My Child's Not Perfect

I watched a programme on itv player that was brought up in fi's lesson and a really interesting watch.....it's about a selection of children/teens that have different emotional, behavioural and clinical issues that range from a little girl who is a selected mute and will only communicate with her family at home to a teenage boy that developed terret's syndrome on his 16th birthday. The one that really got me thinking was a 9 year old girl called Maddy who has extreme behavioural problems where she cannot socialise and play with other children and is in constant trouble at school for disruptive and aggressive behaviour  in one instance trying to strangle another child, she suffers from  lack of concentration and is behind academically etc. Maddy's parents have been told by specialists previous to this programme that she could be suffering from an "attachment disorder". The mother automatically puts the blame onto herself after going through post natal depression and struggling to bond with her daughter from birth. This connects with Bowlbys theory where he believes that there is a critical period for attachment to take place at a certain time or it won't happen which is usually within the first year of life, he also put emphasis on the mother being the main figure. I feel that its such a shame for the mother to have to go through life thinking that the reason her child has problems is down to her initially and sometimes there is too much focus and pressure put on mothers when there are so many other indicators through genetics and the environment that her condition could be down too. Later on in the programme Maddy and her parents go to see a team of specialists that do a range of tests and the outcome is that she is diagnosed with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). They said that her behaviour wasn't down to the "attachment Disorder" but her make up of her low IQ, not having firm boundaries at home (parents have split) and the ADHD. She is prescribed with Ritalin and mum & dad are offered parenting techniques to help with the disorder. It was nice to see the relief of her mum, knowing that her daughters condition wasn't down to her own doing but through nature and nuture together.

After watching this programme i decided to look a bit more into ADHD and here are some main points i gathered:

* More boys than girls suffer from ADHD
* It can also be known as ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder)
* The main symptoms of the disorder are lack of concentration, impulsivity (not being able to control what     they are saying) and lack of physical control, fidgeting and restlessness.
* ADHD affects 5 to 10 percent of children in the UK
* There are 3 types of the disorder as not everyone are effected the same they are: predominantly hyperactive-impulsive, predominantly inattentive and combined which is the majority of cases.
* More than half of ADHD people have specific learning difficulties for example dyslexia.
* Up to 60% of children with ADHD show signs of it in adulthood.
* It usually starts from 18months and signs are shown between the ages of 3 and 7.

The guidelines from NICE (The National Institute for Clinical Excellence) are to firstly combat the stress and behaviour through programmes and techniques and psychotherapy to try and tackle anti social behaviour. Secondly if the patient has severe symptoms then medication is prescribed if over the age of 5 which is usually Methylphenidate (otherwise known as Ritalin) this helps the child to focus.

There is a lot of negative stigma put on ADHD that it could be down to 'bad parenting' which i think is unlikely, i think it could be from a mixture of the child's genetic make up and their environment. There have been recent studies that ADHD has a genetic link, research shows that they have large and rare variations in their DNA and that they have a much higher rate which are either duplicated or missing.

I feel that if any of my children were ever diagnosed then i would try my very best to tackle it through an holistic route first before trying anything else, also by providing a better diet ( i personally think that a lot of foods can cause symptoms) and trying my very best to keep their lives as well balanced as possible.

Think I'm going to look into Ritalin a bit more and see the causes and effects it has on children...so watch this space!

Oh and below is a link i found really useful which has lots of information on ADHD:


http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/physical_health/conditions/attention2.shtml

Child abuse & neglect..... how much say do we have?

