MOLE (Management of Learning Experiences)

As we have reflected with each and everyone's happy thoughts what I have realized and learned is that the best thing to do in order to get rid of everything that blocks our way to success and happiness is to LIVE WITH OUR FAITH.  Faith is to believe.  If we want to see the fruit of our faith to God, then we have to do also our part.  God is everywhere and in order to feel His presence, we must welcome Him in ours.  He always has reasons behind of everything: the challenges; success and failures; pains and happiness; and our ups and downs.  Everything that happens is purposeful that makes our lives so meaningful.  Find silence... help your self see the light...welcome God and fill your heart with your hope, faith, goodness and love.
I am starting to become interested and muse about hearing others experiences and insights.  Theirs that also teaches me and let me see how beautiful life is.  Others' experiences add puzzle pieces and blocks that strongly builds how I positively view life.

Christmas for Sale

Nowadays, as how I see it, children were bounded with a lot different thought and idea about Christmas compare to what my parents had taught to me and to my siblings about this very special day of the year.  There are some who are very much excited about Santa Claus; some are after with  the gifts that they will be receiving on that day; some are too excited, thinking of the parties, foods and even with whom they will celebrate the season.  Unlike with what my parents told us, that Christmas is special and important because it is Jesus Christ's day; it is his birth.  A day where, just like what we should do everyday, we will continually give love, kindness, care and share everything that we have to others.  A day to continually inwardly reminisce and cherish what had Jesus taught to and done for us. Well, children should not be blame with those different thought that they have about Christmas because it is actually due of how people around children who influence and let them so.  Will children be excited more about Santa Claus if we are to introduce or let them realize on their young age the real importance of Christmas?  Will they be more excited with the parties and number or kind of gifts that they will be receiving if we teach them what those gifts are for?

Christmas is not about whom you will celebrate with nor what you have on your table to eat; It is not about the quality nor the quantity of the gifts that you will give or you will received; Christmas is not about having decorations in your house nor a star on the Christmas tree; It is not about wearing red suits and red hats; Christmas is just about ding good things to others to make Santa Claus be proud and to give the presence that you want. Christmas is about Jesus and the people of love, understanding, peace, kindness and goodness; a day where we continually cherish, be thanked and value everything we receives from Him. So, If  I am to help children for them to have a bountiful Christmas, first in hand , I will let them realized what Christmas is really for.  I will be transmitting the value with how my parents positively molded me with the true means of Christmas. How? I will lead them to open the door and inwardly welcome Jesus Christ on their hearts and effulgence their faith to Him.  I will make them realized that best Christmas will be experience if they first best let Jesus' spirits be in their mind, heart and soul.

We have the quotation, "It is not the gift but thought that counts", similar with what Christmas is for.  It is not what we have or whom we are with on this day, but it is how we celebrate it.  Christmas is a day for everybody. Let us not just simply enjoy this day, we must outreach ourselves to everybody.  Let children be bounded with the true means and spirit of Christmas.  Let us, together with children, invite and welcome Jesus Christ in every parties and celebrations that we will have.  Let us help children to continually effulgence their faiths and beliefs.  Teach them to realize the beauty and sense of giving and receiving gifts.  On these Christmas, I'l be wearing the "hat" of goodness, kindness and love. Then, I will distribute and let children to wear this hat too. On this simple way, I am helping children to have a meaningful Christmas. Merry Christmas!

Happy Thoughts

"It is really hard to think of your happy moments when you are in pain and in the midst of agony.  So I really have to find a perfect place where I could inwardly think of it... and that place is "SILENCE"."

"The Door", this symbolizes the most happiest part of my life.  How I wish that this door will open once again together with the happy moments that  we have in our family in the past.  I consider the time when this door opens and welcomes each and every member of the family as the happiest moments that i had in my life.

See, I am with a broken family and as the youngest it is really hard to accept everything that easily.  Until now, although it is already 3 yecars ago when my parents got separated from each other, I still have the hope and faith that everything will be fixed sooner and we will have a very happy family once again; a complete and perfect family.
A family of love, understanding and respect.  I will not ever get tired of waiting to have my family be complete and happy once again and on that time I will make sure that this door will close and will surely not let anybody to be apart from the family again.

