Use of the Community to Support Initiative There are many community resources that families and early care and education programs can use to support children's need for initiative (Wardle, 2007). According to Bronfenbrenner (1979, 1995), the community is part of the microsystem. Further, interactions and cooperation between various components of the microsystem belong in his mesosystem. Not only can community resources be used both by families and the early care and education program, but each can inform the other of existing resources and their value for young children. Use of these resources depends on knowing they exist and having access and transportation to them. Parents and caregivers need to explore all the rich possibilities in their communities, and discover the ways these resources can be used for the benefit of children ages 3 to 5. The early care and education program should develop strategies both to inform parents and other caregivers of the resources they can use with their children within their communities, and to allow the program to learn about different community resources from parents and other caregivers. An adult or older child must always accompany children at this age. When early care and education programs go on field trips, parents and other caregivers from the home should be invited to help with this supervision. For families, supervising children as they explore these outdoor areas presents an opportunity for a parent, grandparent, or other adult in the home to spend time with one or more of their children. Not only will the adult delight in learning what the child likes to do and how he or she sees the world, but the adult can teach the child about nature and wild things. Some adults know all about wildflowers, while others are tree experts. Others know all about the birds and animals in the area. This is a wonderful time to teach this wisdom to a young child. Of course, this is also an important time for adults to teach children important health and safety information (Martin, 2011). Museums Most communities have a collection of museums, including nature and history museums, art museums, regional museums, state museums, and museums dedicated to a single concept, such as the Black Cowboy Museum, the National Railway Museum, and the Agricultural Hall of Fame. Many of these museums have a section dedicated to families, and some provide regular events to attract families. In some cities, these museums even offer free admission on certain days. Many museums work closely with early childhood programs and schools (some have websites and additional curricular materials that can be used when the children return to their programs and homes). Many large cities also have children's museums, which have exhibitions and activities that young children enjoy and provide activities for children as young as toddlers. These museums change their exhibits and activities on a regular basis and also provide a variety of special activ ...

1. Use of the Community to Support Initiative
There are many community resources that families and early
care and education programs can use to support children's need
for initiative (Wardle, 2007). According to Bronfenbrenner
(1979, 1995), the community is part of the microsystem.
Further, interactions and cooperation between various
components of the microsystem belong in his mesosystem. Not
only can community resources be used both by families and the
early care and education program, but each can inform the other
of existing resources and their value for young children. Use of
these resources depends on knowing they exist and having
access and transportation to them. Parents and caregivers need
to explore all the rich possibilities in their communities, and
discover the ways these resources can be used for the benefit of
children ages 3 to 5. The early care and education program
should develop strategies both to inform parents and other
caregivers of the resources they can use with their children
within their communities, and to allow the program to learn
about different community resources from parents and other
caregivers.
An adult or older child must always accompany children at this
age. When early care and education programs go on field trips,
parents and other caregivers from the home should be invited to
help with this supervision. For families, supervising children as
they explore these outdoor areas presents an opportunity for a
parent, grandparent, or other adult in the home to spend time
with one or more of their children. Not only will the adult
delight in learning what the child likes to do and how he or she
sees the world, but the adult can teach the child about nature
and wild things. Some adults know all about wildflowers, while
others are tree experts. Others know all about the birds and
animals in the area. This is a wonderful time to teach this
wisdom to a young child. Of course, this is also an important

2. time for adults to teach children important health and safety
information (Martin, 2011).
Museums
Most communities have a collection of museums, including
nature and history museums, art museums, regional museums,
state museums, and museums dedicated to a single concept,
such as the Black Cowboy Museum, the National Railway
Museum, and the Agricultural Hall of Fame. Many of these
museums have a section dedicated to families, and some provide
regular events to attract families. In some cities, these museums
even offer free admission on certain days. Many museums work
closely with early childhood programs and schools (some have
websites and additional curricular materials that can be used
when the children return to their programs and homes).
Many large cities also have children's museums, which have
exhibitions and activities that young children enjoy and provide
activities for children as young as toddlers. These museums
change their exhibits and activities on a regular basis and also
provide a variety of special activities such as children's authors
reading their books, cultural activities, magic acts, and
opportunities for children to engage in dramatic play and play
with unique toys.
Outdoor museums are favorite places for families with young
children. When children visit outdoor museums, they learn a
great deal about growing and caring for plants and animals and
how people used to live. Examples of outdoor museums include
farms from the 1800s that feature old buildings (homes, stores,
and one-room schoolhouses), a collection of farm animals, and
periodic historical activities in which children can participate,
such as making wallpaper using color dyes and vinegar and
making apple butter. These outdoor farms provide many
seasonal experiences for young children, from observing baby
pigs and lambs in the spring, to harvesting corn, pumpkins, and

