This is my personal childhood web.  There are many different people in this web, but these five specifically stick out out to me.


-Cheri Beard
This is my mommy! My mom and I have been extremely close my entire life.  She has always supported me and shown me how cherished I am.  She was my protector, my listener, and my teacher.  She was there for my first steps, she fed me my first real meal, gave me my first bath.  Many people think of their mother as this person, but I know my mom always wanted me to succeed.  She has always encouraged me to follow my dreams and let me be as outgoing as possible.  To this day my mom is still this person to me.  She is my listener.  She is the Lorelei to my  Rory.

-Brian Beard
My daddy!  I am a daddy's girl through and through.  He is my rock and my protector.  My daddy is who I get me sense of humor and mannerisms from.  He always taught me how I should be valued.  From a very early age my dad took me on daddy daughter dates that way we could have conversations and grow together. He still takes me on these dates, and he always makes sure to tell me how I should be treated.  He tells my fiance all the time to treat me like a princess, and to treat our future daughters the same way.

-Ian
My baby brother. I was so excited to have a little brother and he came into my life when I was three.   I always felt when I was young that I should be a role model for my brother.  It was my chance to be his protector.  He had on an impact on my early childhood because we grew up together.  He was my constant playmate and constant nemesis.He continues to be a constant companion, friend and support system to this day.

-Aunt Bonnie
Now I don't have any current pictures of my Aunt Bonnie and I, but man has she had a constant impact on my developmental life.  Aunt Bonnie is my dad's older sister, and I honestly remember her being there for many of the major parts of my early years.  I credit my aunt with a lot of my spiritual development.  She has always been there for me throughout my religious journey.  I went to a private Christian school around the corner from her house.  She was the person who picked me up and sang me praise songs, and always made sure I was included in her prayers.  She is still the person I look up to greatly for my religious journey.

-Mrs. Mathews
Last but not least my second grade teacher.  Mrs. Mathews has had such a major impact on my life.  She was my teacher, but she was also my babysitter, and one of my mom's closest friends.  She and my mom both worked at my elementary school so they had an instant connection.  They had children the same age, so we were together quite often.  It was always interesting being able to say that I was that close with a teacher, but she is one of the main reasons that I decided to become a teacher in the first place.  She made time for me as an individual, and I know that she worked with each of her students and let them know how much she supported them.  She helped me a lot when I struggled with math and spelling.  She would stay with me after school and tutor me, and she would quiz me on weekend trips with my mom.  She helped me to be successful in my learning.  I wish I was able to still connect with her to this day.

What is it about Early Childhood?

Here I am at about 4 with my little brother, Ian.

Here we go! Post number two.  What is it about Early Childhood?

I knew from a very young age that I wanted to be a teacher.  I used to sit in my room, line up my dolls and teach them ABC's.  I begged my parents for books and school supplies all the time.  (Something I still have not grown out of.)  I asked my mom and dad if I could help them teach their Sunday school classes instead of going to my own.  I even teach my own Sunday school class to this day. My dad has always said "You were meant to teach,"  and my Grandma says "You never grew out of being a child." 

There is just something about not only having the opportunity to learn, but to also watch someone else learn.

Here I was ready for my second year of teaching.  Dr. Seuss style.

Speaking of Dr. Seuss, a children's book that I will always read to my students is The Places You Will Go. Extremely cliche I know, but I do have true and good reasoning for choosing this story.  I love the Dr. Seuss rhyming and goofy drawings, but I also love the fact that there isn't sugar coating.  Dr. Seuss does not lie.  He tells it as it is.  Not everything will go your way, and that is okay.  Life is about learning and LIVING.  It is a scary world, but you can conquer it!

Now let me tell you one last thing.  A story about a student who changed my life.  He did.  He changed it in so many ways, and I am forever grateful for this amazingly difficult child.  His name was Ronald, and I always knew he would be "my" student.  My first year of teaching he was sent to me quite often by his first grade teacher, just because he would make her want to pull her hair out sometimes.  He would saunter (yes saunter) into my room, all 4 ft. of him, with a giant smile and a declaration of "I'm in trouble again Miss Beard!"  He was never surprised, and he always knew exactly what he had done.  When he was placed in my class this year I knew it would be an interesting one.  I did not want to judge this little boy, but I knew him.  At least I thought I knew him.  He came in my class ready to learn, ready to make trouble.  He was hilarious.  This is that student that would look at you and make you giggle.  He would do something so over the top that you could not be angry with him.  He just has that aura about him.  

How did this little boy change my life this year?  He made me realize behind all of those smiles and giggles there was not just a little boy, but a little man.  He came in one morning truly not himself.  He was quiet and reserved and not talking to his neighbors.  I pulled him into the hallway to check on him.  He looked up at me and started crying "I miss my dad."  Little did I know that this young man had moved from El Salvador with his mom and had to leave his dad behind, because he was in jail.  He looked at me and told me his mom had been sad and that made him sad.  That he wanted to take care of her.  He was 7.  This little boy was 7.  Everyday from that point on he came in, gave me a hug, and told me how much he loved me. Ronald taught me that teachers mean so much more to their students than we truly know.

Meet the Teacher

Hi ya'll my name is Heather Beard, and this is my early childhood education blog.  I am second grade teacher in Maryland, and love working with my little nuggets more than anything. 

I myself am still learning myself, so this is something for one of my Master's classes that I have begun at Walden University.  I am very excited to continue my learning journey.  I tell my students as often as possible that:
"Teachers are always learning too!"
"I learn so much from each and everyone of you!"
(and my personal favorite)
"Teachers make mistakes too!"  (This gets thrown at me more often then I like, but I am glad my students have an understanding of the fact that I am not Wonder Woman (no matter how hard I try to be.)
This is the first masters class that I am taking towards furthering my career, and it's all online.  I am nervous and excited.  Nervous because I am definitely a classroom learner.  I am hands on, and this is something that I do with my own students.  It makes me nervous to be on my own, but it's part of the learning process, and truthfully I do love to learn!

So here it goes.  My first blog post.  My first week.  A step towards my masters.

Its for the
Love of All Teaching