Inside Gateways Newsletter—Summer 2010Greetings! Welcome to the summer 2010 edition of Inside Gateways, the Gateways to Opportunity quarterly e-newsletter. Have you ever watched children with their natural inquisitiveness spend a few hours outside? Everything is interesting to a young child—watching ants trailing in a long line, looking at clouds that form shapes, picking dandelions to form a lovely, though wilting, bouquet; even blowing dandelion “fluff” in the air is exciting! Children have an innate curiosity, an ability to ask endless questions that helps them to learn and grow. In Lilian Katz’s article “Dispositions as Goals in the Early Years,” she talks about the importance of young children wanting to know, their dispositions to find things out, and how teachers can positively impact a child’s natural interests. As teachers and educators, we recognize the importance of wanting to know, and we recognize that strengthening a child or youth’s curiosity and desire to accumulate information is a critical ability that teachers can foster. Gaining new knowledge and skill sets and learning and applying new information at every age are key to a successful and rich life. Questioning may begin in early childhood but should last throughout our entire lives. Setting the stage in early childhood by helping children to pursue answers to questions is an integral part of building this important lifelong skill. In this issue of Inside Gateways, Winnie Howell, a family child care provider in southern Illinois, chose early care and education as her second career. In wanting to know and learn more about her new career, Winnie asked questions that led her to the first step to acquisition of new knowledge and skills—obtaining her Level 1 ECE Credential. Achieving the Level 1 ECE Credential helped propel Winnie toward college coursework for an early childhood degree, expanding her knowledge and skill set. Winnie has all the characteristics of a dedicated lifetime learner. Vicky Foster, a teacher in Paris, Illinois, teaches the Level 1 ECE Credential curriculum in her high school family and consumer science class. Introducing the Level 1 ECE into high schools provides an opportunity for students to learn about early childhood, knowledge that may translate into a lifelong career or into applied skills and knowledge within their own families. The Level 1 answers questions that students may not be aware they need answers to! Demanding to know “why” or “how come” is a fundamental part of childhood. Any practitioner who works with children of all ages will say there are days when they run out of answers long before the kids run out of questions! Asking questions, wanting to learn something new, should be a disposition that we encourage and use throughout our lives. Acquiring new knowledge can lead to a second career pathway, enhance what we already know, or satisfy innate curiosity. The complexity of today’s world can only be understood by continuing to learn and seek answers each and every day. As teachers, as educators, as parents, and as citizens, we owe it to ourselves as well as the children and families we serve to ask why. We need to demonstrate a desire for new knowledge, express our natural curiosity and, yes, be a little “nosey” in our day-to-day experiences. Asking, learning, growing—the hallmarks of a happy childhood—can also lead to a more satisfied adult life. Look around; view the world with a child’s fresh eyes. Ask “why” at every opportunity. You might be surprised at what you learn! Thank you for all that you do to support curiosity and learning for children and families, every day.
Joni Scritchlow and |
