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

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, CuddlingMotion 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 10-15 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 What do you want for your child?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 Building a Child’s Self -EsteemSelf -Esteem

Ways to help your child develop and Ways to help your child develop and maintain their self-esteem.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.

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