I was mainly in the 1-2 age group again, and there were some new faces this time.
E'n was clearly Oriental, and I was very curious to know if his parents spoke to him in Mandarin or Cantonese, so that I may attempt to do the same. I spoke to him in a little of both, but he had very limited language skills of his own, so I didn’t really expect him to respond.
He laughed excitedly when I picked him up and lifted him high and swung him about. Throughout the day he sought me out and raised his arms towards me, which I took as his gesture to request that I repeat the “game”. A lovely smile and laugh, but has yet to grasp the concept of personal space as he is oblivious when he is upsetting some of the other children.
Another child, C'e, quickly warmed up to me. She seemed emotional, in that she was easily cheered or upset. As such, she enjoyed almost all of the games I played with her, including blowing in her face, tickling, calling out to her, etc, and seemed to smile whenever she caught me looking at her.
Perhaps as the children grow more familiar with me, or rather I more familiar with them, I will be able to see more signs of communication which I was so blind to on my first day. In particular, on my first day I noticed C'e was beginning to speak very well, yet did not communicate well with me. Today, she clearly knew what she was doing when she asked me for specific things by speaking, vocalising and/or gesturing.
Likewise, A'e, who could hardly speak, often made requests clear to me by not only gesturing with her hand, but by vocalising as well. She would request her favourite bunny, or a book, or for more food.
O'a H also shows good language skills, but I feel she is not that comfortable with me yet, as she was not always that receptive towards me.
Moving Forward
I would really like to meet E'n’s parents, and see if they’re agreeable to me speaking to him in Cantonese/Mandarin. Doing so would not only be beneficial to En’s language development, but would also give him a greater sense of belonging, by having elements of his own culture within the setting.
I hope that in future I’ll be able to communicate better with O'a H as well.
E'n was clearly Oriental, and I was very curious to know if his parents spoke to him in Mandarin or Cantonese, so that I may attempt to do the same. I spoke to him in a little of both, but he had very limited language skills of his own, so I didn’t really expect him to respond.
He laughed excitedly when I picked him up and lifted him high and swung him about. Throughout the day he sought me out and raised his arms towards me, which I took as his gesture to request that I repeat the “game”. A lovely smile and laugh, but has yet to grasp the concept of personal space as he is oblivious when he is upsetting some of the other children.
Another child, C'e, quickly warmed up to me. She seemed emotional, in that she was easily cheered or upset. As such, she enjoyed almost all of the games I played with her, including blowing in her face, tickling, calling out to her, etc, and seemed to smile whenever she caught me looking at her.
Perhaps as the children grow more familiar with me, or rather I more familiar with them, I will be able to see more signs of communication which I was so blind to on my first day. In particular, on my first day I noticed C'e was beginning to speak very well, yet did not communicate well with me. Today, she clearly knew what she was doing when she asked me for specific things by speaking, vocalising and/or gesturing.
Likewise, A'e, who could hardly speak, often made requests clear to me by not only gesturing with her hand, but by vocalising as well. She would request her favourite bunny, or a book, or for more food.
O'a H also shows good language skills, but I feel she is not that comfortable with me yet, as she was not always that receptive towards me.
Moving Forward
I would really like to meet E'n’s parents, and see if they’re agreeable to me speaking to him in Cantonese/Mandarin. Doing so would not only be beneficial to En’s language development, but would also give him a greater sense of belonging, by having elements of his own culture within the setting.
I hope that in future I’ll be able to communicate better with O'a H as well.
2 comments:
Hi Mark,
Just out of curiousity, do you think that the other children may feel slightly left out when you start speaking to Ewan in a language they are unfamiliar with?
I understand that Ewan may feel more comfortable in an environment more familiar to his own, however, this may cause the other children to feel alienated, dont you think?
Hi!
If it's just a matter of language, most likely the other children will mimic it and may even pick up some words of their own, which is good for their own development.
"Pigs, good with See Yau in Bak Kut Teh style!"
In terms of feeling alienated, or rather jealousy, it pretty much happens a lot.
Like if I'm reading a book, I can only fit so many kids on my lap. Or if one child is upset and I decide to carry him, other children who like to be carried WILL come and request to be carried or pretend to be upset.
One method may be to say right, if that's the case, equal treatment for all, I'm just not going to have anyone on my lap and not carry anyone, but I don't really like the idea of that.
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