I recently had a horrible experience/ encounter with a family on a train which to my horror i had no control or say over....it happened a couple of weeks ago and i was with my family on our way back from a trip. We were sat in front of a family that had a few kids not sure exactly how many at least 3 we could see anyway and a young boy probably the same age of mine so roughly 3 plus. He was continually smacked and slapped and pulled by his clothes by the father, grandmother and possibly mother we couldn't see it all but heard every last one of his torments. The poor boy wasn't even doing anything out of the ordinary that any normal 3 year old would do he certainly wasn't being naughty and definitely didn't deserve to be treated in this way. The boy tried to interact with my children over the seat but was pulled back to be tormented by his dad and he actually said i could hear clear as day"look at you you scruffy snotty little tramp your disgusting" to this i stood up and had to control my almost outburst i felt like saying to him well take a look at yourself!.....i was so angry :0( earlier on i could hear the little boy say "no one looks after me no one cares for me" i could have cried. Its so saddening that i had no control over the situation and had to sit back down as if i had of said something then i could have been abused by the father and the little boy certainly would have got another good hiding from the reaction. It sickens me to think if they do this in broad day light then what happens behind closed doors? I have been given a book  which i read parts of whilst travelling but had to put down a few times it's called " A Child Called It" by Dave Pelzer a true story about a boy who took a remarkable journey through a life of abuse by his mother, thought it might come in useful for discussion in child protection/safeguarding module.

The Swan Report 1985

Here is the link to an online version of The Swann Report 'Education for all', based on the education for children from ethnic monority groups i blogged earlier. I think i am gonna have to go back and read this one through abit more:

http://www.educationengland.org.uk/documents/swann/swann00.html

Ethnicity Journals

Childhood and the construction of ethnic identities in a global age...thought this one would cover both Rachels & Lin's. It shows of how drama education in schools  can help to construct identities concentrating more on new ethnic identities.
Key points to consider:
Children are influenced by cultural tradtions
Children who are in the process of creating their identity do not construct them from tradition but transform them.
Identities are not essentially on their own as children switch them in different contexts and by diverse cultural influences often produce new ones.
The swann report published in 1985 helped to make the term ' multicultural education' happen, which was formed to help provide all pupils prepare for life in a multi-racial society.

http://chd.sagepub.com/content/6/4/443.full.pdf+html

Disability, ethnicity and childhood: A critical review of research.....An article showing how little research has been done giving the disabled childs perspective focussing more on black and asian children showing that their voices are almost silent. The disablility movement has mirrored socitey in genral and for most part has been led by white, middle class hetrosexual males. I concludes that further research is need in blac and asian disabled children to meet their particular needs.

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09687590120097845

Families, Ethnicity and social capital.....This journal discusses the relationship between ethnicity and social capital in british society, debating the changing ethnic minorities and migrant communities in our multicutural society today.

http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract;jsessionid=1AE4BC330D7FACFCE615310D45342032.journals?fromPage=online&aid=180329

Identity & Diversity

This is fab its from the open university and explains identities from legal identities to personal and also developing them positively:

http://www.ecdgroup.com/docs/lib_005464256.pdf


Here is a really nice slideshow celebrating diversity:

http://youtu.be/iz7solRF1UU

Another slideshow with some nice quotes on about diversity just shame about the music its abit like something from top gun!
http://youtu.be/qIvK5lTYr9Y

Useful websites

Here is the link to ROSPA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents) website Rachel mentioned its got some interesting stuff on there to have a look at:

http://www.rospa.com/childsafety/

Couple of charity websites too with loads of info:

http://www.doorway.org.uk/ourwork/work-intro.php


http://www.cpag.org.uk/

Mindfullness

Wow......really enjoyed todays session we had a speaker Dr Dav come into talk about his life experiences and a programme he has set up called 'Mindfullness'. It helps to open your mind and make yourself become more self aware. We as human beings use thoughts to process emotions which then take physical action. I enjoyed the meditation and am looking forward to trying it out again and learn more. Thorntons chocolates were nice too! :0)

Multiculturalism in the 21st century

Found this while i was looking for ethnicity links:

http://youtu.be/YNyWdN4dtQc

More poverty related sites.....

A third of British children are not getting one of the things they need the most like one of their 3 meals a day or adequate clothing:

http://www.barnardos.org.uk/what_we_do/turn_around/child_poverty_claire.htm?gclid=CM-R7pqHpawCFQEd4Qodkj9F_w

Relative poverty, absolute poverty and social exclusion:

http://www.poverty.org.uk/summary/social%20exclusion.shtml


Useful info on the IFS forecast, definitions of poverty etc:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-15242103

Poverty uncovered

What is the concept of poverty??and what is the government doing to tackle the problem?? Well my understanding of poverty would be when familes do not have the comfort and security from an income, daily struggles, debts, possibly leading to homelessness..........i am going to have a bit of a look around to see what i can find (missing xfactor whilst i do so!haha) so very worth it though, well here go's......