3. potatoes in the fall.
Cars are kept off the premises of such museums, and there are
always staff members—often dressed in period costumes—on
hand, so they are very safe places for children to explore.
Outdoor museums are great places to visit on a regular schedule
throughout the year. On each successive visit, children can
revisit familiar sights and activities, while also learning about
new ones.
Learning About Nature
Nature is of immense interest to young children (Keeler, 2011;
Louv, 2006). Many cities have a series of public trails and
greenways that allow children without easy access to rural or
undeveloped areas to experience nature. Greenways are natural
areas set aside for birds, waterfowl, animals, and vegetation to
grow more naturally than in traditional city parks. While these
parks might have meadows and large grassy areas, they do not
have formal ball fields and carefully manicured grass. They
often contain wetlands for waterfowl and migrating birds. These
areas provide natural habitats for a vast variety of wildlife.
Children aged 3 to 5 are very curious about everything! They
love to take risks, and they need concrete materials to learn
about the world, such as water, stones, trees, flowers, insects,
and animals. Greenways and trails provide an ideal place for the
preschool child to explore. Many city parks and recreation
departments provide guided tours and educational field trips to
their greenways and trails. Early care and education programs
should become familiar with these opportunities, develop a
relationship with their city agency, and utilize free programs
with their children. Families can, of course, access these
greenways and trails whenever they choose.
Hiking trails and greenways provide wonderful environments
for children to engage in more complex and sophisticated forms
of play (Louv, 2006). As discussed earlier in this chapter, there

4. are different forms of both social and cognitive play. Play is not
just about swinging on a swing and climbing on a ladder.
Children also like to play with water, draw in the mud, build
constructions with sticks and stones, play together in a little
shelter they have just built, or pretend to be explorers. They are
exploring the world and trying to figure out where they fit in it.
City Parks and Playgrounds
Cities and towns throughout the United States have a variety of
parks that can be enjoyed by programs and families with young
children. Most city parks contain traditional playgrounds with
swings, slides, climbers, and sand. These playgrounds are
designed to match the physical development of children at this
age (Johnson, Christie, & Wardle, 2005). Because 3 to 5-year-
olds are fascinated with physical play and are developing their
gross and fine motor abilities, these playgrounds are great
places for them to play. Preschool children tend to enjoy
playing in the sand that surrounds most playgrounds and making
friends with other children their own age while playing.
Programs without access to their own playgrounds, or to
playgrounds that are age-appropriate, can opt instead to use city
park playgrounds. However, most city playgrounds provide only
equipment that matches the first level of cognitive play—
functional play. Parents and caregivers should be aware that
children soon become bored with basic functional play such as
swinging, sliding, and climbing. Thus, families and programs
should bring toys and other materials with them that encourage
constructive and symbolic play, and natural materials, such as
sticks, stones, pieces of wood, and leaves, that can be used by
the children in their play on these playgrounds.
City parks also have other play opportunities. Most have some
kind of water source—either streams that wander through the
park, or a pond or lake. Children in the initiative versus guilt
stage generally love playing in water. They throw stones, watch

5. sticks float under a bridge, play in the mud, observe tadpoles
and frogs, and watch the variety of wildlife that ponds and lakes
attract. While supervision is always critical with young
children, it is hypercritical when water is involved (Martin,
2011).
Libraries and Bookstores
Children at this age are fascinated by books, pictures, artwork,
and stories. They love predictable stories with highly repetitive
scripts, like The Three Billy Goats Gruff, the Three Little Pigs,
and fairy tales. They like stories about things they can relate to
in their own short lives. Finally, they want to exercise their
newly developed, and still developing, complex language skills.
Thus, the preschool age is an ideal time to expose children to
books and reading and to instill in them the love of books and
reading. Exposing children to books, stories, and print can be
accomplished through frequent, positive experiences to libraries
and bookstores, and through positive experiences with books
and reading at home and in the early care and education
program.
Staff members in local libraries are very good at working
closely with early care and education programs. They often have
programs designed specifically for young children and will
arrange reading activities for groups of children from various
programs. Programs should work closely with libraries to
provide program classrooms with books that they can use to
augment specific curricular themes and activities. Finally, many
libraries put on special events for young children.
Families can access libraries in their neighborhoods. Visits to
libraries with children aged 3 to 5 build a strong disposition in
children toward reading and learning. The exposure to books
can then be reinforced when children bring home books that
their parents read to them and that they can begin to learn how
to read themselves. Involving the entire family in these visits,

