Current through Register Vol. 35, No. 18, September 24, 2024
A. Child growth,
development and learning: Foundations for all learning are established during
early childhood. Biological-physical, social, cultural, emotional, cognitive,
and language domains are inherently intertwined in growth and development.
Early childhood professionals must understand this process of development and
the adult's role in supporting each child's growth, development, and learning.
(1) Incorporate understanding of
developmental stages, processes, and theories of growth, development, and
learning into developmentally appropriate practice.
(2) Demonstrate knowledge of the interaction
between maturation and environmental factors that influence physical, social,
emotional, cognitive, and cultural domains in the healthy development of each
child.
(3) Demonstrate knowledge of
the significance of individual differences in development and learning.
Demonstrate knowledge of how certain differences may be associated with rate of
development and developmental patterns associated with developmental delays and
specific disabilities.
(4)
Demonstrate knowledge of the similarities between children who are developing
typically and those with special needs.
(5) Provide a variety of activities that
facilitate development of the whole child in the following areas:
physical/motor, social/emotional, language/cognitive, and adaptive/living
skills.
(6) Apply knowledge of
cultural and linguistic diversity and the significance of socio-cultural and
political contexts for development and learning and recognize that children are
best understood in the contexts of family, culture and society.
(7) Demonstrate knowledge of the many
functions that language serves in the cognitive, social, and emotional aspects
of development in the formative years.
(8) Demonstrate knowledge of the
developmental sequence of language and literacy, including the influence of
culture and home factors.
(9)
Demonstrate knowledge of how children acquire and use verbal, non-verbal, and
alternative means of communication.
(10) Demonstrate knowledge of the
relationship among emotions, behaviors, and communication skills to assist
children in identifying and expressing their feelings in appropriate
ways.
(11) Use appropriate guidance
to support the development of self-regulatory capacities in young children.
B. Health, safety and
nutrition: Early childhood professionals promote physical and mental health and
appropriate nutrition and provide an emotionally and physically safe
environment for young children in partnership with their families. Sound
health, safety, and nutritional practices provide the foundation for
development and learning. Good nutrition is appropriate and important to the
total development of young children and their families. Meals and snacks
encourage good nutrition and eating habits. A safe environment prevents and
reduces injuries for young children who are only beginning to recognize
dangerous situations.
(1) Recognize and
respond to each child's physical health, intellectual and emotional well-being,
and nutritional and safety needs.
(2) Appropriately plan, maintain, and
facilitate the use of the indoor and outdoor learning environments to promote
each child's physical and emotional well-being.
(3) Use appropriate health appraisal and
management procedures and makes referrals when necessary.
(4) Recognize signs of emotional distress,
child abuse, and neglect in young children and use procedures appropriate to
the situation, such as initiating discussions with families, referring to
appropriate professionals, and, in cases of suspected abuse or neglect,
reporting to designated authorities.
(5) Establish an environment that provides
opportunities and reinforcement for children's practice of healthy behaviors
that promote appropriate nutrition and physical and psychological
well-being.
(6) Provide a
consistent daily schedule for rest/sleep, as developmentally
appropriate.
(7) Implement health
care and educational activities for children and families based on health and
nutritional information that is responsive to diverse cultures.
(8) Assist young children and their families,
as individually appropriate, in developing decision-making and interpersonal
skills that enable them to make healthy choices and establish health-promoting
behaviors.
C. Family and
community collaboration: Early childhood professionals are committed to
family-centered practices. They maintain an open, friendly, and cooperative
relationship with each child's family, encouraging family involvement, and
supporting the child's relationship with his or her family. The diverse
cultures and languages representative of families in New Mexico's communities
are honored.
(1) Seek and maintain a
collaborative relationship with parents, guardians, families, community
agencies, and other professionals to meet the needs each child.
(2) Create and maintain a safe and welcoming
environment for families and community members.
(3) Establish frequent contact with parents
and guardians through a variety of communication strategies, including
communication in the home language of each child to provide ongoing, relevant
information to families about child growth, development, and
learning.
