THE INFLUENCE FAMILY AND

COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS
HAVE ON CHILD
DEVELOPMENT
ERIN KELLY
CHILD DEVELOPMENT CAPSTONE COURSE
ECE 497
KAREN FOSTER
SEPTEMBER 29, 2014
EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT
Early childhood development is between the ages of three and eight
(Marotz & Allen, 2013). It is considered to be the most rapid period of
development in a humans life. A childs physical, cognitive, social, and
emotional growth
is very progressive at this stage of development. Early
Childhood Development programs are designed to
improve a young childs capacity to learn and develop
(What is Early Childhood Development, 2011).
MY ROLE AS AN EARLY CHILDHOOD
DEVELOPMENT PROVIDER
Remain flexible and guide my children in a direction that interests their
needs
Listen to their needs and assist in furthering their development
Provide activities and materials to assist in their growth
and development (Childcare Education Institute,
2008)
Provide social, emotional, physical, and academic
growth in children (Barbour, 2008)
MY ROLE CONTINUED
Increase parental involvement and participation in my classroom
Encourage parents to nurture their children
Build supportive partnerships with families by giving mutual respect,
sharing understanding, and providing cooperative decision-making
Provide support and additional services to my children and their
families (Barbour, 2008)

THE IMPORTANCE OF FAMILY AND
COMMUNITY SUPPORT
Family and community support can be very beneficial to a childs
development as if can provide social support for both the parents and
children (Berk, 2013).
Activities and programs can help to improve marital satisfaction, family
functioning, effective child rearing, and community involvement (Berk, 2013).
Family and community support systems have proven advances in
childrens academic achievements, positive social relationships with peers
and adults, prosocial behavior, self-regulation, and a reduction in emotional and behavioral issues
(Berk, 2013).
SUPPORT SYSTEMS
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
Kendra Julian is a
perfect example
of how
communities can
support and give
back to those in
need as shown in
the video. She
designed a
benefit for a
family living in the
same community
of whom she had
never met.
MESOSYSTEM
Bronfenbrenners mesosystem of his Ecological Systems Theory contains interactions between two
microsystems,
the child and its environment. A childs mesosystem consists of their home, school, neighborhood,
and childcare center (Berk, 2013).
A childs academic progress is dependent on a parents involvement in
their school work (Berk, 2013).
Parent-child interaction at home is probable in directly affecting a
caregiver-child relationship in a childcare setting. Visits and exchanges of
information help to promote a healthy development (Berk, 2013).
Communication between the teacher and parent is key to a childs success.
MESOSYSTEM CONTINUED
Family-neighborhood connections vary among socioeconomic
statuses. Lower income neighborhoods are more dependent on
social support, education programs, and leisure pursuits. Resources
and programs may be more scarce yet they have shown to increase
school performance and reduce emotional and behavioral problems
within these communities (Berk, 2013).
As a child gets older, neighborhood organizations have shown
encouraging development in self-confidence, school achievement,
educational aspirations, and responsible social behavior (Berk, 2013).
EPSTEINS TYPES OF INVOLVEMENT
Parenting: Help all families establish home environments to support children as students
Communication: Design effective forms of school-to-home and home-to-school communications
about school programs and children's progress
Volunteering: Recruit and organize parent help and support
Learning at Home: Provide information and ideas to families about how to help students at home
with homework and other curriculum-related activities, decisions, and planning
Decision making: Include parents in school decisions, developing parent leaders, and
representatives
Collaborating with Community: Identify and integrate resources and services from the
community to strengthen school programs, family practices, and student learning and development
(Epstein, n.d.)
EPSTEINS PARENTING INVOLVEMENT
How this type of involvement influences a childs learning and development:
Provides mindfulness about family guidance; a regard for parents
Creates positive personal abilities, principles, conduct, and morals which are educated by
family
Sets an equilibrium among time spent on school work, everyday chores, and other activities
Teaches respectable and amended attendance
Provides consciousness to the significance of school (Epstein, n.d.)
I recommend Lincoln Elementary School implement parent education and other
courses or training for parents of these students given their low-income
socioeconomic status and high percentage of second language speaking students
(Epstein, n.d).
EPSTEINS COMMUNICATING
INVOLVEMENT
How this type of involvement influences a childs learning and development:
Provides knowledge of advancement and the steps needed to preserve or advance
grades
Gains empathy of school policies on attendance, performance, and additional
expanses of student behavior
Makes knowledgeable judgments about courses and curricula
Provides awareness of own position in collaborations, serving as messenger and
correspondent (Epstein, n.d.)
Lincoln Elementary School should provide language translators to assist this
predominantly Spanish-speaking school/community when needed (Epstein,
n.d.).

