How to Become a Leading Light in Childcare

A career in childcare is challenging and rewarding. For those wanting the opportunity to influence young lives there are several ways to show employers that you are right person for the job and to stand out in the profession. 

Entering the profession

 Starting out in childcare does not necessarily need a hatfull of qualifications. As a nursery assistant, in fact, you may not need qualifications at all. But, you must show great enthusiasm for your work and a commitment to developing your skills. You will need to be a warm, caring person and a great communicator. 

 If you show the right aptitude and commitment, you will find that some employers will be prepared to help you get industry qualifications while you work. There are several to aim for in the early stages of your career, including the Level 1 in an Introduction to Early Years Settings or the Level 2 Certificate for the Children and Young People’s Workforce. 

 There will also be opportunities to progress. If you are interested in jobs in education and becoming a nursery nurse with responsibility for supervising classroom activities and teaching numeracy and language skills, for example, you might want to work towards a Level 3 qualification such as the Diploma for the Children and Young People’s Workforce. 

The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) Framework

 For anyone wanting to progress and stand out in early childcare, an understanding of the EYFS framework is essential. This statutory framework is part of the government’s vision for families in the early childhood years and sets the standards required of all Early Years providers to make sure that young children learn and develop well and are kept safe and healthy. 

 Provisions of the 2012 revision of the EYFS included an emphasis on childcare professionals spending more time interacting with children in order to foster communication, creative and critical thinking skills and encouraging parents to become more involved in the development of their children. The early identification of children with difficulties or extra needs is another crucial objective of the EYFS. 

 As you work with children and their families, how well you implement these provisions will say a lot about your commitment and determination to succeed. You will need to be competent in the execution of your duties and confident enough to take the initiative when the need arises. You will need to be prepared to seek out and accept responsibility and able to show that you can be proactive, working on your own initiative. Your performance at meetings and training modules will also help you get noticed. You should be ready to put forward sensible ideas and show eagerness to learn and progress your career. 

 If you demonstrate these traits and abilities you will soon be noticed by your employers and hopefully will be earmarked for greater things.

Spring Fashion According to the Little MIss

Miss Burrito is very interested in fashion designing, cooking, interior designing, reading, photography,  and most of all dressing up and posing in front of the camera.  Most of the time, she picks what she wears, when I disagree, she has a long a explanation why she chooses  a specific set of outfits and I tell you, she always wins with her arguments as I don't know much  about fashion anyway.  The photos below is her pick of celebrating Spring.  I told her that  I thought,  you are suppose to wear something bright like green and yellow representing  the  plants and flowers.  She said that she picks  something with red and black because it is still chilly outside and you need a color that could warm you up.  Make sense?  I was laughing with the explanation lol. 

Anyhow, the photos  of the Burritos below were taken  last week right after they got off from school and they wanted to stay at our porch for a while.  I took the opportunity to  take some photos of them while they were having fun.

 Miss Burrito is very strong, she can carry her brother  without a problem.

On another note, this is the 100th post for Color Connection and although I had fun hosting it, I have to  end it through this post.  I have been been busy with my  children's school activities that my time is very limited to do all the things I need to do online.  It is for this reason that, this will be the last po]st for the meme,.  I thank you all so much for  joining and sharing your colorful world with us every week.  If anyone would like to host this meme, you are more than welcome to continue it.  Again, thank you so much!

Dallas Cowboys.

It's been 4 years since  my daughter and husband meet  the Dallas Cowboy cheerleaders who went to the Navy base in Korea.   My daughter was very happy that she got to see the gorgeous cheerleaders.  We were flipping our albums  that we compiled during our  2 years of stay in Korea and it made us all nostalgic.  We had such great memories  living there  Below are some of the pictures of our daughter with Brooke Sorenson and Brittany Evans.  

I just wish that the  store inside  the base  have Dallas Cowboys Baby Clothes, it could have been more fun for Ms. Burrito to dress up.  I found some really cute Dallas Cowboy clothes for kids online at Baby Fans website.  They have different kinds for newborn and for  toddlers.  It's fun to have small kids at home.  You can dress them up and they will never complain no matter what lol.  I miss those days!

Outdoor Enjoyment

We visited  Dad last Tuesday after  Ms. Burrito's  dental appointment.  The kids played in the backyard using  the wagon that my SIL, Chris made for them years ago.  The Mister just want to ride, poor little Miss has to drag the wagon even on the steep hill lol.  She's pretty strong though.

