Carlena Lowell 1

Competency #1 Reflection

Competency One, Diversity of Development in Infancy and Early Childhood, was a focus
in many of the classes throughout this program. My undergraduate degree is in Early Childhood
Special Education, and after earning the degree I spent seven years working in various roles with
young children with and without disabilities; therefore, I had a good base of knowledge and
skills in this area prior to beginning this program. Throughout this program I was able to
complete a variety of assignments, significantly enhancing my knowledge and skills of infant
and young childrens typical and atypical development. The three products included in this
portfolio to represent my knowledge and skills of this area are: 1.) three parent/caregiver
pamphlets on various developmental areas; 2.) five child observations; and 3.) a case study on a
child and his family.
The parent/caregiver pamphlets were designed to focus on three developmental areas:
social/emotional, speech and language, and cognitive. While creating the pamphlets, I
researched resources that provide a wealth of information on infant and young childrens
development; some resources I knew prior to this assignment, and some I discovered for the first
time through this research. The information I gained during this assignment has been helpful
since, as I have been able to share some of these resources with families and colleagues.
Although this assignment represents several sub-competencies in the first competency area, it
best represents 1.4 Knowledge of typical development in infants, toddlers, and preschoolers in all
domains including physical, motor, communication/language, cognitive, social, and emotional
development as I researched and provided information on typical development in young children.
The five child observations contributed greatly not only to my knowledge of typical and
atypical child development, but also to my ability to take accurate running records, make
objective comments, and summarize childrens developmental areas. Two of the observations
Carlena Lowell 2
Competency #1 Reflection

were of children who were typically developing and three were of children with disabilities or
developmental delays. In addition, two of the observations also had a summary of four areas of
development: motor, cognitive, social/emotional, and communication. In order to get the most
out of this assignment, I carefully selected the children I observed. One of the children with
atypical development had a rare diagnosis I was unfamiliar with, Potocki-Shaffer Syndrome.
One of the other children had multiple disabilities: PDD-NOS and Down syndrome. For this
assignment, I was able to focus on sub-competency 1.5 Knowledge of the impact of disabilities
and serious medical conditions on development and learning in early childhood.
The third product selected to demonstrate my knowledge of Competency One is a case
study of a 33-month-old child diagnosed with a form of pediatric cancer, pilomyxoid
astrocytoma (PMA), at four-months-old, which led to a diagnosis of blindness at 27-months-old.
I was familiar with the childs past reports and family information from facilitating meetings
with them as the child is on my case load as a Child Development Services (CDS) Part C service
coordinator. This case study allowed me the time to review these things to a much greater
extent, research his particular form of cancer, and consider more in depth the implications his
cancer has on not only him, but the whole family. Because I spent much of the case study
discussing goals for intervention, intervention process, and recommendations for addressing
continuing/future needs, this product represents 1.9 Knowledge of typical and atypical child
development in assessment, intervention, and curriculum development and implementation.
Although all products in this portfolio are cross-referenced, I feel it is important to state this
product equally represents 3.2 Knowledge of the potential impact of a child with a disability or
serious medical condition on the family.