Abby YDEV 352-3

       When thinking about the readings, the thing that I focused the most on was the "Ladder of Youth Participation" and for me this was so interesting, because I have done so much youth work, and it is so interesting to see how they all fall in a different place on the ladder. The first example I saw, was in the after school program that I work at. To me it falls at a 6 on the ladder, because everything is facilitated by adults, but there is still room for the child to make the decision of what activity is being facilitated. The second example I saw is working in a daycare, and it is so interesting to me to see the difference. This example would be a 9 or 10 on the ladder, because as the adult I provide the children with everything they may need, but I am just there to assist when they need me. They are deciding what they want to do at all times and how they want to rather than me as the adult making that decision.      Something that I find so impor...

 Youth Work is Care     Before doing the readings for the week as well as watching the video clips that went along with it, I would have said that care in a youth setting would look like providing basic needs such as food, water, shelter, clothing, but also love, attention, and compassion. But upon doing the readings it challenges you to look deeper into the idea of care. Care can be something much deeper than ones basic needs.       In an education setting we often think of equal education opportunities, but when care is added to this it is also making sure that each individual student is getting the support and resources they need to succeed within their education. Educators often times do not have the same expectations for their students on an individual level which isn't intentional, but it brings into the conversation of race.  Care can come in many different ways, but the article Nice is Not Enough made me see that often times we are only th...

  Social Justice Youth Development:       The idea behind social justice is equality in wealth, opportunities, and privilege, but when I think of it with Youth Development, the first thing that comes to mind is equality in education and opportunities. There are so many social justice youth development programs across the country, but when thinking about our little state the first one that came to mind was Youth in Action.       Youth in Action is an organization that allows youth the space and platform to share their stories, lead, and change their communities. For me this was the first organization I thought of because they work with these social justice issues not just outside of the classroom, but they bring this space to the classroom as well with Schools in Action.      This organization does a great job allowing youth to see the problems going on within their own community and then provides them the platform to use in ord...

      When addressed with the idea of race and racism, I am always hesitant to talk about it and I find myself often times thinking I shouldn't speak on it. Growing up I did not experience much diversity, but it wasn't anything intentionally done by my parents, it was an education choice they made in order for me to have the best education possible. The first time I was really addressed with a diverse culture was when I was going to high school. My whole life before this, I was going to school with the same 18 people and of the 18 people in my class, no one identified as BIPOC. Once I got to high school though it was the opposite for me though, where as white students were the minority.      Being the minority for me was definitely a change, but not a shock. It is something that individuals who identify as BIPOC must deal with all the time, therefore why when I am addressed with the same situation should I be shocked. Although it wasn't a shock for me ...

 Visible/ Invisible Rules:      After reading about Marcus and his classroom, there are many examples of visible and invisible rules or codes of conduct in the classroom. The visible ones are used in order to set structure in the classroom as much as possible and make for every child to be able to learn in the given environment. The invisible rules are used in order to allow for the child to make some much needed decisions based upon how they are going to participate in their day within the classroom. These invisible rules are providing them with much support that they might not see or know they needed therefore why they are considered to be invisible. An example from the reading that contains both a visible and invisible rule to me would be when the class gathers at the rug in the mornings. The visible would be that they all know they must join on the rug, but the invisible would be where they have their choice of sitting on the rug a chair or standing.  In a Y...

 Child Development Core Story, Pt. 2: Serve and Return   Serve and return is the idea of child-adult interactions rather than leaving the child with an independent activity at a young age where development is top priority. The largest developmental period for a child is from brith to age 4 and this is because this is where the child’s foundation is being built. Without serve and return within the first four years of the child’s life, then it becomes very difficult for the child when they must enter school at the age of 5. They commonly lack social skills, do not focus as easily, and very often cannot control their emotions or do not know how to express their emotions properly.   Although the idea of serve and return makes it seem like the parent must be the adult the child is interacting with, that is not the case. It could be family, friends, daycare providers, or even neighbors. Just because the parent is spending less time with their child that does not mean that they ...