Relationship Reflections

Relationship Reflection

Me and my son

  

I believe that relationships/partnerships are important because they help mold you into who you are. I also believe that these same relationships/partnerships can guide, protect, comfort and encourage you in life. Several individuals that I have relationships/partnerships with are my sister, my mom and dad, my brother-in-law, my cousin, my ex-sister in law, my ex-husband, my son’s kindergarten teacher, his school principal, school secretary, and other school administrators, my neighbors, my son’s friends and their parents, my son’s basketball team and their parents. 

my son and his school basketball team

my son and Alex (our neighbor)

 All of the individuals with whom I have relationships/partnerships are all positive.  The most important factors that contributed to developing and maintaining each relationship was respect and honesty. It is also said that, “Trust grows out of sharing of knowledge by families and teachers, about childrearing” (Lopez, 2010).  Understanding your own bias is critical to developing effective partnerships because it helps you to understand what challenges are ahead. “Being family-centered, however, involves transformational change” (Lopez, 2010).             

my mom, my son, my sister, and me

my dad and son

When founding each of the individual relationships/partnerships, I expressed at the start that as an adult, I did not have to agree with the other person’s thoughts or beliefs.  However, I did need to respect them.  I expressed that since we were all created equally but differently, there would be times that we would not all agree but, if we all remained open minded and respected each other as adults, we could all accomplish the common goal of helping one another be a positive impact in each other’s lives and assisting with raising my five year old son to be a proud leader at school and in his community.  Thus, I have always expressed my feelings openly and worked hard to be a good listener

to other people’s thoughts.

As for the relationships/partnerships that I have developed with my son’s teachers and school administrators; I established them in 2012 when he started the school’s prek-3 program. Upon enrolling my son in his school’s pre K-3 program, while at meet the teacher night, I expressed to the teacher and all the administrative staff that I met, that my son was the only child that I had and as a parent, I was serious about his education and achievements and that I wanted them to know that I was not just a parent, I was their partner who wanted to help them help my son be the best that he could be.  Therefore, if there were any obstacles that needed to be addressed, I wanted them to no hesitate to contact me, his dad, or any family member that was listed on his emergency contact sheet.  To this day, I continue to reach out to the teacher and any staff at his school to let them know I and the rest of my son’s immediate family are always willing to volunteer, fundraise, or address any and all disciplinary needs(if necessary).  Also, every year at the start of school, I express to the teacher with my son present, that by no means do we (his father and I) encourage him to be disrespectful or to play during school because he goes to school to learn.  The teachers and administrators continually thank me for my efforts to partner with them for the best outcome for my son (I have always been taught that learning and behavior starts at home) because, I believe that it is not just the teacher or schools responsibility to teach my son. Research suggests, “Engagement in early childhood lays a solid foundation for family involvement as children move through the school system, supporting student achievement every step of the way” (Lopez, 2010).

my ex-husband doing homework with our son

My ex-husband plays a great role in the partnership by expressing to my son the importance of listening to grown-ups and being respectful. My ex-husband is the disciplinarian in the partnership.  The other family members that I listed are the caregivers and cheerleaders in the partnership.  They assist with volunteering at my sons school events, baby sitting, making sure that I get some me time, and encouraging me to continue with my educational goals when my normal mommy, parent, PTA, community, work, and household tasks seem to be time consuming.  I love my partners.  My relationships/partnerships, including my ability to be ab active, reflective contributor, impact my work as an effective early childhood professional by reminding me that because the child’s home live tremendously impacts the child’s ability to learn and thrive that no matter what the relationship (especially with ex-husbands and ex-wives, step-moms and step dads) it is better to agree to be cordial and respectful and form a unity for the best impact of the child. Thus, I would like to continue to empower blended families to communicate with one another and participate in all aspects of the child /ren learning.

 

my cousin and my son

 

my sister and my son

 

References:

Lopez, M. (2010). Valuing families as partners. Retrieved from http://www.hfrp.org/publications-resources/browse-our-publications/valuing-families-as-partners