Dr. Jensen has written about “the emotional keyboard” and I find this to be very interesting. This is described in his book in chapter 2. We learn from reading it that the emotional brain (this would align with mental and emotional health on your umbrella and in the Health Resource Manual) can be illustrated as a piano keyboard which has 88 keys.
Jensen wrote that children of poverty usually use fewer keys than well-off children. Figure 2.1 on page 18, informs us that six emotions are hardwired and that means that we are born knowing how to express them and these six hardwired emotions are: sadness, joy, disgust, anger, surprise, and fear.
The other two boxes contain emotions that we are not born with, and we do not know how to express these emotions unless we are taught to express them. Those 10 emotions are: humility, forgiveness, empathy, optimism, compassion, sympathy, patience, shame, cooperation, and gratitude.
Read the information in chapter 2 about the “emotional keyboard.” For this blog comment you will write 2 scenarios about 2 different children. One child is middle class and one is a child of poverty. Name and describe the children and their emotional keyboard. Explicate their behaviors and why they behave emotionally the way that they do. Differentiate clearly between the two, and be realistic. Also, think about the developmental needs of children. Remember what elementary and middle level children need (what needs must be met developmentally) in order for them to develop healthy minds and bodies (think Maslow’s Hierarchy).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
11 comments:
All children as they are growing need a strong primary caregiver that can show them unconditional love and support, a safe and stable environment, and reciprocal interactions in order to grow emotionally healthy. These are all the things they need before going to school and once they get in school they need the same thing but doubled so that they have a good support system to keep them positive. If children don’t get the love, support, and attention they need than it can really hurt them. They will not be able to deal with situation the right way or just give up when they are so close to success.
Emotional Keyboard
Hardwired: Sadness, Joy, Disgust, Anger, Surprise, and Fear
Taught: Humility, Forgiveness, Empathy, Optimism, Compassion, Sympathy, Patience, Shame, Cooperation, and Gratitude.
Middle Class Child
A child that comes up in a middle class family will have the support and materials they will need to be ready for school. They are hardwired with the six emotional responses that we are all hardwired with but they have the right parental figure or caregiver to teach them the other ten. Their parents may not have to work as much, and are able to spend more time with them to help them learn. Say this child goes through some kind of issue with a friend the child will be able to express the correct emotional response and not “act out” by having a temper or attitude. Even if they so have an attitude or temper they are able to cope with it a lot better. They have had an adult to teach them the right way of dealing with it.
Child of Poverty
A child of poverty doesn’t really have all the support they need to be as prepared for school and situations that they may face. Their parents tend to work more and don’t really have the time to spend with the child. They are usually left alone to care for themselves and maybe siblings. This causes them to not be able to handle a situation with the right emotional response because they didn’t have that parental contact they needed. Also they probably were not taught the emotional response, other than what is seen on TV. If this child was to face a situation at school with a friend, they may respond by “acting out” and showing a temper or attitude. They may have a harder time coping with the situation. This is only because they didn’t have anyone to teach them any differently.
Child #1 (middle class):
Her name is Morgan and she is in the 4th grade and grew up in a white family with both her parents and a younger brother. Both of her parents have good jobs that allow her to participate in afterschool activities and other things where she interacts with other children her own age. They often have sit-down meals where they discuss their day and others things that allow for family time. Morgan also volunteers with the local humane society once a month on weekends with her parents. She is the typical little girl that has sleepovers with friends on Friday nights and goes over to friends’ houses to play afterschool. She is a patient little girl that does what she is told to the first time. This happens because her parents taught her at a young age to listen and do what is asked of her without any questions.
Child #2 (poverty):
His name is Miguel and he is in the 4th grade and grew up in a Hispanic family with his single mother because his father was killed in a drive by shooting and his 4 other brothers and sisters. Miguel is the oldest of the 5 children. His mother works two jobs and only sees Miguel right before he gets on the bus for school and right before he goes to bed at night. The other times Miguel is either in school or staying with the next door neighbor who specks very little English. Because his mother works so much he has no way to participate in his favorite activity, baseball, because he has no way to get to practices and games. Because he is the oldest he often has to help take care of his younger brothers and sisters, with the youngest being 2 years old. He often acts out in class to get the attention he rarely receives at home and never has his homework done because he has no one to help him complete it. The neighborhood he is being raised in has a high drug crime rate and has the constant sound of gun fire in it.