There are 3 types of  poverty and how it is measured:

* Absolute poverty  - Absolute minimum
* Relative poverty - Having less than others in society
* Subjective poverty - Feeling you do not have enough to get along

The effects of poverty are very influentual on children and by the looks of things can affect in so many different ways depending on unemployment( one or both parents) social class and their residential areas. The effects it can have would include: ill/poor health, finanancial worry can cause family tensions, depression, anxiety etc, poor nutrition, it can also have detrimental effect on social exclusion, parenting can become difficult with lack of resources,  also children are likely to do poorly in education as they tend to suffer more with ill health, truancy etc, low self esteem the list could go on....:0( The thing that gets me is that its like one big vicious circle as each disadvantage makes others more likely to happen and then the next generation are likely to grow up in poverty just like their parents.



This is a really useful website( the housing and homeless charity) it relates to child poverty and has some really interesting links on its site it opens a few doors, one in particular link which is full of research and information i found very eye opening is the 'listen up' report -  voices of homeless children:

http://england.shelter.org.uk/campaigns/housing_issues/supporting_families_and_children?gclid=CKDE2-jeoqwCFUtC4QodVg2A7A#2

More Information found on 'shelter website':

Government action

In 1999, the Government pledged to end child poverty in England by 2020, giving all children the solid start in life they deserve. In April 2004, a ban on the long-term use of bed and breakfast hotels for homeless families with children was introduced. In the same year, the Government published its Every Child Matters strategy with the aim that, whatever their circumstances, every child should have the support they need to:

• be healthy
• stay safe
• enjoy and achieve
• make a positive contribution
• achieve economic well-being.

Here is the link to the Governments commitent to end child poverty  by 2020:


http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/+/http://www.hm-treasury.gov.uk/Documents/Taxation_Work_and_Welfare/Child_Poverty/tax_child_index.cfm


Another interesting article i found on the guardian website, it states that the government are failing to strategically regenerate the poorest communities and concentrate more on economic growth:


http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2011/nov/03/deprived-communities-left-behind-mps


Bye for now :0) xx

Now on the other hand....middle class child neglect?

Just found another article suggesting the opposite to the other's i just posted....are professional middle class parents not giving enough time to our children of today?

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/family/8850638/Britains-middle-class-children-are-so-privileged-and-so-neglected.html

British Social Class

The British society has often been considered to be divided into three main groups of classes:

• The Upper Class
  Often people with inherited wealth. Includes some of the oldest families, with many of them being titled aristocrats.
• The Middle Class
  The majority of the population of Britain. They include industrialists, professionals, business people and shop owners.
• Lower or Working Class
  People who are agricultural, mine and factory workers.

Here is an interesting article study about how professionals within a higher social class are supposedly more influencial on children rather than nurturing them with bedtime stories etc....not sure i agree with this one!
http://www.guardian.co.uk/education/2010/dec/07/social-class-parenting-study

Here's another article suggesting why children from lower classes are being disadvantaged within the class system

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2009/jan/12/social-mobility-disadvantage

Gender socialization...UNICEF

Here is a good article i have found whilst browsing google.....  it gives you a run down of stereotype gender roles through  early gender socialization:

2007, ' Early Gender Socialization' (Online Article) Available at:

http://www.unicef.org/earlychildhood/index_40749.html

Accessed on 20th Oct 2011

Gender in the jungle room......!!!!

http://youtu.be/XTmGCOmOyYs

Baby beauty queens

Looking back to Rachel's lesson today about the changing nature of family life in contemporary Britain and the discussion we had on whether children are becoming the projects of adults - are children being shaped and moulded by society and parents?? Here is a you tube clip i thought was a good example:

http://youtu.be/CPG7LWGL2js

I personally don't think its right especially when a 9 year old girl has had plastic surgery and made not to wear her glasses because "they wouldnt look right" it's not acceptable.  Open to thoughts on this??