(4) Demonstrate knowledge
of and respect for variations across cultures, in terms of family strengths,
expectations, values, and child-rearing practices.
(5) Demonstrate understanding of the
complexity and dynamics of family systems.
(6) Demonstrate understanding of the effects
of family stress on the behavior of children and other family
members.
(7) Demonstrate the
ability to incorporate the families' desires/goals for their children into
classroom and intervention strategies.
(8) Develop partnerships with family members
to promote early literacy in the home.
(9) Involve families and community members in
contributing to the learning environment.
(10) Establish partnerships with community
members in promoting literacy.
(11)
Demonstrate ability to communicate to families the program's policies,
procedures, and those procedural safeguards that are mandated by state and
federal regulations.
D.
Developmentally appropriate content: Early childhood professionals demonstrate
knowledge of child development and learning, as well as content knowledge, both
in terms of academic disciplines and interdisciplinary integration. Their
approach to curriculum content emerges from multiple sources, such as play and
exploration, and is appropriate for the ages and developmental levels of the
children with whom they work. Content includes, but is not limited to, the
arts, literacy, mathematics, physical education, health, social studies,
science, and technology. Children's initial experiences with these content
areas form the foundation for later understanding and success.
(1) Demonstrate knowledge of relevant content
for young children and developmentally appropriate ways of integrating content
into teaching and learning experiences for children from birth through age
eight.
(2) Demonstrate the
integration of knowledge of how young children develop and learn with knowledge
of the concepts, inquiry tools, and structure of content areas appropriate for
different developmental levels.
(3)
Demonstrate knowledge of what is important in each content area, why it is of
value, and how it links with earlier and later understandings within and across
areas.
(4) Demonstrate knowledge of
the reading and writing components of literacy at each developmental
level.
(5) Develop, implement, and
evaluate an integrated curriculum that focuses on children's development and
interests, using their language, home experiences and cultural
values.
(6) Adapt content to meet
the needs of each child, including the development of individualized family
service plans (IFSP) and individualized education plans (IEP) for children with
special needs through the team process with families and other team
members.
(7) Provides and uses
anti-bias materials/literature and experiences in all content areas of the
curriculum.
E. Learning
environment and curriculum implementation: Teaching and learning with young
children is a complex process embedded in relationships. These teaching and
learning relationships provide the scaffold for jointly constructing meanings
about self, others, and the world. Early childhood professionals use their
child development knowledge, their knowledge of developmentally appropriate
practices, and their content knowledge to design, implement, and evaluate
experiences that promote optimal development and learning for all children from
birth through age eight. In addition, their use of observations is grounded in
a thorough understanding of children's families, cultures, and communities.
Early childhood professionals encourage young children's problem solving,
critical thinking, and academic and social competence within a supportive and
challenging learning environment. These challenging teaching and learning
experiences build children's confidence in themselves as competent learners.
(1) Demonstrate knowledge of varying program
models and learning environments that meet the individual needs of all young
children, including those with special needs.
(2) Create environments that encourage active
involvement, initiative, responsibility, and a growing sense of autonomy
through the selection and use of materials and equipment that are suitable to
individual learning, developmental levels, special needs, and the language and
cultures in New Mexico.
(3)
Demonstrate knowledge and skill in the use of developmentally appropriate
guidance techniques and strategies that provide opportunities to assist
children in developing positive thoughts and feelings about themselves and
others through cooperative interaction with peers and adults.
(4) Create and manage learning environments
that provide individual and cooperative opportunities for children to construct
their own knowledge through various strategies that include decision-making,
problem-solving, and inquiry experiences.
(5) Demonstrate understanding that each
child's creative expression is unique and can be encouraged through diverse
ways, including creative play.
(6)
Plan blocks of interrupted time for children to persist at self-chosen
activities, both indoors and out.
(7) Demonstrate understanding of the
influence of the physical setting, schedule, routines, and transitions on
children and use these experiences to promote children's development and
learning.
(8) Use and explain the
rationale for developmentally appropriate methods that include play, small
group projects, open-ended questioning, group discussion, problem solving,
cooperative learning, and inquiry experiences to help young children develop
intellectual curiosity, solve problems, and make decisions.
