These preparations will help the child, her family and me in several ways. First, my preparations will hopefully make the family feel welcomed. I would imagine that settling in a new place is a little less stressful if the people in the new town are welcoming. Second, my preparations will help me learn about a new culture. Learning about other cultures further develops my cultural responsiveness to all students. Lastly, my preparation should reduce the anxiety of receiving a student I know nothing about and may have challenges communicating with if English is not her first language.
Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Welcoming a New Family
I just found out a 3 year old from Somalia is coming to Indianapolis with her family, and the little girl will be attending our child development center. I need to prepare for her arrival. Five ways I will prepare for her and her family are: 1) contact Exodus Refugee Immigration to explore supportive resources. This agency can help the family get settled and connect to social services, transportation, employment, and other Somalians; 2) investigate available interpreters in the area to ensure I can communicate with the girl’s family; 3) prepare a unit of my curriculum which celebrates where each child is from so the entire class can see everyone is from different places; 4) prepare a parent information sheet so I can find out about family point of contact, child’s interests, home language, dreams for their child, and the importance of extended family; and 5) research Somalia’s history and culture. I know the country has suffered from a lack of government, war, and famine. As a result, the family may experience significant culture shock.
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Joy,
ReplyDeleteI really liked your forth preparation. "4) prepare a parent information sheet so I can find out about family point of contact, child’s interests, home language, dreams for their child, and the importance of extended family." At the CDC I used to work at, we did a family profile sheet similar to this and it helped greatly with getting to know the family and what they expected and helped us create bonds with them.
Joy,
ReplyDeleteI also said that I would create a parent information sheet. I use these even for the children who are not from different countries. I think it allows the family to feel like they are being included in their child's education. Is this student really coming to the center where you work or did you just make it up for this assignment?
Joy, Working in the child development that I am at, a teacher has done many preparations for child coming from Ethiopia. The experience was awarding. She learned a lot about his country and family.
ReplyDeleteI think you have some great ideas on how to prepare for the family, I like the idea of reaching out to other resources to get help for the family to make sure they get settled into the community and are supported.
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