Partnering with Families: Overview

Breast milk can be stored in a fridge for three months

false

When conversing with parents, you should offer up your own opinion about the diagnosis of the child

false

When raising an issue to the child's parents, you can safely assume that they have dealt with the same issue.

false

As a caretaker, you notice that one of the children may have a special need. What action would you take with the family?

Hold a private conference with the family explaining the situation. Share positive things about the child as well as your concerns. Make sure that your concerns about the child get brought up to the family.

To be MOST effective during a conference about a child with suspected special needs, you should focus on ______.

Positive and negative behaviors.

Maintain an Open line of communication

Recognize the benefits of breastfeeding and educate parents about the benefits of breastfeeding. When a family does choose to breastfeed, it is important that you maintain an open line of communication with that family. This will allow you to work with parents on feeding schedules. For example, knowing the parent's schedule allows you to not feed baby right before mom arrives, so that mom can breastfeed at pick up time.

As a childcare provider, you should keep communication about food and nutrition open between you and parents

true

Some mothers are able to visit their baby on lunch break and may want to breastfeed as well.

true

Introduction - Providing special health care needs

Augastina works in a special childcare facility for hearing impaired children. Her older brother is hearing impaired, which inspired Augastina to pursue this kind of work with children. She wants to be sure that they have the best start in life and don't fall behind other children educationally. Working with children that have special needs often requires a bachelor's or master's degree in speech and hearing therapy.

Breastfeeding benefits for babies

Children who are breastfed have a lower risk of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) and a lower risk of infections and diseases including: ear infections, stomach viruses, childhood leukemia, obesity, asthma, and diabetes. Breast milk is typically easier for babies to digest than formula, as the protein in formula comes from cow's milk and it takes time for babies to adjust to digesting that. Lowers risks of: Stomach viruses Ear infections asthma obesity diabetes

How can teachers BEST help the parents of a child with special needs?

Direct them to community resources and assistance

Working with families

How can you effectively work with the family? First, families are a valuable source of information. They are experts on their child and the history of interventions that have been successful or failed. They are often also experts on the disability. Families can also help to determine a good transition into the program and what to tell other children and families. If the child and family are working with other specialists, it is helpful to receive permission from the family to share information. It is also important to be involved in IEP's or IFSP's. Your input as a child development specialist who works several hours a day with the child allows you to provide valuable input. For the child's goals to be achieved, it is also important for you to learn from family members and the other specialists on the team. In order to keep in frequent contact with the child's parents, ask about the best modes of communication. All families are pressed for time, but families who have children with special needs often face additional time pressures. Even if the family misses events or conferences, don't assume they don't care; they may be overwhelmed or dealing with the child's disability and are unable to come. When working with families it is important to listen to parental points of view. Engage in a problem solving approach when issues arise. Understand the family's dreams and goals for their child. Sometimes the special needs seem so overwhelming, we forget to concentrate on the positive traits, skills, and attributes that the child has.

Raising concerns

If families do not raise an issue that you have a concern about, it will be necessary for you to do so. You will want to provide specific, objective facts regarding your concern. For example, you would want to avoid saying, "Sam is very aggressive to the other children." Instead you might say, "I'm worried about Sam hitting other children. We have been keeping a behavior chart and as you can see, yesterday morning he hit five other children during outdoor time. He also hit a child at lunch time and pushed a child down when they were washing hands." You would also want to share with parents what you have tried to alleviate the problem up to this point. For example, you would want to tell Sam's family the following information. From past observations, you had noticed that Sam typically hit one other child. You therefore started putting Sam and the other child in different groups. However, Sam then began to hit other children. You will also want to ask the parent if they are seeing the same thing at home. You can't assume that what you are seeing is representative of the child's behavior in all areas of his life. You will want to find out how the family handles the problem at home if it occurs or if they have any other ideas of things that you might try.

If you suspect your child has a special need

If you are in the position of discussing the need to refer a child for further assessment, ideally you already have a positive ongoing relationship with the family. A positive partnership allows the family to know that you care about their child and respect the family's views. If you are planning to have a conference with a family, you will want to hold the conference in a private, comfortable space. For example, you will want adult chairs and a space to gather where one person is not seated across the desk from another. It will be important to have enough time so neither you nor the family feel rushed. You will not want to discuss the concerns in front of the child, so you might want to have made arrangements ahead of time for the child. When you begin the discussion, it is important to share with families positive things that you have noticed about their child. For example, you might tell Sam's parents about his creativity and share a video clip of a song he created on the keyboard and samples of artwork he has created. You might then ask the family if they have any concerns. They may have the same concerns that you do.

Families are experts on their child and the history of ______ that have been successful or failed

Interventions

Respect family's choices

It is important that you accept each family's choice as to whether to breastfeed or provide formula for their baby.

Communication

It is important that you are honest, empathetic, and caring. Be very cautious about seeming accusatory, blaming, or judgmental. It is also critical that you avoid giving your opinion about the diagnosis of the child. You are not a qualified diagnostician. For example, you might suspect that Sam has ADHD. However, it is not possible to determine this without a thorough evaluation by someone qualified to make the diagnosis. Be prepared with referral information and forms if the family is ready for this step. However, you need to accept the parent's feelings if they are not ready for a referral. It is also helpful to have copies of any information that you share with the parents available for them to take with them. For example, you would give Sam's family the completed chart you used to record Sam's behavior.

As a caregiver, how would you support a breastfeeding family?

It is important that you maintain an open line of communication with that family. This will allow you to work with parents on feeding schedules. For example, knowing the parent's schedule alerts you not to feed the baby right before the mother arrives, so that the mother can breastfeed at pick up time. Some mothers are able to visit their baby over their lunch break and may want to breastfeed then as well. You should also have a place for mothers to nurse. Some mothers may prefer a quiet, private place; other mothers may prefer to sit in the room with the children to feed their babies.

