The topic I have picked is to look at how having a sick mother can affect preschool age children. This topic is very close to my heart as I grow up with a mom who had a rare disease and was hospitalized most of my childhood. I find it very interesting how my brother and I grew up in the same environment and were affected differently.
I would love to hear from anyone else that might have some experience with this topic. Have you worked with children whose mother was hospitalized or maybe they lost their mom when they were in preschool? Thanks in advance!
Hi Richelle,
ReplyDeleteWhat a very interesting topic! I have a student this year who lost her father. The circumstances are very different from yours, but I don't really think she grasps the finality of death. She's very blunt when talking about it, such as "my dad is dead". I've talked to our guidance counselor guidance counselor at my school about this, and she says it's very normal. She mentioned a 4K student who lost his mom at her other school. His mother passed in September and just now he's starting to put it together that he hasn't seen mom in a really long time and she's not coming back. I think my student is going to have that same reaction in about six months or so. Her older brother (he's 10) went through a much more traumatic reaction to the death. Mainly because I think he has a better grasp that dad is gone from Earth and he won't be able to see or touch him while he's alive again. Death is such an abstract concept for young children that it's hard to get them to fully understand what it means and how it affects them. My student probably won't have a real reaction to a missing parent until she's a little bit older and understands that dad is not ever coming back. A young child whose parent is ill for most of their life knows nothing different. Their reality of mom is an ill person in and out of the hospital. I would venture to guess that would spark a different death reaction than if a parent was killed more suddenly.
I look forward to hearing more about your research! What a really fascinating topic!
Richelle,
ReplyDeleteTwo years ago I worked as a teacher's aide in a classroom and we actually had two children who lost their fathers. One little girl lost her father in a fire the year before and the little boy lost his father that year to a car accident. Like Molly's child he would bluntly tell you his dad died in a car and then would go about his activity. He would also come in very tired because Mom told us he used to wait up for his Dad to come home from work and he would refuse to go to sleep staying up very late until finally just falling asleep on his own. He continued to wait up for his father even though he would tell you his dad had died. The little girl whose father died the year before would never speak of her father. Mom said she would try to talk to her about it and she would tell her mother "yes, I know he is in Heaven" and would walk away. Like Molly stated, I think both of these children will come to realization of what death actually means years from now. Each child is affected differently and reacts differently. I believe this is based a lot on their personality and resiliency.
I believe this is a very interesting topic which could assist early childhood professionals greatly.
Richelle,
ReplyDeleteWow! I have never thought about that topic but it is a wonderful idea to further explore. Without getting too personal, I would be very interested in finding out just how differently you and your brother were affected. While I cannot relate to a mother who was necessarily sick, my mother was severely depressed until she divorced my father at age 10 and my brother and I both reacted differently as well. Great idea, I look forward to following your progress.