Anti-bias Family Daycare Center

In my child care home I would have several areas to for children and families to explore.  Below I will outline the areas, the materials that would be in the areas, and why I would choose these things.

Entrance:

On the outside front porch of my house I would provide a similiar environment to Adrianna's.  I would have a dramatic play kitchen with pots, pans, and plates.  I would have an area with blocks with pictures of the children and families taped to some to allow children to interact with thier own characters.  I would have a writing area with child and family pictures with words to describe each.  I would provide various writing utensils and books that I have made depicting the children and thier families, community members, as well as some other appropriate pictures that depict other cultures (Derman-Sparks and Edwards, 2010).  I would also provide a basket with photo albums for each child with pictures of thier families, pets, and also pictures of them playing at school.  There would also be an area of cubbies with each child's name, pictures, and picture of their family.  This would be their area and would be where parents and children would hang cloths, store backpacks, and other materials from home.   I would also have my sign in and family information board by the entry way.  During inclement weather I would move this area into the entry of our home.  These two areas are homey and have enough room for easy movement, but aren't too big and overwhelming to scare children and families away.

Quiet Area

This area would be accessible at all times for children.  It would be an area with soft furniture, blankets, stuffed animals, family photo albums, and books for children to look at.  This area would be an area that would be welcome to all children and families and a place where children can be alone if they want to be, or where a parent or caretaker can come an have some one-on-one time with the child.

Dramatic Play Area

In this area I would have household items such as kitchen items and accessories, bedroom items such as beds, blankets, living room items such as couch and chairs, babies and dress up cloths.  Each of these items would need to be taken into consideration in relation to the cultures of the children and their families.  Babies would be of various ages, genders, and colors.  Dress up cloths would represent different genders, cultures, and occupations.  Even the kitchen items would need to represent the cultures of the children and those of other cultures.  This area is a great place to explore the cultures of our families and those that we may encounter in life.  I would discuss with families their decor and traditions when it comes to setting up their household to try to incorporate them into this area.

Group Area

In this area I would have carpet squares with children and their families on them.  This would give children the opportunity to take ownership and responsibility in where they sit, and bring their family into our group times.  This area would have a book of children in our class that we can use to see who is here and who is at home.  It would have music that is representative of home cultures, and wall hangings that also represent the cultures of our families. 

Sensory Area

This area would have different sensory activities that go along with what the children are interested in exploring.  Whether that be water, sand, seeds, playdough, etc.  I would ask families to share recipes and traiditions for this area to bring familiar items into the classroom as well as pieces of family culture. 

Puzzles and Games

This area would have a mix of puzzles and games that are both representative of the cultures of our families as well as traditional games that families play.  I would have puzzles made of the child's photos as well as puzzles that have pictures that represent other cultures and concepts making sure all are respectful and not tourist curriculum.  I would also include a match game of faces of children in the care home.  This would allow for discussion of similarities and differences as well as being interesting for the children whose faces are on the game pieces. 

I would also incorporate other areas in to the daycare home, but they would probably have to rotate as I don't think I could fit anymore into my house.  I would just ensure that families are a constant part of the care of their child and the set up of the center.  To be anti-bias and culturally sensitive I would have to partner with families to ensure each is being represented equally and correctly.

Reference

Derman-Sparks, L. & Edwards, J. (2010).  Anti-Bias Education for Young Children and Ourselves.  NAEYC. Washington, DC.