"MYSELF"---- Sometimes my own negative experiences that, somehow, affect how I positively view life are those what hindrance this happy thought of mine.  My failures, loose of faith, mistakes, regrets, anxieties, doubts, and fears that I have inside are those viruses that tries to block my happiness.   As long as I can, I do not want to be affected with what happens in my environment, but then, if it is already myself vs. myself...   I really find it very hard to maintain myself with my principle.


"SILENCE"---- Silence is life, as what I always say.  Whenever that I am in pain and in trouble this is where I go, this is what I look for.  In silence I could inwardly think of and reflect with everything that I have gone through.  This is the perfect place where I could help myself to be with a positive outlook in life.
In silence, I could able to console myself better than anybody does for me.  Yes, in some point, I best cope in silence.  I never found myself alone, lonely and afraid on this place because in silence I know that GOD is with me, helping for I to overcome everything.  I could feel His presence more and so powerful...with Him, I could able to reflect and see my self as clear as diamonds.

Common Problems of Chilren in Early Childhood

PHYSICAL PROBLEMS

 

From the time of a baby's birth, we eagerly wait for the day when our child will start to roll over, crawl and then walk. Unlike speech and language development, these milestones are at first glance easily determined. Yet, what many parents do not know is that within the field of physical development there are separate areas of development and within those areas the manner in which a child is able to accomplish a certain task, can make a big difference in his life.

The area of physical development can be divided into two main areas:

 

Gross Motor Development Fine Motor Development

There are also two areas, which can affect a child's ability to learn and may contribute to difficulty with physical tasks. These are:

Attention Skills
Sensory Integration

Here is an explanation of each of these basic terms:

• Gross Motor Development

This is the area of physical development that most parents think of first - the child's general ability to move around and use the various parts of his body. Activities like rolling over; crawling, walking, running and jumping are gross motor skills. These skills usually involve using the entire body or several parts of the body at one time.

Some of the areas that are considered when evaluating the area of gross motor development are:

Muscle Tone: How tightly or loosely a person's body is put together? If a child's body is too tight (high tone) then his movements might be jerky or disconnected. If a child's body is too loose (low tone) then her movements might be slow and lack strength. Some technical terms that are associated with these areas are Hypertonic (someone who has high tone) and Hypotonic (associated with low tone). These are professional terms and do not apply to every child whose tone happens to be either a bit tight or a bit loose. Only a professional can decide if a child's skills fit these criteria.

Muscle strength: How much strength does a child have? How much pressure can she apply with her hands and legs? How much pressure can her body withstand?

Quality of movements: Are a child's movement's smooth or does she seem to jerk her limbs? Does she seem to move either particularly slow or fast? Does it take effort for her to move around?

Range of movement: An important area in physical development is a child's ability to make movements that span the entire length of her body. A significant milestone is the ability to make movements that go from one side of the body to the other, referred to as "crossing the midline." This skill is necessary for a child to do tasks such throwing a ball or passing an object from one hand to another. This concept is also important for the area of fine motor development.

• Fine Motor Development

This term refers to skills that require smaller movements and more intricate capabilities. A generalization that is often made is that fine motor activities are skills that a child does with his hands. While this is not totally accurate, it is true that most fine motor activities involve a child's ability to use his hands properly. Overall, when we say that a child has appropriate fine motor skills, it means that he can use his hands appropriately for a child of his age.

Here are terms that are used to describe specific fine motor skills.

• Visual Motor Skills

These skills require coordination between the child's ability to see (visual skills) and his hands. In early childhood, this includes activities such as putting together puzzles and building with construction toys. (blocks, leggos)

• Grapho-Motor Skills

Any task that involves using a writing tool is considered a grapho-motor skill. These tasks include drawing, coloring, and using a pencil. (Grapho-Motor skills are also visual motor skills.)

An important term related to these areas and fine motor development in general, is eye-hand coordination. This refers to a person's ability to coordinate the information that she sees with her eyes in order to tell her hands what to do.

• Motor Planning

Professionals use the term motor planing to describe a child's ability to interact successfully with his physical environment; which means to plan, organize and carry out unfamiliar motor actions. When a child sees a new puzzle for the first time, it is not enough to have the physical ability to move the pieces around and fit them together. He also needs to know how to organize the activity so that he will be successful. (i.e. start with the ends, put the ones of the same color together, etc…). If a child has difficulty with a task, it is important to consider if he is unable to physically complete the task or if he is unable to figure out how to go about doing so.