EPSTEINS VOLUNTEERING INVOLVEMENT
How this type of involvement influences a childs learning and development:
Assists in interacting with adults
Develops an improved knowledge of services that accept teaching or aimed
consideration from volunteers
Provides responsiveness to many capacities, professions, abilities, and charities of
parents and/or other helpers (Epstein, n.d.)
Lincoln Elementary School should consider a parent room or family center
for volunteer work, meetings, and resources for families. I feel this program would be most
beneficial because of the strong sense toward family and community this large city has.
Also, this can also help to provide these lower-income families with helpful resources and
support systems (Epstein, n.d.).


EPSTEINS LEARNING AT HOME
INVOLVEMENT
How this type of involvement influences a childs learning and development:
Improvements in talents, expertise, and test scores were connected to schoolwork and homework
Progresses in schoolwork achievement
Gains an encouraging attitude toward classwork
Observations of the similarities between parents and teachers and advances in home environment to
resemble a closeness to a school/classroom environment
Develops self-concept of their ability as a student (Epstein, n.d.)
Lincoln Elementary School should implement regular scheduling of homework that requires
students to discuss and interact with their families on what they are learning in class. Given
most parents are likely to have language barriers, requiring students to discuss and interact
with their families is a good way to keep them informed on what their children are learning (Epstein, n.d.).
EPSTEINS DECISION MAKING
INVOLVEMENT
How this type of involvement influences a childs learning and development:
Developed consciousness of the illustration families have in school decisions
A comprehension that students rights are secure
Teaches precise advantages that are related to procedures endorsed by parent
administrations and practiced by students (Epstein, n.d.)
Lincoln Elementary School may benefit from independent advocacy groups to lobby
and work for school reform and improvements because it can help bring different
groups together that may share similar interests. For example, a particular group
may want to advocate for every child to receive a free lunch. This group would be
more likely to succeed if they were all supportive of the same improvement or reform
(Epstein, n.d.).

EPSTEINS COLLABORATING WITH
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
How this type of involvement influences a childs learning and development:
Increases abilities and capacities through enhanced curricular and extracurricular
involvements
Provides knowledge about occupations and possibilities for future education and work
Provides explicit reimbursements linked to curriculums, resources, services, and prospects
that link students to their community (Epstein, n.d.)
Lincoln Elementary School can benefit from information given to students and
families on community health, cultural, recreational, social support, and other
programs or services. A low-income family may not know where to go to get these
types of assistance, so this information can be beneficial for both their child and
themselves (Epstein, n.d.).
OTHER INVOLVEMENT EXAMPLES:
REFERENCES
Barbour A. (2008). Supporting Families: Children are the Winners. Retrieved from:
http://www.earlychildhoodnews.com/earlychildhood/article_view.aspx?ArticleID=644
Berk L. E. (2013). Child Development. Boston: Pearson Education
Childcare Education Institute (2008). Teachers Roles and Responsibilities. Retrieved from:
https://www.cceionline.edu/newsletters/August_08.html
Epstein J. L. (n.d.). Epstein's Framework of Six Types of Involvement. Retrieved from:
http://vizedhtmlcontent.next.ecollege.com/pub/content/1810565d-a602-41bb-be3e-
a03f05e17c1b/Epstein_J._n.d..__Epsteins_framework_of_six_types_of_involvemen.pdf
Marotz L. R. & Allen K. E. (2013). Developmental Profiles: Pre-Birth through Adolescence. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth, Cengage
Learning
What is Early Childhood Development? (2011). Retrieved from:
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/TOPICS/EXTCY/EXTECD/0,,contentMDK:20260280~menuPK:524346~pagePK:1
48956~piPK:216618~theSitePK:344939,00.html