Creative Connector
Daniela Elliott
Blog #4
Page 87 - 126
It was difficult to make a connection for myself to any the phrases that stood out to me in this next section because I don’t have a good memory of my own childhood. Instead, I was more easily able to relate these passages to my nephew and my many cousins who all have young children.
1. Page 86-87: “My child is better off at home, at least until kindergarten. The influences in preschools are terrible.”
This first phrase is one I’ve heard very recently, my sister who had her son only a year ago, was discussing with me the idea of having another child and whether or not she could afford to have two children in daycare. The actual concern was not the cost, although day care is very expensive and something to consider, the truth is that my sister does not want to leave her children with strangers. She had spoken with many of her friends and family members who have children in day care and although the feedback wasn’t entirely negative, in the end she would rather quit her job than send her kids to daycare and/or pre-school. With the recent stories of child abuse at area daycare centers, it is only natural for that to affect the perception one has about their own child’s safety in a daycare facility.
2. page 87: “It is especially important in the early years of a child’s life to ensure that brain development at home is well accomplished and thus, when the child enters school, the brain is ready to learn.”
This is especially true, as I’ve seen with my nephew, that no matter how young a child is his/her brain is developing and ready to learn. As my parents did with myself and other siblings, they spoke only Italian to us while we were at home and that is the reason why we spoke Italian before we spoke English. Now that my siblings and I are all grown up and married to non-Italians, it’s harder than ever to keep that same standard in our own homes. My sister, who was the first of 4 children to have a child, leaves her son with my father to take care of when both she and her husband are working. And just as expected, although her son still cannot speak, he understands Italian! My father has taught him these Italian children’s songs, both which require different hand motions. Now, at only 11 months old, my nephew knows which hand motions to use depending on the song that someone sings, without being shown which hand motion to use. One requires him to point to the inside of his palm and the other is simply a song that you clap to. all very basic but the point is he understands Italian. Now that he’ll start talking soon, he’ll most likely be able to speak Italian as well with the help of his grandfather.
page 122: In discussing nonmedical options for children, the first option is: “a parent moves from full-time to part-time employment so as to mentor a difficult or spirited child for an additional two or three hours each day.”
Again, in relation to my nephew, this is the question my sister is asking herself; only in her case, part-time isn’t an option for the position she currently holds (Administrative Manager at an Ophthalmologist office). Instead, she is considering leaving her job completely to take care of her kids. My cousin, who is 33 years old, went to school to become a school counselor and worked for about 2 years. She is no longer employed, instead she takes care of her two children. Although this specific phrase came from a section of the book dealing with children who are “difficult,” the reason I made the connection to what my sister and cousin is because unfortunately, it’s not just an option for parents of difficult children but for any child. And, more often than not, it’s likely that the mother is the parent making this sacrifice because in the real world today, men make more money than women. So, when decision time comes, no matter how much a mother loves her job, the truth is that it makes more sense for a woman to take a step down.
And so continues the cycle of men vs. women– how will we ever become an equal gender world?
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