After we visited  Dad, we  dropped by at the recycling  place downtown and  sold some aluminum cans.  While hubby is dealing with the  cans, I accompanied my Burritos to a nearby  river and they  throw rocks in it.  They love the splashing sound when the rock hits the water.  It's amazing how the simplest things can bring so much joy to children.  They were overjoyed that  even for a short period of time, they get to bond with nature.  This is just one of the many outdoor activities that they love.

On the other note, we were so happy to see the fourth  grading marks of our kids.  They both have  great remarks from the teachers and outstanding grades.

5 Indoor Activities For Your Family

Kids and adults can become bored when they are stuck indoors. With a few simple ideas, the family can have fun indoors. The ideas will keep everyone entertained for hours.

Family Game Time

The family can set up board games to play together. The games can teach the kids valuable lessons. For instance, some games will help improve the child’s memory, and other games can make the child think about possible solutions to a problem. Board games can help kids learn the principles of losing and winning. The family can play a basic board game or put a puzzle together to spend some quality time together indoors. With a variety of games to choose from, the family will never become bored.

Story Telling

Most people enjoy hearing a good story. The story can be one from a favorite book, or it can be a real life event retold by one of the family members. Either way, it will make a dull day more enjoyable. A great way to tell a story is to involve each family member in the story telling. You can do this by allowing one member to start the story, and then, the story is passed to the next member to add details to the story. The story will continue being passed until the last family member finishes the story. Each family member will make up the story when it becomes his or her turn. This is an opportunity for each family member to become creative in telling a story.

Instead of making up their own story, a family can choose to use a book to tell the story. However, each family member will change the facts to make it into a new story. It will become a challenge for each person to twist the events of the book into a new tale. The kids and adults will be learning how to think quickly. In addition, each person can see how new ideas can form from an old idea.

Act It Out

After telling the stories, the family members can add life to the stories by acting them out. The kids can be encouraged to prepare a presentation of the stories, and then, they can act out the events for the parents. Add some music to the play or drama to make it more interesting.

Camping Indoors

Many kids love to pretend that they are camping outdoors. Tents can be made with blankets thrown over chairs. Blankets can be placed inside the homemade tent for the kids to relax and enjoy their indoor camping experience. Adding a basket of snacks to the activity will make it even more fun. All the family members can become involved by roasting marshmallows over a make-believe campfire and telling ghost stories.

Family Movie Time

Pop some popcorn, and watch a movie together. Family movie time will be an opportunity for each person to bond together over a favourite movie. Choose a movie that the entire family will enjoy.

Spending family time together can make memories that the kids can reflect on when they are grown. And now that technology has advanced, interactive things such as smart tvs and PlayStations are creating more activities for the family to enjoy together. Staying indoors can be fun, energetic and adventurous when you find a memorable activity to do that involves the entire family.

Tom is a tech head and is currently studying computer engineering. He loves everything to do with technology and writes these blogs hoping that it will help those who are not to savvy when it comes to basic tech knowledge.

Natural Curly Hair...

Ms. Burrito wanted me to curl her hair with the flat iron but I was afraid that it would damage it so I told her that I would just braid it.  I braided it  after she took  a sower and she  slept with  it, when she woke up we opened up the braid and this is what we have, a naturally curled hair without using anything.

She reminds me  of me when I was young, I always wanted a curly hair because mine is straight.

Oh do you see the gap in her teeth?  She lost another one  last week.

Music

The music teacher at school picked  Ms. Burrito to sing the "Alleluia" at church last Saturday.  Ms. Burrito have never sang alone  so she was very nervous.  She has been singing with the group but never alone so that was her first  solo  performance.  

With my two kids, Mr. Burrito is that one with the "VOICE", I mean the one that can really sing.  So when the teacher  chose Ms. Burrito, she  was like "I don't know why she picked me".  I told her that the teacher see something special on her voice so   she just need to be confident  and don't think that there is an audience.  I know that it is hard to do because I have been there.  I was asked to sing during our Theology class graduation, and I was on fire lol.  

I found this Epic Threads'  dress on a sale rack at Macy's.  This was originally priced at $39.99 but I got it  for only $4.67, so I got a pretty good deal on this one.  This dress is made in China but the quality is really good.

Below is the  video I took when she was singing.  Her voice was shaking, you can tell how nervous she was lol.  But I think, it wasn't bad knowing that it was her first time singing solo.  The second video was the group singing.

Both hubby and I love music  which explains why our  Burritos are  very interested in it too.  You might have read a post I did some years ago about my husband being part of a band. He played bass but he can sing too, he just don't believe he can lol.  I was a part of a choir in church during my high school years and also part of the choir that the Non-Teaching stuff in the catholic school where I worked in the Philippines.  So music is pretty much part of our lives.  Music is one great spice in our family.