Values and The Preschool Teacher

"Cheshire puss? Asked Alice," Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?"
"That depends a good deal on where you want to go." Said the cat.
"I don't much care where." said Alice.

"Then it doesn't matter which way you go." said the cat.
-Chareles "Lewis Carol" Dodgson 1832-1898, Alice's Adventure's In Wonderland

(You must) choose to feel good. Life and business are tough, but in the midst of all that a critical decision must be made: will I let my emotions rule me or will I rule my emotions? There is nothing worse than someone that can't make a decision when everything is on the line.
-Micheal E. Parker, CEO Stellar Enterprise

Definition: Values

The inner most desiring force that guides your decisions and behaviors a a result of learned experiences of time.

Working as family caregivers, preschool teachers, directors, and or parents we each have our own set of values. When we identify what our TRUE values are we will see them manifest through the decisions we make and the behaviors we display. Depending on where we work and what we do, on average 80% of our day is spend managing children or people.

As "overseers" of our environment, are our values evident in the classroom or home environment simply by looking around? Are the children busy and happy? Do I feel happy and positive?

Do we bring anything extra to the table when it comes to caring for young children? How we implement our preschool curriculum says a lot about our values.

I made a decision to be an advocate for preschool children. To listen to them and let them have as much of a childhood as they could get. I learned many things through nature and just being allowed to be a kid. This isn't the case for many children in this day and age...especially with the technology we have today. In more cases than not I am seeing a growing trend with technology robbing children of their social skills.

It is easy to tell a child what to do. But to teach, it takes something out of you.

What values do we as early childhood educators bring into our own learning environments?

"Let's make a dent in the universe."
— Steve Jobs