6. and not simply leaving library visits up to the early care and
education programs, is absolutely critical, because it shows
children that education and the use of books are supported and
modeled at home (Bandura, 1977, 1990).
Many bookstores cater to families with young children. These
bookstores not only stock children's classics and the newest
children's books, but they also have staff members who are
extremely knowledgeable about the different kinds of children's
books that are available. A parent who is looking for books to
match the specific interests of a child will find these books in
children's bookstores. When children visit bookstores, they
learn that people view books as important aspects of their lives,
so important in fact that they will go to a store, enjoy looking at
books in the store, and then actually pay for the books.
Resources for Families and Programs Working with Young Chil
drenand Their Families
Many agencies, professional and government organizations, edu
cational institutions, and
advocacy groups provide a vast array of advice, materials,
training, and other support, both for parents of young children a
nd for teachers, caregivers, and directors working with young
children and their families. Some of these organizations are inte
rnational, others national, and many are local.
However, some of the nationalgroups also have local offices and
agencies. The following are some of these
organizations.
National and International Resources
Many national and international resources provide
wonderful materials to assist teachers and caregivers
working with young children. These
organizations provide online materials, written
materials, and direct advice in areas in which they specialize (e
.g., the U.S. Department of
Education/Special Education can provide information

7. about the services families of children
with disabilities can receive, including those whose
children are in private and religious programs). Some of the nati
onal and international programs include the following:
·
Head Start/Early Head Start. There are two organizations: the N
ational Head Start Association, which is a
membership organization(www.nhsa.org), and the Head
Start Bureau, which is the federal administration (www.acf.hhs.
gov/programs/ohs/).
· Zero to Three. This organization provides research,
training, and materials on infant, toddler, and family
issues (www.zerotothree.org).
·
National Association for the Education of Young Children. NAE
YC is the largest professional
organization for caregivers, teachers, anddirectors who
work in programs that serve children from birth to 8 years old.
NAEYC also has a parent initiative (www.naeyc.org).
· UNESCO. This is the branch of the UN dedicated to
serving young children and their families, worldwide (www.une
sco.org).
· Early Childhood News. Free materials can be retrieved
from this website (www.earlychildhoodnews.com).
·
High/Scope Educational Research Foundation. A variety of mate
rials, training, and curricula is provided by High/Scope (www.hi
ghscope.org).

8. · The Council of Exceptional Children (CEC), Division of
Early Childhood (DEC). DEC is a national organization
dedicated to serving andsupporting young children with
disabilities, their
families, and staff who work with them (www.dec-sped.org).
· U.S. Department of Education/Special Education. This
federal office provides assistance with legal matters
regarding serving young children with disabilities and
disseminates materials,advice, and best practices (http://idea.ed.
gov/).
· Child Care Exchange. Exchange publishes a magazine,
books, training materials, and trend
reports covering all aspects of the earlychildhood field. It also s
ponsors the World Forum, an international
conference, every year (www.childcareexchange.com).
·
Collage. Collage is a free resource provided by Community Play
things, the makers of wooden toys and equipment for infants an
d youngchildren (www.communityplaythings.com/resources/arti
cles/index.html).
Local Resources
Local resources, of course, depend on the location of a
program and family. However, most
programs, particularly those in or surrounding majorcities, will
have access to a variety of
resources that programs and parents can use to support
the development and learning of young children:

9. · The local school district administration offices
· Regional federal offices (for local Head Start information
and subsidized child care, WIC programs, federal
Indian Centers, and other federal programs for low-
income families)
· City agencies (employment and training, parks and
recreation, city early childhood initiatives, museums)
· Mental health centers
· Drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers
· Local Head Start and Early Head Start programs
· Local disability councils for children with disabilities
under age 3
· Community college departments of early childhood
education
· The city's children's museum
· Local libraries (most have wonderful programs for young
children)
·
Early childhood resource, referral, and training programs (these
are located in different agencies such as
community colleges and county governments)
· Local children's hospitals and health clinics
· Local WIC programs
· Food banks and food distribution centers closest to
programs and families
· Programs that specialize in serving children who have
specific disabilities, such as autism or learning disabilities
· Local federal Indian health centers
· County social service programs (adoption, foster care, a
variety of programs for low-income families)
· Museums (especially cultural museums)

10. Wardle, F. (2013). Collaboration with families and
communities [Electronic version]. Retrieved from
https://content.ashford.edu/