Becky, a sixth grade student, comes from a high poverty neighborhood in New York. She is always at home left to take care of her younger brother who is just beginning the 1st grade. Having no time to herself, Becky has to take on the role of being the parent to her younger brother because her parents are always at working struggling to make money because neither one of them passed high school. But raising her younger brother Becky has learned patience because with helping her little brother learn the daily tasks of brushing teeth, and picking out clothes to wear to school, she knows how to stay calm through the messy moments with her brother. Without the support of her parents Becky, always thinks that she is never going to finish high school because she doesn’t have a good role model. Becky always feels humiliated because every month at school, they allow parents’ to come in and see the progress of their child during school hours. Becky is always by herself while she watches her friends have fun and show their parents the work they’ve done in school. Becky’s neighbor, Sandy is also in her class and when they are at lunch or recess they always team up because no one wants to be around them. They both know how each other’s lives are and they have each other to go through school and the struggle of being at home by themselves. Becky is always the one disrupting class because she hasn’t been taught that when the teacher is talking that she has to listen and do her own work.
Lindsey, another sixth grade student from New York, is in the classroom beside Becky. Unlike Becky, Lindsey has been dealt a better hand. She has grown up with a loving and support family that is willing to help her with her homework every night and has time to spend with her because both Lindsey’s parents work an 8-5 job down at the hospital. She is an only child and is given anything that she wants without any doubts. She doesn’t thank her parents for anything that she is given because she just expects people to just give her what she wants. Lindsey has no patience with anyone because she doesn’t have a younger sibling and when she is in the classroom she still has that mindset that everything is hers and the classroom should only focus on her. Even though she has a snobby attitude, Lindsey loves working with her friends and help them learn things that they don’t know. It makes Lindsey feel like she knows everything and everyone else has to come to her to learn something new. Lindsey does have a positive role model to look up too. Both her parents graduated from college and went on to become doctors. They’ve forced the goal of you can become anything you want to be as long as you try into Lindsey mind.
Part 1:
Caroline, is an average 4th grader. She comes from a middle class family, where her mother is a teacher and her father owns his own heating and air business. Caroline is a very well rounded student. She is caring and shows compassion to her teacher and to all of her classmates. She always uses her manners by saying “yes, ma’am”, “no ma’am,” “please” and “thank you.” When working in groups, she works well with her peers and is very patient with herself when she is not grasping a concept as fast as her other peers. She always demonstrates good behavior, by raising her hand before she speaks and to ask to leave the class. However, she tries to be just like her friends who excel at sports.
Caroline has acquired such emotional behaviors as compassion, cooperation, gratitude, patience, and her manners because that is what her parent’s actions have taught her. Without the influence of her parents, Caroline would not have learned some of the emotions that she knows. For example, if her mom and dad had not used their manners when talking to people older than themselves and stressed that Caroline should use her manners, then she would not say “yes ma’am,” “no ma’am,” please,” and “thank you.” Also, her mom and dad taught her that if she doesn’t get a concept the first time to not give up. She has leaned that if she keeps trying and asking questions, that she will eventually get it.
Caroline is a very well developed child. From her home life, she has acquired the physiological needs of food, water, shelter, and clothing. She has also already acquired the safety and security, love and belonging from her mother and father. However, as a teacher, I can help her to improve the need to be and individual. I can help her to see that just because her friends are good at sports does not mean that she HAS to be good at sports too. I can teach her that even though they are athletically inclined and she is academically inclined, does not mean that they can’t be friends; it just means that they have different abilities that they can bring to friendship.
Part 2:
Tyler is also a 4th grade student, but he comes from a single parent home where his mom struggles to make ends meet. Tyler is an overall happy student. He is respectful to his teachers and classmates, but often has a difficult time working in groups. Tyler is very quiet and is easily embarrassed. When learning a new concept, he can become frustrated with himself very easily if he does not get it right away.
