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Finding Good Child Care
By Erin Brownfield
Families and Work Institute
Finding and choosing good child care can be one of the most challenging tasks you face as a parent. Evaluating all the different child care options can be overwhelming, especially if you've never done it before. Even thinking about leaving your child in someone else's care can be painful. According to Ellen Galinsky, president and co-founder of Families and Work Institute (FWI), "The transition will be much easier if you take the time to find someone you trust. You'll feel more comfortable leaving your child with someone who doesn't feel like a stranger."
But how do you recognize a good setting? According to FWI research, parents are looking first and foremost for three essential ingredients that define good quality in any setting: safety, a warm, caring atmosphere, and an environment of learning.
Evaluating the Options As you begin your search, give some thought to the three types of child care: at-home, family, and centre-based. There are advantages and disadvantages to each.
• In-home care is convenient and familiar. It may also be more flexible than other types of care when it comes to starting and ending times, depending on your provider's* schedule. The disadvantages include less access to other children and no deliberate learning program, though both largely depend on the initiative of your provider. Another disadvantage is lack of backup if your provider gets sick.
• Family and relative care takes place in someone else's home, either in a regulated family child care centre or in the home of a friend or relative. Among the advantages are a family-type setting with a small group of children and the chance for kids to form close relationships with children of different ages. However, learning opportunities depend on the individual provider, and if the provider is sick, you'll have to make other arrangements.
• In centre-based care, your child will be with a larger number of other child ren, and this can be both a plus and a minus. Your child will have more opportunities to form friendships, but if the provider-child ratio is high, your child may not get enough attention. In general, centres tend to have more formal, regulated learning programs.
Getting Started Begin your search by asking people whose judgement you trust, including family, friends, and people in your religious organisation, about their experiences with child care, and start a list of providers. You may then expand your list by contacting a child care resource and referral organisation in your area. The organisation will give you a list based on the type of child care you're looking for, your location, how much you can pay, and other criteria. Keep in mind that this won't be a list of recommended or rated arrangements and will reflect the range of quality in the community, from good to not very good. Similar resources are also available on the Web.
Once you have a list together, begin interviewing. If you're looking at family care or child care centres, ask to tour the facility and find out whether they allow unannounced parental visits. Eliminate any provider that doesn't allow both tours and surprise visits. Your involvement with the program should be welcome.
The next step is to tour the facility. While a safe, pleasant, and stimulating setting is important, people make the critical difference in quality. Look for a provider who is warm and engaged and thinks your child is special. When you interview, watch how the provider interacts with your son or daughter. Is the provider responsive to your child, getting down to his or her eye level to talk? Or are all comments addressed to you? Does he or she seem to want to get to know your child, or do you sense indifference? Ask about other children the provider has taught. If the provider speaks negatively or pejoratively about other children, that's a good indication of how the provider feels about children in general.
If possible, watch the provider with other children. Is there real interaction between them? Or do all the kids run up to you when you come in because they're starved for attention? What happens when a child falls down? Is he or she comforted, or ignored? When kids fight, does the provider work with them to develop problem-solving skills, or simply scold them? Does he or she help the children learn? With infants, this can be as simple as playing peekaboo.
With toddlers and preschoolers, does the provider encourage their fascination with dinosaurs, insects, or whatever subject excites them? Does the provider read to the children? Child care is education before school, and it should promote meaningful and age-appropriate learning. Get to know the person who'll be caring for your child as much as you can, and treat her or him like a professional — it's a crucial relationship for you and your child.
Making Your Decision When evaluating your options, cost is certainly a factor. But beware of bargains, says Ellen Galinsky: "Centres that are noticeably cheaper than others in your area are probably not treating their workers well, and dissatisfied, resentful workers are not the people you want caring for your child." Since children need stability, you want to try to ensure that your provider intends to continue in this job. Galinsky also cautions parents not to dismiss the value of advanced training: "Well-trained providers understand how children develop and are better able to meet their needs. They also tend to be more 'intentional'-those who bother to learn how kids grow are more likely to put some thought into furthering your child's development." Lower-cost centres may also have higher provider-to-child ratios, which place additional stress on providers.
Once you'v e made your selection, stay involved. Drop in at your centre or come home unannounced to check on your in-house provider from time to time; also watch how your child adjusts to the new arrangement. Do expect a transition period — your child may feel anxious at first and may become clingy for a while, but this should dissipate within a few weeks. If you notice signs of depression, fear, or intense anxiety, and you suspect that something is not right, don't wait. Find out what's going on and try to improve things. If you need to change arrangements, do so. The overall question to ask yourself is, "Would I want to spend time in this situation?"
Good care and education can be a support to you and a wonderful experience for your child. By finding the right arrangement and helping your child adjust, you are teaching your child how to venture out and make the most of new experiences.
• The word "provider" covers all those who care for and lead young children, including relatives, friends, nannies, family child care providers, and teachers.
Ellen Galinsky is the President and Co-Founder of Families and Work Institute a Manhattan-based nonprofit organisation conducting research on the changing family, workplace, and community. She is the author of the groundbreaking new book, Ask the Children: What America's Children Really Think About Working Parents, and has published numerous books, reports, and articles on work-family issues. A popular keynote speaker, she was a presenter at the 1997 White House Conference on Child Care and appears regularly on television and in the media.
Families and Work Institute is a nonprofit centre for research that provides data to inform decision-making on the changing workplace, changing family, and changing community. Founded in 1989, FWI is known for ahead of the curve, nonpartisan research into emerging work-life issues; for solutions-oriented studies addressing topics of vital importance to all sectors of society; and for fostering connections among workplaces, families, and communities. FWI's rigorous data are highly respected. Its research, which has influenced decisions across the nation, is sought out by business and community leaders, policy-makers, individual families, educators, and the media.
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