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:
During the summer semester of 2014 during my ECED 204-Families in Transition course, I created a resource file
for families in my community who are learning English as a second language. The Helping Hands assignment challenged
me to research a topic I am not familiar with. I was able to find several resources on English Language Learners. The
assignment was to create a kit for a special family so they would have access to childrens books, community resources,
books for adult family members, and websites for gathering information. I enjoyed looking over my peers work upon
completion to see the many ways to document and reflect on my approach while learning from theirs. I utilized online
resources as well as the local library to complete this project.

Analysis of What I Learned:
Learning about English Language Learners and the challenges they face gave me a better understanding and
appreciation for diverse families. Vygotskys scaffolding theory is a wonderful approach to meeting children where they
are, getting an idea of what they need and building upon their current foundation. Making activity kits, which include the
childs native language as well as English, allows the family to be involved. It is equally important to provide books in
both languages for children to recognize words and themes from their native language translated into English. Providing
resources in the community allows these families to feel connected and accepted.
How This Artifact Demonstrates my Competence on the NAEYC Standard:
Through researching community resources for these families and giving them opportunities to engage in respectful,
reciprocal relationships within the community, allows me to partner with children, and their families. By choosing
childrens books in both English and Spanish, I recognize the importance for an English Language Learner to read with
their families which demonstrates my value and appreciation for the complexity of each family. It is also a good practice
of scaffolding as the children will be able to identify and understand the context of a story when they can read it in their
native language which in turn will give them the opportunity to identify with the same book when it is read in class or
they read it themselves. Giving community resources shows my competence in engaging families in the community.