Robert is an Early Childhood Educator. He notices that some of the students in his care have a marked preference for eating junk food. He wants to teach their families about nutrition to maximize the chance that nutritional choices will be made. How can Robert MOST effectively go about this?

Offer a family workshop that includes information and fun activities

When working with families, listen to _____ and engage in problem solving approach when issues arise.

Parental points of view

Family collaboration and other nutritional needs

It is important to keep communication about food and nutrition open between you and parents. This will help you to meet each child's nutritional needs. You should learn from parents about children's food preferences and allergies, which you will need to know for menu planning. One thing you can do is ask parents to provide a recipe of their child's favorite food, which may allow you to provide children with some familiar food choices. You can also share your menu with parents, and share recipes you use. Along with sharing your menu, you can let parents know what foods their children are enjoying while in your care, and which foods they don't want to eat. By sharing information between childcare or school and home, parents and staff can work together to ensure that a child is getting the nutrition they need. You are also in a role where you can offer information about childhood nutrition. Of course, you have to be careful that you are not giving unsolicited advice, but often parents are interested in learning new information. For example, you could provide handouts on childhood nutrition. You could also provide workshops for families. For example, you might invite families to a fun event where they can bring their children and make healthy snacks together.

Introduction - Meeting Children's nutritional needs

Melina's friends know she runs a home childcare business and often look to her for childcare advice. Melina's friend Jesse, the mother of four-month-old Kali, calls Melina to ask whether she supports breastfeeding. Melina responds that she does, because in her mind, breastfeeding is a good choice nutritionally. After the conversation, Melina wonders about her response because she knows that Jesse values her opinion. Should she be giving advice? What is the value in breast-feeding? How is breastfeeding managed in a day care setting?

Breastfeeding benefits for mothers

Mothers who breastfed have lower incidences of postpartum depression and a lower risk of developing ovarian or breast cancer. Breast milk is free. In the first year of life, the cost of basic formula averages $1,500. Even for families who are in poverty, infants who are being breastfed have total food security. When mothers breastfeed, the baby's food source is always available, despite the family's economic situation. Lowers risk of: Postpartum depression cancer

Family Dynamics

Remember that each adult typically plays multiple roles. Being a parent is only part of an adult's identity. They may be a parent, spouse, sibling, child, and employee. Sometimes acknowledging the other roles that a parent has is helpful. For example, talking to the parent about their job, how their day went, what hobbies they enjoy, how they spent their weekend, etc. Families who have children with special needs often go through stages of grief such as disbelief, denial, bargaining, guilt, anger, depression, and acceptance. This is part of the healing process where families are grieving the loss of a normal child. Families might recycle through this process several times. It is important to understand this as you work with families. For example, if a parent sounds angry you might ask yourself if you have done something that is causing this reaction or if the parent is going through the anger stage of grief and you should not take it personally. Regardless of family's reactions, as teachers we must always maintain a professional demeanor. Being aware of resources that can support a family member is also helpful. Although a teacher cannot solve a family's stress or problems, she can be a valuable resource by providing families with information about available resources.

Have a private room available to moms

Some mothers are able to visit their baby over their lunch break and may want to breastfeed then as well. You should also have a place for moms to nurse. Some mothers may prefer a quiet, private place; other mothers may prefer to sit in the room with the children to feed their babies.

Supporting families

Teachers can also be supportive of parents who have children with special needs. Families with children who have special needs are often under a great deal of stress. For example, research indicates that parents who have children with ADHD score in the 90th percentile on stress indexes. Not only is the child's behavior extremely challenging but instead of being supported by others, families may be blamed for the behavior. When children have special needs especially if they have challenging behaviors, it is easy to begin to only focus on the child's needs rather than on growth or strengths. This can lead to the teacher focusing on challenges and only sharing these with families. Imagine that you are the parent of Sam. Sam is not only a challenge at the early childhood program but is also a challenge at home. He is very active, fights frequently with his siblings, and has extreme problems sleeping at night. You work full time and are exhausted. You come to pick Sam up and each day there is a note on his cubby telling you about each act of misbehavior that has occurred during the school day. Imagine how disheartening this would be. First, you cannot control Sam's behavior when they are not with them. Secondly, it may cause you to only focus on the negative things about Sam. Third, you may wonder if the staff likes Sam or your family. Imagine how much more positive it would be if everyone made an effort to find things that Sam had done well during the day.

Ask about the best modes of communication, and remember that families who have children with special needs often face additional ______.

Time pressures

They can also help determine the right _____ into the special needs program and what to tell other children and families

Transitions

Parents who have children with ADHD often score on the 90th percentile on stress indexes.

True

Taking proper care of breast milk

You don't want to waste breast milk, so it is important to follow proper storage and handling techniques. Expressed milk can be stored in the refrigerator for 3 days, and can be safely frozen for 3 months. You will want to keep it in the back of the fridge and freezer, instead of in the door, as the door fluctuates in temperature each time you open the fridge or freezer. You will also want to ensure that all breast milk is properly labeled with the child's name and date. When you thaw or warm milk, never boil or microwave it as this can damage the live cells that are found in breast milk. You also will want to thaw or heat only the amount of milk you will use for that feeding and use that milk within 24 hours if it is refrigerated, or within one hour if it is at room temperature. Once milk is thawed, it should not be refrozen. When the baby has finished feeding, you need to dispose of any milk left in the bottle because bacteria in the baby's mouth can make milk unsafe to drink. Because of this, it is a good idea to only put a little milk in the bottle at one time, and if the baby finishes that and wants more, than you can add more milk.

How can breast milk be safely refrigerated?

three days