Reflective Analysis of Portfolio Artifact

Rationale/Reflection
NAEYC Standard: STANDARD 2. BUILDING FAMILY AND
COMMUNITY RELATIONSHIPS
Candidates prepared in early childhood degree programs understand that
successful early childhood education depends upon partnerships with
childrens families and communities. They a) know about, understand, and
value the importance and complex characteristics of childrens families and
communities. They use this understanding to b) create respectful, reciprocal
relationships that support and empower families, and c) to involve all
families in their childrens development and learning (NAEYC, 2010).

Brief Description of Evidence:

For the ECED 204 course, Families in Transition for the fall semester of 2014,
our class created a kit known as the Helping Hands Kit which provides
resources for various family types. Students were given a specific family
type to support and find multiple resources for. We also had to help the
family cope with the transitions they had to experience during the project.
This project includes bibliotherapy for children and their caretakers, local and
national support agencies, classroom implications, and a lesson plan that
consists of an activity that assists children with discussing different family
compositions that exist within the classroom environment.

Analysis of What I Learned:

I learned the importance of developing positive relationships with families
and children. Through researching for books and discovering organizations
that were local and nationwide, I learned that one way to gain a families trust
is to be mindful of their family composition and to make sure that their
family is being represented throughout the classroom just as the other
families are displayed. Our class also had the opportunity to peer review
other Helping Hands Kits to learn more about families outside of the one we
specifically researched which can be implemented in my own classroom.

How This Artifact Demonstrates my Competence on the

NAEYC Standard:
This artifact demonstrates my competence on the NAEYC standard because I
have become aware of different ways to support and empower the families
that will create my classrooms diversity. When my childs family feels

welcome in the class we will be able to become a team and discuss goals
and implications to use to ensure the childs development and learning. By
keeping the line of communication open with families it is sound that I refer
to the Family Strengths model to assess and provide them with resources
and local community agencies to help build upon their skills to ensure
healthy development of the child.