, correct spelling, and correct grammar. I will also continue to education of communication with others. It will be my responsibility to increase my students ability to imagine things and communicate with others. Also, I will be able to assist my students in learning how to interact with the different environments. I plan to teach my students how to act with adults versus with their friends; how they should act at home versus how they should act a school. This will help them to better understand that there are different environments in our world and each environment has different behavior. It is my ultimate responsibility as an early childhood educator to continue students language development, imagination, and environmental interactions.

Angela's Ashes: Memoir of a Childhood

Many teachers encounter moments that affect his or her outlook on teaching and life. Many children encounter poverty and hardships that can affect performance in life. In particular, Frank McCourt gives a brief account of his families struggle through poverty, alcoholism, and emotional distress in "Angela's Ashes: Memoir of a Childhood." Growing up in Ireland at four years can be a diffuclt time. A father can be the most important person to a young boy. Frank considers his father like the "Holy Trinity," the persons in one. He is someone that reads to him, recites stories at night, and one who does the "bad thing." Franks father cared for his family deeply(Frank,Franks Mother, Franks brother Malachy, and younger twins); however, he did have a problem with alcohol. He is the only source for his families income. The first weeks his family eats, but after the third they are hungry Druring the fourth week Franks father does not return home, and Frank his forced to search town for his father. His mother is torn, as she searches for food and her husband. Frank has to enter bars an inquire patrons of his father. After having to credit more money for food, Frank and his family returns home. His father later loses his job.
Many children today, have had difficult moments during their childhood. They are forced to be parents, sisters, and brothers. I believe that frank,at his age, possessed love and strength that many children havent acquired at the age of four. When children are put in a classroom, they are expected to provide knowledge at the end of the year. Everyday children have obstacles to deal with just as adults. I now understand that children have to tackle everyday stress and then try not to associate that stress with school. I feel that Frank was the type of child that no only understood life from a bad aspect, but he also attained more knowledge through school. Many students may not have knowledge that can be assessed by a pen and paper. For example, I may have a child in my classroom that visualy understand the material. This child may have stress at home that I may not know about. However, it is my job to get to know that child as a person.