While you can evaluate a child's fine motor skills from a very young age, until age two, the line between fine and gross motor skills is often very difficult to ascertain. The skills most closely associated with fine motor skills (drawing, puzzles, building, etc…) generally start to develop in children from ages two and up. Up until age two, a young child is not able to use her hands in a more intricate way. Among infants, babies and toddlers, therefore, physical development difficulties are not always clearly defined as gross motor or fine motor difficulties. By age three, however, the difference between these two areas is more obvious and the tasks that the child has difficulty with are defined as falling into either only one or both of these areas.

Contributing Factors:

When considering a child's motor skills the following factors need to be taken into consideration:

• Attention Skills

Another area that can contribute significantly to a child's ability to perform physical tasks is his attention span. In the last few years, a condition called Attention Deficit Disorder has become very well known and commonly diagnosed among both pre-school and school age children. While this condition can not be properly explained in a few lines, the main point is that a child's attention span can affect his ability to complete activities. It is important to point out that when a child is having difficulty learning to perform physical tasks, it is essential to consider if his abilities are affected by his ability to pay attention to what he is doing. Is he truly unable to build a tower of ten blocks -- Or is he simply too easily distracted by the child next to him who is coloring with markers?

• Sensory Integration

While many parents have heard of attention deficit disorder, few parents are aware of how their child's relationship to his senses, can affect his physical development. All children and adults, in one way or another have sensory sensitivities. There will always be certain smells that make one person feel sick and do not bother someone else, or a certain sound that makes a person's skin crawl while it does not affect someone else. But what many parents and professionals do not realize, is that there are children for whom this sensitivity keeps them from learning in a classroom or at home.

In fact, in addition to the five senses of touch, taste, smell, hearing and sight, there are two more senses that are also essential to a child's development: the movement sense (vestibular) and position in space (propriception).

All seven of these senses need to properly take in information from the environment and organize them in a way that our bodies can use. This is called sensory integration. Sometimes there are imbalances in this system that can lead to over or under sensitivity in one or several of these areas.

Being either over or under sensitive in one or several of these seven areas can affect a child's ability to perform physical tasks.

Here are some examples:

• Touch - A child might be sensitive to the feel of objects against his skin. He might hate activities such as dress up, pretend play with makeup, or arts and craft activities that involve working with playdough or clay. A child who is overly sensitive to touch may overeact when touched even lightly on the shoulder by a teach or a friend. A child who is underly sensitive may have no reaction if he falls or hurts himself.
  
• Smell - A child might react strongly to unusual or strong smells or not seem to notice even unusual smells such as food burning or gas leaking.
  
• Taste - Some children are particularly sensitive to the taste of different foods.
  
• Sight - Strong lights or certain types of colors may bother a child.
  
• Hearing - A child may be disturbed by sudden or loud noises.
  
• Position in Space - Some children have difficulty evaluating how much space is needed to reach a certain item. This would include putting a pegboard down on the table without tipping it over, judging if there is room for a child to crawl underneath a jungle gym and sitting down on the center of the chair. A child who seems to eternally "miss the chair" when sitting down may be having difficulty in this area.
  
• Movement - an overly sensitive child may fear climbing on a jungle gym, and have difficulty with gross motor activities. An underly sensitive child may be fidgety, jump on the couch all afternoon, and have difficulty sitting down to do table activities such as a puzzle.

These are but a few examples of how a child's ability to use the information he receives from his environment is critical to his ability to perform physical tasks.

When a child is having difficulty in the area of physical development, it is essential for parents and professionals that treat a child to consider how his sensory environment affects his development. In this way a parent can determine if a child really "can't" put together that puzzle or if the lights or other sounds in the room are just so disturbing to him that he is unable to do so.

It is also important for parents to understand that sensory integration is a real issue and not just a child being "picky" or "fussy." While to some children a strong smell or bright lights might be annoying, to others, the experience can be unbearable.

Evaluating Contributing Factors:

How can a parent or professional know if a child's problem is a purely physical one or if it is being affected by contributing factors such as sensory integration or attention skills? Often, making this discrimination is the hardest task of all. The first tip off that a contributing factor is affecting a child's development, is if a child can perform a task in some situations, but not in others. If a child can sit and put together 20 piece puzzles at home, but in pre-school he just moves around the pieces, then clearly the problem is not just physical. Instead, a parent and professional should consider if the child's difficulty in school is in the area of attention (too much is going on) or if he has trouble with the sensory stimuli in school (i.e. the lights are too bright, the noise of the children is too loud.)

