Monday - July 21, 2008

WOW... it has been over a month since my last entry. Honestly I have been so busy with working on with this new Parent Aware Program, that a blog has been the furthest thing from my mind.

I took the test on Sat. for my CDA, and I will find out the results by the end of September.
I know I have told you that I had been working towards my CDA, and if you don't know what a CDA is, I thought an explanation would be in order... :)

This description is from the CDA web site:

Definition of the Child Development Associate (CDA)

A Child Development Associate (CDA) is an individual who has successfully completed the CDA assessment process and has been awarded the CDA Credential. CDAs are able to meet the specific needs of children and work with parents and other adults to nurture children's physical, social, emotional, and intellectual growth in a child development framework.

A CDA performs according to the CDA Competency Goals in center-based, home visitor or family child care programs. To date, there are more than 200,000 CDAs in all 50 United States, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the U.S. territories of Guam and the Virgin Islands.
Earning the CDA Credential has many advantages, including motivating caregivers toward continuing education and providing a platform for professional and career opportunities. Many view the CDA Credential as an instrument for career advancement in the early childhood care and education profession. The Council works to ensure that it is a credible and valid credential, recognized by the profession as a vital part of a coordinated system of professional development.
As a result of an increase in demand from many public and private employers for qualified trained staff, the number of child care providers applying for the CDA Credential has grown to nearly 15,000 annually. Furthermore, 49 states plus the District of Columbia incorporate the CDA Credential into their childcare center licensing regulations.

With this new program I am currently working with - Parent Aware - I will be turnin gin all my paper work on Wednesday, and all my classes will be done as of tomorrow evening. You will notice a few new things with this Parent Aware program. I will be using Creative Curriculum observation tools to start a more formal observation of the children and keeping track of their development. This will help me to plan on what we will be working on with the children.

I will also be taing steps to get my preschool curriculum that I develop accrediated. I will also start the process of accrediation. :)
I leave all that information for a future post...

I just wanted to let you know I haven't forgotten this blog. I can't believe the summer is almost over. I still want to have a summer BBQ, and we'll do that in Audust. I'll check my calendar and pick some dates.

Thanks

Jean