Today I did an observation of a dad with his daughter in the waiting area at my job. The mom had a doctors appointment. The dad stayed in the lobby with his daughter during the office visit. Less than five minutes after mom left for her appointment, the daughter “Ashlynn” began to show signs of boredom. She would make attempts to run around the office. The dad was very calm and asked her to not run from him and sit down. Ashlynn made a few loud outburst to express her displeasure. After another five minutes, the dad picked Ashlynn up and began to walk around the floor. The dad would ask Ashlynn questions about what she saw as they came across different things. They found the bathroom, a water fountain, the elevators, chairs, windows,etc. Lastly the came across words on a wall. The wall gave patients directions on where their physician was located but for Ashlynn, the wall of words was a learning activity. The dad asked Ashlynn to tell him if she could identify each of the letters in the alphabet.
I thought the dad did a great job with his communication skills. I have learned that it takes patience to work with children and you really need to know the child you are working with. Dr. Kolbeck states children need to feel listened to and seen (Laureate Education,2011). I am learning to take that approach with children. I observed Ashlynn to be “adventurous”. Her dad knew she would not stay quiet sitting down so he took her “exploring”. From my observation, I think the dad is helping to fuel her confidence and desire to learn and explore.
When reflecting on my most recent interaction with children, I give more direction than listening. I think I need to work on listening to children and hearing things from their perspective. I tend to only listen when there is a problem or issue. I think I should try to ask more questions and get more insight on their perspectives before I respond.
Reference:
Laureate Education, Inc. (2011). Strategies for working with diverse children: Communicating with young children. Baltimore, MD:
higherlearningforkids 
I think that dad you described used some good strategies to help distract his daughter from her displeasure, but do you think that he should’ve address her displeasure? “Sometimes an expression of bias or discomfort is a passing thing, a brief moment when a child lacks appropriate language to express his or her ideas or figuring it out” (Derman-Sparks, pg. 34). I think that the dad’s communication might have been even more effective if he address the discomfort.
Reference
Derman-Sparks, L., & Olsen Edwards, J. (2010). Anti-bias education for young children and
ourselves. Washington, DC: NAEYC.
Good post! You really were blessed to see such a great example of what we have learned this week. The father you observed seemed to do a great job communicating with his daughter. I have seen many parents deal with their child in a different manner (i.e. Yelling, Spanking, or Nothing at all). I agree that the father offered his child a learning opportunity. When my daughter does similar things as Ashlynn, I also try to walk around with her and teach her things. Since she’s only 1, I try to teach her colors, numbers, and letters. Thanks for sharing.
Ashley T.