While it is often easy to determine if a child can or cannot do a particular physical skill it can be difficult to decide if this is an exclusively physical problem or if there are other factors contributing to the child's difficulty. The key for a parent and a professional is to determine how a child's physical skills are developing. Then, if there are any difficulties, it is essential to determine if this is purely a physical difficulty or if other factors may be affecting the child's development.

Emotional Problem

Children are precious; As parents we worry about their health. When our children have issues and crises, these issues and crises affect us just as much, if not more, than it affects them. We fear that which might bring them fear; we hurt when we see them hurt; and sometimes, we cry just seeing them cry. Writer Elizabeth Stone once said "Making the decision to have a child is momentous. It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body." So, when it seems like something is not quite right with your children - perhaps they seem more afraid than other kids, or they seem to get a lot angrier than their playmates do over certain things - this odd or "off" behavior can be experienced as terrifying. In fact, a child's difficulty can be just the starting point for your parental worry and concern. You might not know what to do to help your child, or where to go for help. Possibly, you may worry because you don't even know if your child's problem is something you should be concerned about in the first place.

We've created this survey of childhood mental and emotional disorders to help worried parents better understand the various ways that mental illness can effect children; what it looks like and how it can be helped. Children's mental and emotional disorders are problems that affect not only their behavior, emotions, moods, or thoughts, but can also affect the entire family as well. These problems are often similar to other types of health problems that your child might have, and can generally be treated with medications or psychotherapy (or a combination of both).

Many childhood disorders are often labeled as developmental disorders or learning disorders, so you may have heard those terms as well. Generally, when we speak about childhood disorders, we are referring to mental and emotional problems that most often occur and are diagnosed when children are school aged or younger. Usually, symptoms start during infancy or in early childhood, although some of the disorders may develop throughout adolescence.

The diagnostic criteria for the childhood disorders specifically require that symptoms first appear at some point during childhood. Adults may find themselves relating to some of the symptoms characteristic of one or more childhood disorders, but unless those adults first experienced their symptoms as children themselves, whatever it is that they may have will not be a childhood disorder, but instead, some other adult diagnosis.

Though by definition, no disorder discussed in this document may begin in adulthood, it is possible for a childhood disorder to begin at a young age but continue to be problematic on into adulthood. Conversely, some childhood disorders tend to resolve by the time children enter adulthood. Or, prior to adulthood, children may developed a set of coping skills that allow them to compensate for their disorder(s) so that they can go on to lead a happy and productive life. This latter outcome is especially likely when the right type of professional intervention has been obtained (and followed consistently) from an early age.

                 

INTELLECTUAL PROBLEMS

 

 

Bullying can take many forms; racial discrimination and sexual harassment are examples of abuse students can face. Childrearing influences, the characteristics of the child, and factors of the environment are cited as possible reasons why children bully. Most bullying occurs in the school environment so how schools respond to such interactions impacts the school climate.

Shyness is a common but little understood emotion. Everyone has felt ambivalent or self-conscious in new social situations. However, at times shyness may interfere with optimal social development and restrict children's learning. This digest (1) describes types and manifestations of shyness, (2) reviews research on genetic, temperamental, and environmental influences on shyness, (3) distinguishes between normal and problematic shyness, and (4) suggests ways to help the shy child. 

Aggression and cooperation represent two critical features in the child's social domain. What do they have in common? Both emerge from the child's strong developmental push to initiate and maintain relationships with other children, beginning at a very early age. Peer relationships provide critical opportunities for children to learn to manage conflict and work towards establishing intimacy. Aggression and cooperation are two possible strategies for dealing with the normal conflicts of early peer interactions. Both have important roots in early family interactions, both are responsive to adult expectations and values, and both can be responsive to environmental factors.

 

SOCIAL PROBLEMS

1. Perfectionism can lead to fear of failure, in turn causing a gifted child to avoid failure by refusing to even try something (including doing a homework assignment!)
   
2. Keen observation, imagination, and ability to see beyond the obvious can cause a gifted child to appear shy, holding back in new situations in order to consider all the implications.
   
