The Apgar score is a score given at one, five and ten minutes after the birth of a child. A score of 7-9 is normal. The score is based on: (o, 1, or 2)  Heart rate  Breathing  Muscle Tone  Responsiveness  Color

Infant’s Needs and Building Children’s Self-Concept Video of fathers

INVOLVEMENT EARLY IN THE CHILDREN’S LIVES How many male preschool teachers are there? How many male teachers teach grade K-3? How many male religious teachers teach ages 3-6? How about a male cub scout leader? When was the last time you had a male nurse care for you?

WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A FATHER ½ of all children will spend part of their childhood in a father absent home. 32% of all children are born to unmarried women.  Among African American it is 68%. Children raised in two-parent families rarely experience poverty. Data has linked growing up without a father to:  Under achievement in school  Mental illness  Drug abuse  Youth suicide  Delinquency  Crime  Teen Pregnancy

Bonding is the closeness (caring and concern) for another. The three basic elements of bonding are:  Feeding,  touching  playing Factors that negatively affect bonding could be:  very expensive child, very cross or colicky child, wife is sick, mother refuses sexual advances of father, if child looks like someone the parents do not like, Postpartum Depression Activity-3 volunteers

POSTPARTUM PERIOD Biological Hormone drop Labor, dehydration, blood loss Psychological Question abilities as a mother Overwhelmed Social factors Financial & emotional burden

1. TOUCH is critical in the Bonding process and increasing the child’s MENTAL FUNCTIONING Orphanages and the monkeys?  What can be learned from this study. “Marasmus” = Wasting Away Meeting Baby’s needs

FYI FYI - From Birth -7 weeks old, the baby cries an average of 2 hours and 15 minutes per day. At 6 weeks the crying usually increases to about 3 hours a day. Infant Soothing techniques fall into 3 categories: Touch Swaddling, Sucking, Hot (WARM) water bottle, Warm bath, Cuddling Motion Rocking, walking, stroller ride / rock, Car ride, Rhythmic patting, bassinet or crib jiggle, knee bend Sound Rhythmic chants, Ticking clock, singing, humming, chanting, recording of heartbeat or womb sounds, another voice, White Noise

What can a caregiver check when the baby cries?  Diaper, clothing, feeding, urge to suck, wanting to be held, over stimulated, out of internal rhythm, pain, bored What if nothing works? The baby just won’t stop crying and you feel your coping threshold being tested. What can you do?  Call a friend and have them stay with the baby while you have break.  RELAX!!!!! Put the baby in its bed, close the door and turn up the TV or the Radio. Check on the baby every minutes.

THE AVERAGE CHILD I don’t cause teachers trouble. My grades have been O.K. I listen in my classes. And I’m in school every day. My parents think I’m average. My teachers think so, too. I wish I didn’t know that, ‘Cause there’s lots I’d like to do. I’d like to build a rocket- I’ve a book that show you how- Or start a stamp collection. Well, no use in trying now. ‘Cause since I’ve found I’m average, I’m just smart enough, you see, To know there’s nothing special That I should expect of me. I’m part of that majority, That hump part of the bell, Who spends his life unnoticed In an average kind of hell.

What do you want for your child? Labels can be so destructive. Children and adults will prove the label true as the poet told the story of the “average” child. It happens every minute of every day --- in classrooms, in homes, on the street.  A “shy” child will see no reason not to be shy; a “stupid” child certainly can’t be smart; a “clumsy” child will continue to fall over his own feet; a “gifted” child will usually excel. All of us who have children in our lives must listen to our own words. We must help every child reach his or her fullest potential. So…..

Building a Child’s Self -Esteem Ways to help your child develop and maintain their self-esteem. JENGA Group “VERY GOOD”

Provide more successes than failures for the child. Plan successes. If they have more failures than successes, back up to where success is achieved, and then move ahead gradually. Help the child perceive him/herself as successful. Provide practice to improve skills.

Give them freedom to fail with acceptance. As long as there are more successes than failures, children learn to not let a few failures get them down. A child who is over-protected and not allowed to fail will learn to try only if success is guaranteed.

Give lots of encouragement. Recognize the effort and improvement, not just the final accomplishment. “I know you can do it” “You handled that really well” “You will make it next time” Show appreciation. “Thanks, you were a big help”

Give unconditional love. Let child know that even if you do not approve of their behavior, you still love them. Accept children as they are, not as they could be. Respect your child. Show them how much you care about them.

Allow independence. Let them do things for themselves. Let them work through a problem. Give them choices as early as possible.

Eliminate the negative. Tell children what they can do, not what they cannot do. Catch them doing something good more often than what they are doing wrong.

Do not set standards unreasonably high. They don’t have to be 100% all the time. Know their abilities and work within those abilities. Children are not miniature adults. Do not over-estimate their maturity.

Avoid ridicule. Be careful of nicknames. Do not make fun of them, especially in front of others.

Allow exploration and encourage questions. Let them explore their environment. Give them a chance to see cause and effect, such as what happens when a rock is dropped in water...

Set limits. Set limits, it gives them security.

Help your child develop their talents. Every child needs to feel that they are good at something. Give them encouragement and opportunities to try new things. Encourage their talents, not the ones you wish they had.

Take their ideas, emotions and feelings seriously. Do not belittle them by saying things like, “That is nothing to cry over”, or “You’ll get over it”.

Be a good role model. Improve your own self-image. Let your children see that you value yourself. Let your children see you make mistakes, learn from them, and try again.

Give your children responsibility. Give them chores that are appropriate for their age. Give them family jobs so that they feel valued and important to the family.

Be available. Give them support when they need it. Spend time together. Work, talk and share activities together. Scenarios