Tyler has learned to act the way he does because of his home environment. Like Dr. Jenson stated on page 17, “Economic hardship makes it more difficult for caregivers to create the trusting environments that build children’s secure attachment.” Tyler is quiet, which creates a social wall between himself and his teacher and peers. If he had a more stable home life economically, then he would most likely be more inclined to be social and learn how to trust others. This is also a reason as to why he doesn’t work well in groups. Because he has a difficult time trusting people socially, he may also worry that his group members will not be reliable in doing their part of the assignment. Tyler has issues with what Dr. Jenson called “emotional dysregulation” (page 18). This means that when he is struggling with and assignment or new concept, he easily becomes frustrated and quits. Often times, he is on the right track, but lacks the patients to complete it. Tyler is very easy to second guess himself and has probably learned to think he is always wrong from home. Tyler he has learned from his mom to be respectful of others. He has seen how his mom treats other people and has witnessed her using her manners. So, he too has respect and uses manners when communicating with others.
Tyler needs more help than Caroline to develop a healthy mind. He is given the physiological needs to the best of his mom’s ability. But, I as a teacher can help him to build the social stability that he needs to develop a sense of security. I could give Tyler a person to talk to about the issues that he is having within his family, school and within in friendships. Taking that step to help him create a more stable social life will help him to trust his fellow classmates and hopefully connect with his peers on a level of friendship. I can also help him to gain confidence in himself socially and academically. I would help him to see that even though he may not come from the perfect family like he thinks some of classmates do, he should be able to accept that he is different and that it is perfectly fine. I would teach him to embrace the life that he has been given because no matter how bad he thinks he has it, someone always has it worse.
The first child, named John, grew up on the bad side of town and in a lower-income family. He is seven years old and is unfortunetely considered to be a child of poverty. John tends to react to impulses with only six emotions. These emotions are sadness, joy, disgust, anger, surprise, or fear. The reason he reacts so simply is because his parents have not taught him how to respond to situations with other learned emotions such as sympathy or optimism. The reason he does not understand such emotions is not soley due to his economic status. He has two other syblings, his father is not in the picture, and his mother works two full time jobs. In the classroom John has the tendency to become delighted with the simplest event, such as getting candy on halloween or getting five extra minutes on the playground. He also has the tendancy to become uncontrolably angry when something happens that does not go his way, such as a classmate that took his pencil. He has trouble understanding forgiveness, so his whole day is ruined by an event that is so miniscule.
The second child is Jake. His parents make a combined income of 40,000 dollars a year and live in the country club in a house they own. Both parents work 9-5 jobs and are a very big part of Jakes life. Jake has the tendancy to react with many different emotions, two thirds of those emotions being learned ones that he picked up from his parents. Jake is not only happy about getting five extra minutes on the playground on Tuesday, he is also opptimistic that it could happen again tomorrow. When a classsmate took his eraser once he reacted angrily. However once he saw how much trouble that classmate got in, he decided to forgive her and get back to work.
Part 1
Amanda is an 8 year old girl who was born into a middle class family. Both parents are present in the home. Her mother is a doctor at the local hospital while her father is a police officer and works in the town next to theirs. Amanda has two older siblings, a sister who is 7 and a brother that is 9. They are all involved in an after school activity. Since they all have busy schedules, every Saturday is family day. Amanda’s mother is involved in many of the school activities.
In chapter two Dr. Jensen discusses an emotional keyboard that we are all born with and explains that some of our emotions are taught and there are others that have been hardwired, or learned. He explains how these emotions might be expressed by children of low-SES verses children who come from middle class and upper class homes.
Amada’s emotional keyboard consists of, the six emotions that are hardwired into us at birth, as well as the 10 emotions that we are taught, which are as follows; humility, forgiveness, empathy, optimism, sympathy, shame, cooperative, and gratitude. She is able to express forgiveness, an example of that would have to be, when one of her friends broke her favorite pencil. Despite being angry at first she was able to calm down and forgive her friend because she knew that it was not done intentionally. She was also able to express empathy by placing herself in her friends’ shoes and knew that she didn’t want to lose a friend over a pencil that could be replaced and by realizing that it was an accident. She is a cheerful individual who enjoys being in school and being around her peers. One might think that she is a stable being because she comes from a stable household with both parents in the home. She has access to each of her parents and they are very much involved in her life. They are able to provide her with the proper love and care because they are around much more often and are able to give her the love and support she needs.