3. A gifted child may require full details before answering questions or offering help, making him or her appear socially shy.
   
4. Intense sensitivity can cause gifted children to take criticism, or even general anger, very personally. Childhood slights do not roll off their backs.
   
5. Sensitivity and well-developed sense of right and wrong can lead to concern over wars, starving children, pollution and other injustice and violence. If they are overloaded with images and discussions of these issues, they can become introverted and withdrawn or even suffer from "existential depression.”

Common Physical Problems of Chilren in Early Childhood

PHYSICAL PROBLEM

Fever – Fever is described as a temperature greater than 100 F and is a symptom, not a disease. Fever is the
body’s normal response to infection and plays a role in fighting infections. Fever turns on the body’s
immune system. Most fevers are caused by viral illnesses and antibiotics are not used to treat viral
infections. If the doctor determines that your child has a bacterial infection, then most generally an
antibiotic will be prescribed for the infection, not the fever. In general, the height of the fever doesn’t relate
to the severity of the illness. Home care ‐ encourage extra fluids and light clothing (unless the child is
shivering), acetaminophen (generic Tylenol) or ibuprofen (generic Advil) can help lower the fever, and
lukewarm sponge baths. Never give aspirin or aspirin containing medications unless instructed by your
physician. Please read the label before giving any medication. Some may contain aspirin such as Pepto‐
Bismol. Several studies have linked aspirin to Reye’s syndrome. Contact your physician when: the child
complains of a stiff neck (bring chin to chest), difficult to awaken, purple spots on the skin, breathing
difficulty, cannot swallow, burning or pain upon urination, severe pain, tender abdomen, bluish lips, fever
is over 105 F, any fever that lasts 24 hours without an obvious cause or location of the infection, any fever
lasting more than 72 hours, previous history of febrile seizures, or any other concerns or questions.
Chicken Pox – Multiple small red bumps that progress to thin‐walled water blisters, break open and then
scab over within 24 hrs. New sores erupt as older ones scab over. A fever usually accompanies the illness.
The child is contagious until all sores are scabbed over. Home care – cool bath, calamine lotion, nonprescription
antihistamine such as Benadryl, acetaminophen for fever or discomfort (no aspirin containing
products because of the link with Reye’s syndrome), trim fingernails to prevent scratching and infection,
good hand washing with antibacterial soap such as Dial or Safeguard.
Otitis Media (middle ear infection) – A bacterial infection of the middle ear (the space behind the
eardrum). The pain is due to pressure and bulging of the eardrum from trapped, infected fluid. Antibiotics
are the course of treatment. Even if your child feels better in a few days, continue to give the antibiotics as
prescribed. A follow‐up exam is usually indicated in 2 to 3 weeks.
Otitis Externa (swimmer’s ear – external ear infection) – Swimmer’s ear is an infection of the skin lining the
ear canal. The symptoms include: painful ear canals, pain when the earlobe is moved up/down, pain upon
pushing the area just in front of the ear/along the jaw line. The key to prevention is keeping the ear canal
dry when your child is not swimming by turning the head side to side and pulling gently on the ear lobe to
allow the water to run out. Antibiotic eardrops are indicated for treatment. Preventative eardrops for
swimmer’s ear are usually indicated for recurrent problems.
Pinkeye – Redness of the sclera (white part of the eye), yellow drainage (sometimes eyelids are matted
together upon rising in the a.m.), and itching or burning. Prescription antibiotic eye drops are the course of
treatment. Bacterial eye infections are very contagious and spread easily. Your child will be contagious and
not allowed to attend school until after 24 hours of treatment. Good hand washing is important to prevent
the spread of infection to the other eye and other children or family members.
Fifth Disease (Hawaiian Blush) – Bright red or rosy rash on both cheeks that lasts for 1 to 2 days (“slapped
cheek” appearance). There is no fever or a low‐grade fever. The rash on cheeks is followed by pink lacelike
rash on extremities that comes and goes several times over 1 to 3 weeks. The rash may come and go for up
to 5 weeks, especially after warm baths, exercise, and sun exposure. The disease is contagious during the
week before the rash begins; therefore a child who has the rash is no longer contagious and does not need to
stay home from school. Inform any women who are pregnant that may have been exposed. Home care –
no treatment is necessary. The rash is harmless and causes no symptoms that need treatment.