(9) Create and manage a literacy-rich
environment that is responsive to each child's unique path of
development.
(10) Use a variety of
language strategies during adult-child and child-child interactions and
facilitate dialogue of expressive language and thought.
(11) Demonstrate a variety of developmentally
appropriate instructional strategies that facilitate the development of
literacy skills.
(12) Demonstrate
knowledge of developmentally appropriate uses of technology, including
assistive technology.
(13)
Demonstrate the ability to work collaboratively with educational assistants,
volunteers, and others to individualize the curriculum and to meet program
goals.
(14) Demonstrate effective
written and oral communication skills when working with children, families, and
early care, education, and family support professionals.
F. Assessment of children and evaluation of
programs: Early childhood professionals must develop knowledge of diverse
assessment approaches, including observational skills. They use appropriate
ongoing documentation and report information to families and professionals.
Appropriate early childhood assessment is responsive to cultural and linguistic
differences. It includes information from multiple sources, e.g., observations,
checklists, interviews, and both formal and informal standardized measures in
diverse settings for making educational decisions about children. The
assessment data gathered from multiple sources that has a major impact on
children should be made by a team of family members, teachers, and other
professionals. In addition, early childhood professionals engage in systematic,
ongoing evaluation of their programs.
(1)
Demonstrate knowledge of assessment and evaluation practices that are valid and
appropriate.
(2) Demonstrate
knowledge of maintaining appropriate records of children's development and
behavior that safeguard confidentiality and privacy.
(3) Demonstrate knowledge of the educator's
role as a participating member of the assessment process as described and
mandated by state and federal regulations for Individual family service plans
(IFSP) and individual education plans (IEP).
(4) Demonstrate understanding of the
influences of environmental factors, cultural/linguistic differences, and
diverse ways of learning on assessment outcomes.
(5) Involve the family and, as appropriate,
other team members in assessing the child's development, strengths, and needs
in order to set goals for the child.
(6) Share assessment results as appropriate
with families in clear, supportive ways.
(7) Involve all stakeholders in program
evaluations.
(8) Demonstrate
knowledge of a variety of techniques and procedures to evaluate and modify
program goals for young children and their families.
(9) Develop and use formative and summative
program evaluation to ensure comprehensive quality of the total environment for
children, families, and the community.
(10) Use both self and collaborative
evaluations as part of ongoing program evaluations.
G. Professionalism: Professionalism is built
upon individual integrity, responsibility, and ethical practices that
demonstrate a profound respect for all children and their families. Early
childhood professionals embrace a multicultural perspective that is responsive
to individuals in culturally diverse communities in New Mexico. Professionals
make decisions based upon knowledge of early childhood theories and practices
that recognize diversity of ability, developmental level, and family
characteristics. Early childhood professionals advocate for excellence in early
childhood programs and participate in one-going professional development to
enhance their knowledge and skills.
(1)
Consistently adheres to professional codes of ethics and conduct.
(2) Demonstrate knowledge of federal, state,
and local regulations regarding programs and services for children birth
through eight years of age.
(3)
Demonstrate understanding of conditions of children, families, and
professionals; current issues and trends; legal issues; and legislation and
other public policies affecting children, families, and programs for young
children and the early childhood profession.
(4) Articulate a personal philosophy of
appropriate early care and education that responds to practices that support
inclusion and cultural and linguistic diversity through actions and
attitudes.
(5) Demonstrate critical
reflection of one's own professional and educational practices from community,
state, national, and global perspectives.
(6) Demonstrate understanding of the early
childhood profession, its multiple, historical, philosophical and social
foundations, and how these foundations influence current thought and
practice.
(7) Demonstrate a
commitment to advocacy for excellence in programs and services for young
children and their families.
(8)
Demonstrate knowledge of other professions that provide related services for
young children and their families.
(9) Participate in professional organizations
and in ongoing professional development to enhance knowledge and skills in
working with young children and adults.
(10) Demonstrate knowledge of basic
principles of administration, organization, and operation of early childhood
programs, including supervision of staff and volunteers.
