Day 10

This past week at People Serving People, I had the opportunity to work with the toddlers. I wanted to post about something else I learned after observing the toddlers. On Monday I realized that they learn mostly from each other. These interactions at such a young age with others who are similar in age are great ways for the kids to learn about themselves and the world. The interactions they get to experience in daycare settings I discovered are highly beneficial for them. There are good interactions and negative interactions, but I found that both kinds are helpful for them. 

The kids are so funny to watch during snack time. The rules are that they have to sit with their chair pulled up to the table ("tummy to the table") and that they have to have their feet on the floor. Also, they cannot get up from their spot until they have indicated they are done eating their snack. Creating a comparison, I think the animals that copy each other are called lemmings. These little babies remind me of lemmings because when one of them does something, another one of them has to copy and they go with the group. There may actually be misconceptions about lemmings, but for the sake of comparison, I'll leave the lemming reference. On a related note, I was watching them during snack time to make sure good behavior was being practiced and one of the boys started to push his chair away from the table, nearly 4 feet away from the snack table. I simply told him, "tummy to the table" and he scooted his boot back up to the table. Unfortunately, this was a catalyst for the anti-tummy-to-the-table-rebellion and all turmoil broke loose at the snack table in the toddler room. Almost all of the kids started sliding their chairs away from the table while they were all giggling and making noises at each other. It was humorous to watch, but I knew that order had to be restored. Other instances of repeated and copied behavior include standing on the table, pounding on the table, making loud noises, and other interesting forms of snack time entertainment. It's always fun to see what these kids are going to pull out their hats at a given moment. These lemming behaviors don't always happen during snack time, but I have seen them while they are playing or waking up from naps. One person doing something silly is never enough, according to the little goofballs, they always have to repeat each other. I usually find that one of my mottos in life is "do what you feel" and if they want to all start making animal noises, let their little hearts go and make those animal noises.

While I was there on Monday, we got a call from the security desk about a dad that said he was there to pick up his little toddler. There was some confusion over paperwork because when the mom dropped off her baby earlier that day, she never said that the dad would be picking them up early. The process took about 15 minutes because phone calls had to be made, paperwork had to be opened, and ID's had to be checked in order to hand the kid over to the dad. Nothing truly dramatic came from the situation, but it was nice to know that these instructors are generally concerned enough over the kids that they aren't just going to believe someone when they say they are the dad/mom of a child here at the daycare. They take the time to look into it and make sure the child is safe.