Time line

Reflecting back to Lin's lesson the history of childhood she asked us to put together a time line from our own childhood logging anything that could be of any influence to me or my family. Have had to ask my mum for dates and to refresh my memory it has brought alot back! Here go's:

1979 - I was born!

1980 - My mum went back to work when i was 18months old

1982 - Mum separated from my dad

1982 - Brian moved in

1983 - Moved house

1983 - Started swimming lessons Nuneaton baths/ dancing & shows / rollerskating at school

1984-85 - Miners strikes

1984 - Started Racemeadow school, Atherstone, but soon moved to Nathaniel Newton school - as my family felt it better for me to be with friends from the neighbourhood 

1984 - First family holiday abroad

1988 - Mum married Brian

1989 - Baddesley pit closure (where Brian worked) - invested redundancy money

1989 - Celebrated 10th birthday in London (first time visit)

1989 - Went on adventure holiday for a week

1990 - Started playing keyboard

1990 - Poll tax introduced - impact on household bills

1990 - Toured France, Spain, Germany , and Denmark.  Attended Roger Waters 'The Wall' tour at Pottsdamer Place (no mans land) Berlin and visited East Germany

1990/91 - Had braces fitted!!

1991 - Cadair (our first rescue dog) turned up!

1991 - Mum separated from Brian

1992 - Went to Finland

1992/93 - Had hair permed! including frindge ooops!!!

 1993 - Mum met Alan

1993 - Went to see Take That with Kelly!

1993 -  Appendicitus operation

1994 - Moved into house in Atherstone - travelled to school on bus

1995 - School Exams

 1997 - Job as barmaid/waitress at Three Tuns

1997 - Celebrated 18th birthday

2000 - Celebrated 21st birthday in New York

2002 - Went travelling for 2 years where i met Bobby

2004 - Started Holistic therapies @ NWHC

2005 - Little Emily May (half sister) was born x

2006 - Imogen Eve (my first baby) was born x

2006 - I started my cache level 2 in teaching assistant course

2007 - Me & Bobby married

2008 - Reef Bobby (my second baby) was born x

2009 - Recession hit, Bobby was self employed so had to work away

2009 - Moved to Surrey for 6 months

2010- Moved back to Nuneaton and we seperated

2010 - Immie started school

2011 - Reef started nursery

2011 - I started my 2+2 degree in Early Childhood Studies!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

:0) x

 

 

 

Ready for tomorrow.....

Here is my summary ready for Lin's lesson tommorow, i found some information on childhood within the middle ages that i found really interesting:

Re – Inventing Childhood Summary:

The Middle Ages

There were many different views on the ideas of childhood during the middle ages. The most dominant institution was the Catholic Church. During baptism one preacher once said, babies, “are simple, without gyle, innocent without harme, and all pure without corruption”.

Greek and Romans idea’s were a big influence on the church when it came to the stages of life, infancy lasted up to the age of 7, childhood up to the age of 14 and to be succeeded by adolescence. Childhood then wasn’t seen as it is today in the sense that  personality and character were massively important.

An abbot once confided in St Anselm The Arch Bishop of Canterbury about the difficulties he was having bringing up two boys in his care and how to discipline them he’d beat them. Anselm didn’t agree with this and burst out “the boys need encouragement and help of fatherly sympathy and gentleness” not just blows.

It has been frequently cited that in the middle-ages children were just referred to and known as ‘little adults’. They were not and childhood was clearly recognised as a distinct time of life.

Child Development Theorist Research

Lev Vygotsky (1896 - 1933) 

Vygotsky was a Russian teacher, psycologist & philosopher. His theories have had a major impact on educational developments and influenced the UK and other Western countries. His academic career ended when he died prematurely of TB, although his work has been carried on and reworked. Vygotsky placed great emphasis on the importance of social context where children explore and learn.  The child he suggested has already  the skills and they then add to them through experiences. Here are a few areas Vygotsky believed to have a great impact on development:

• Skilled adults and social interaction with peers were a vital part to play within the childs cognitive development.
• The Zone Of Proximal Development ('Proximal' is the English translation for a russian word meaning 'nearby')means the area of potential learning for an individual child at a certain time. He believed that  the childs learning could be tested between the level of cognitive learning and potential learning through ineteraction and support from an adult and also his thoughts were that children help one another in the zone through play and social interactions with each other.
• Through analysing play he came to the conclusion that it was important for cognitive development as well as emotional and physical.
• He also saw language as a really strong social tool. He beleived that when children spoke out loud to themselves during play then this was the child instrumenting their thoughts.