Part 2
Kelly is a child of poverty. She is 8 years old and lives with her mother and two other siblings. She does have the six emotions that we are born with but she is lacking when it comes to the 10 emotions which we are taught. She is not as enthusiastic about school and often she is upset and frustrated. She never completes assignments even though she is only steps away from completion because she feels the task is too difficult. One might think that she is this way because of the lack of attention she receives in the home. There is only one parent present and her mother works two full time jobs so her schedule is quite hectic. There isn’t enough time in her mothers schedule to allow her to come to the school and get to know her teachers or her classmates. Oftentimes in class she doesn’t know how to share so she gets upset with the other students. She is frequently absent and this leaves her lagging behind her peers in certain subject areas. She may act this way because she does not feel socially accepted by her peers because of the way she dresses or perhaps it could be that she isn’t able to comprehend some of the work that is given to her in class so she doesn’t feel as smart as some of her peers.
Although both children come from different backgrounds they both can overcome all obstacles life throws at them. In the book it states that children of poverty can beat the odds. Through the usage of the emotional keyboard I feel that as a teacher I am able to better analyze students and the needs that they have. I believe that children of poverty can over come certain circumstances if we provide them with the proper care and attention in the school. Looking back over both behaviors I understand that all the other emotional responses that are not hardwired at birth most be taught so that students are able to work and grow in society. Despite their economical status, all students bring to school with them three strong “relational” forces. These relations are the drive for reliable relationships, the strengthening of peer socialization, and the quest for importance and social status. These needs must be met developmentally in order for them to develop healthy minds and bodies. If we as teachers are able to incorporate these forces and some how influence this upon the students then we are heading down a brighter road. If we as teachers are able to fulfill these needs then we are capable of helping them develop healthy minds and bodies.
As I read the information about the emotional keyboard is divided into taught responses and hardwired responses. Taught responses are ones that have to be taught to the students by a teacher or some other individual, and hardwired responses are ones that are in our DNA.
I am going to discuss two students today and their emotional keyboards. Hayden who is an middle class student and Jamie who is a child of poverty.
Hayden is an middle class 7th grader from the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York. she is rhe oldest of three children. She is an very smart and respectful young lady. She attends an afterschool program where she gets assistance with her homework and studies everyday. She lives at her home with her two parents. Her parents are very involved when it comes to her social life and education. Every since she was a young girl her parents always TAUGHT her to be thankful for what she has. Many of the taught responses on the emotional keyboard have been taught to her by her parents and she has utilized them in her everyday life. She is able to exhibit these responses her in everyday life because she has grew up, and values have been instilled in her by her parents.
Jamie is an 10 year old 4th grade student who lives in the slums of Baltimore, Maryland he has 6 siblings. He lives in an single parent household where resources are scarce. His mom works 3 jobs to make ends meet. Jamie is the youngest of his siblings. They hardly pay him any attention. Jamie acts out in school, and has severe anger issues.Which most of the times leads to him getting suspended and kick out of school. Which also results in numerous absences. His mother never communicates with her teacher when ask to correct him for his behavior. So they is not relationship between the two. Jamie behaves this way because he does not have a stable person in his household to give him the attention and nurturing that he needs. He has not really been TAUGHT like Hayden has been because he does not have those parental figures present as much as she does.
Scenario 1 (Child of Poverty)
Eight year old Johnny is the only child from his two parents. Johnny is lacking the emotional states of being a child of poverty. His mother works full time as a waitress at a nearby Waffle House, struggling to pay all the bills. She barely spends time with Johnny and has no involvement in his school work. His father is sentenced to twenty five years in prison for murder. He goes to school each day with lice in his hair, not properly groomed, torn clothes, and a pair of oversized handy down sneakers. At school Johnny shows anger when he doesn’t gets his way. During instructional time in the classroom if the teacher calls on Johnny to answer and he doesn’t know the answer, the kids laugh and pick on him. He suddenly has tantrums; throwing chairs, books, etc. He doesn’t care that he won’t pass to the next grade level because he fails every test and has no one to support and guide him. Emotionally, Johnny behaves the way he does because he has no father figure in his life and his mother barely spends time with him. From my knowledge, little Johnny needs support in his life at such a young age. He needs for someone to guide him every step of the way. If his mother was to take at least two hours of her busy schedule three days a week to help with his work, maybe Johnny could be a smart young boy.
