When I Think of Child Development...

"It is true that we cannot make a genius. We can only give to each child the chance to fulfill his potential possibilities.” Maria Montessori



God’s Special Gift

Once upon a time God created

 a special little seed.

 He planted that seed in a unique garden,

Filled with all that it would need.

The gardeners asked “Why us Lord,

What could possibly be your reason?”

The Lord replied “This seed needs someone

To guide it for a season.”

The gardeners began to realize

As that seed began to grow.

That its life would come to depend

On what the gardeners would sow.

The seed soon emerged into the world

And bursted forth with soul.

The gardeners at that moment were aware

Of how the seed made their garden whole.

The gardeners showered the seed with love

And did all within their power.

To help that seed develop and grow

Into a strong and beautiful flower.

Some days the skies were sunny

And sometimes clouded with gray.

The gardeners knew their flower must be strong

As the winds would make it sway.

Although the winds were challenging

The flower faced them with great heart.

For the gardeners had helped enable strong roots

Right from the very start.

 ~ by Valerie Archer

If a child is given love, he becomes loving ... If he's helped when he needs help, he becomes helpful. And if he has been truly valued at home ... he grows up secure enough to look beyond himself to the welfare of others. 

DR. JOYCE BROTHERS

 Unity

I dreamed I stood in a studio

and watched two sculptors there,

The clay they used was a young child's mind,

and they fashioned it with care.

One was a teacher; the tools he used

were books and music and art;

One, a parent with a guiding hand

and a gentle, loving heart.

Day after day the teacher toiled,

with a touch that was deft and sure,

While the parent labored by his side

and polished and smoothed it o'er.

And when at last their task was done

They were proud of what they had wrought,

For the things they had molded into the child

Could neither be sold nor bought.

And each agreed he would have failed

If he had worked alone.

For behind the parent stood the school,

And behind the teacher the home.

~ Anonymous

I believe that a child's development begins at the very moment of conception.  I believe that parents are the foundation for the way that development will be either enhanced or depleted.  Development of a child is a very complex matter that is important to understand.  As a parent and an educator I find that knowing about how development occurs aids me in relating to children better.  The knowledge that I have learned in this course will make me a better mother to my children and a better teacher for my students.  Each child is a glimpse into the future and only we can make that future look brighter by seeing the potential that is given to each child at birth. 

"Children are likely to live up to what you believe of them" 
~Lady Bird Johnson