Here is a short clip explaining the different approaches Vygotsky and Piaget had:


http://youtu.be/yY-SXM8f0gU

The History of Childhood

Google Key Word search for websites relating to The History Of Childhood:

2006, ‘Re-inventing childhood’ (Online article). Available at:

http://www.open2.net/theinventionofchildhood/childhood_inventions.html

Accessed on 08^th October 2011

Thomas, H. (undated) ‘To what extent were there important changes in the way children were brought up in this period?’ (Online article). Available at:

http://www.elizabethi.org/uk/essays/childhood.htm

Accessed on 08^th October 2011

Emotional Day!

Well today was'nt mapped out how i planned it. After throwing away Lin's module(not sure why!) and scouting through the bin to find it to put back in my folder it dawned on me i am loosing it! This morning i hit an all time 'low' after doing a group activity showing the good and bad highlights of the past week. I realised that my week has been pretty tough after not getting the support i need at home. I have decicded that things have got to change and people need to realise that my prioritys have changed and i am changing as a person(for the better!)..i am doing this degree to educate myself at a higher level but also to make a better future for my family. After a good burst of emotion i am adamant i am going to be stronger and get throught this!Thankyou to my fellow study buddies for making me feel a whole lot better about things its amazing what a few words or just a smile can do x

I found Lin's lesson very interesting and am getting to grips with the structure i think its almost like a spider web of thoughts and ideas all connecting to each other (if this makes sense!)......i especially liked the part about the psychological big five personality traits...me being the emotional, imaginative openess trait (i think anyway!). This lead me to think about the nature v nuture debate and where i stand with it, i feel i am on the fence at the moment as both contribute immensly to children and childhood. I grew up with a step dad and although i have the biological structure from my paternal dad i beleive i have absorbed traits from my step dad. This course not only teaches you about children past and present but also about your own childhood it really gets you thinking!

Anyway enough of my ranting for now i am going to study... things have definatley changed who would have thought on a Friday nght i would be sitting with my head stuck in a book! so bye for now will be back later with more ha x

First Day

After what seems like an enmormous wait i found out Friday that i am now offically a Warwick student!  Tomorrow is our first proper day and i think i am now ready for it to start after managing to get my head round the modules......blogging......virtual learning( i am not used to all the high class technology!).....the list could go on but at least now i dont feel my head is going to explode, if i can hang glide from a mile high then i think i can do this! Really looking forward to getting stuck in and having a day out at Warwick on Tuesday with my new school buddies! ha...here is another link to a short documentary i thought was really interesting about children with delayed speech and language. Enjoy x

http://webplayer.clickview.co.uk/?p=pyy9

SEN Charity clip

http://www.youtube.com/embed/TUElj49wuao another clip i thought was of interest to Special Educational Needs...shows whats out there with regards to charitable organisations :0)

first you tube clip

Not sure what i am doing!!ha.....hope this works i found this clip that could be useful

The learning journey begins......

Well here go's!........a little nervous & a little excited about my first ever blog! I cannot express how happy i am at becoming a uni student and actually feeling like i am getting somewhere with where i want to be. Having wanted to work with children since i was at school and not fulfilling it due to travelling, work and motherhood i am finally here at the start of an amazing journey. During and pre my first week of my Childhood Studies 2+2 degree i have been on an emotional rollercoaster to say the least! Literally tears of joy at the beginning for recommendation onto the course then the anticipation waiting for an acceptance from Warwick and then the worry of the workload, presentations, and now blogging etc!! I can honestly say though i feel safe and happy with the thought of all the lovely people i have met and will work alongside for the next 4 years who share the same passion as me and our lecturer's who are going to be our learning mentors/role models and support us through it. I really can't wait! :0)