Scenario 2 (middle class child)
Twelve year old Becky grew up in a single parent household. Her mom works at a dialysis center and her dad died in a car accident. Becky spent most of her time being involved in school, and babysitting her younger brother while her mom worked late in the afternoons. Becky’s mother always instilled in her to be the best she could be, and always tried to provide the best for her children. Since Becky’s mother highest level of education was a diploma, she always taught Becky the importance of furthering her education. When Becky’s mother doesn’t have to work late, she helps Becky with her work, providing patience although she is tired from a long day’s work. This helps Becky maintain her grades, and she is very cooperative in class. She tends to have friends that have faced the same unfortunate circumstances she has. She is more sympathetic to her friends that come from a single parent home, because she can relate to them. Becky doesn’t have the latest shoes, or hairstyle, but she isn’t bad off. Her mom drives a 1982 station wagon, which makes Becky a little shame to get dropped off at school or to the mall with her friends. Overall, Becky faces hardships, but this helps her to become more determined.
1. The child of poverty’s name is Brantley. Brantley is in the second grade and lives with his mom, two sisters, and one brother. His mother works a fulltime job, paying minimum wage. Brantley doesn’t like school and never wants to learn anything. He doesn’t get help at home with homework or any schoolwork outside the classroom. Brantley acts very sad and sometimes can get upset faster than the other children can. The emotional keyboard that Brantley has in his DNA is sadness, joy, disgust, anger, surprise and fear. Some of the keys that Brantley is missing, that he was supposed to be taught is humility, forgiveness, empathy, compassion, patience, and cooperation. Children that are raised in poverty usually “act out” are impatient and have different emotional responses. Because Brantley lives in a home with a single mother and three siblings, he does not get the attention and help that he needs in order to succeed in school. Brantley lives in a poverty based home and his mom always is working to pay what bills she can. He is on his own and the only way that Brantley can change his attitude about school and his life outside the school setting is being the teacher that he looks up to. In order for Brantley to succeed, he has to think cognitively and use his fine motor skills. As a child grows, there are different stages that a child must go through. This is where they learn the most. All his life, Brantley has never had his mother there to help him learn new things or to teach him what to do. Brantley’s actions in the classroom and outside the classroom are a result of him being upset and feeling as if he has to depend on himself. This can be a lot on a child, especially when they are growing from a child to an adult.
2. Bailey is a second grader that lives in a middle class family. She has a mom, dad and a younger brother. Her mom and dad help her with her homework, projects and spend a lot of time with her. As Bailey grew up, she always looked up to her mom and her teachers. Baileys emotional keyboard has all ten emotions combined. She has learned from all these emotions and she has learned how to deal with these emotions from the people that are around her and support her. Bailey is a fun, outgoing and optimistic student. Bailey and Brantley sit beside each other in Mrs. Bryd’s class. Both students are very different. Bailey loves school and she makes good grades on all her homework and tests. Bailey is very motivated and hardworking, while Brantley sits beside her and doesn’t want to do anything but doodle and play at recess. These two students have very different emotional characteristics and this is because there life outside the classroom is very different. Bailey has learned more than Brantley because of the kind of environment and household she lives in. While looking at Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs, both children need self-actualization, esteem, love and belonging, safety, and physiological needs. Bailey in this case has more of the needs than those of Brantley. Henry may not feel like he is safe, has resources, shelter, friends, family, ect. Bailey has almost all the needs a child should have. Bailey has almost all the needs a child should have. Bailey and Brantley both came from two different home environments and they both have different socioeconomic statuses, but they are both children who can change how things are, if needed, and succeed.
Post a Comment