Elevator Speech

Throughout this course, one of the main goals has been a focus on the importance of effective communication and collaboration with the families of infants and pre-school aged children. Throughout your career, you will need to utilize effective communication skills with colleagues, families, and children. As a professional, you will also need to communicate your beliefs to potential employers.  

An elevator speech is an excellent way to convey your skills while networking and seeking employment. Typically, an elevator speech is a one-minute summary of who you are, why you are qualified, and what you have to offer the organization or industry. A brief sales pitch will ensure that you are prepared to discuss your career goals whenever the opportunity presents itself. Some examples of where you could use your elevator speech are at a networking event, during a job interview, at a back-to-school parent meeting, or in a social setting.  

Watch The Elevator Pitch (Links to an external site.) video and design a one-minute sales pitch that is tailored toward your chosen career path. It is recommended that you utilize one of the following voice recording options to hear your elevator speech and share it with your classmates. 

1. Voki (Links to an external site.)
2. PowerPoint
3. YouTube (Links to an external site.)

Once you have completed your recording, share your pitch with the class by copying and pasting the link of your recording into the body of your initial post. If you are having trouble recording your elevator speech, please contact your instructor. 

 Diversity and Common Obstacles

Chapter 10 begins, “in today’s United States, there is no typical family; rather, there is a vast diversity of family structures in which children develop and learn” (Wardle, 2013, p. 274).  Our classroom, families, and children are reflective of this statement.  Early care and education programs have a crucial role in supporting all families and “by supporting the family, we support the child” (Wardle, 2013, p. 283).

Reflecting on these quotes from the textbook, choose two common obstacles that families face from the list below and explain how you will work with families to overcome this obstacle. 

Common obstacles:

1. Poverty
2. Children with developmental delays 
3. Problems with substance abuse by family member
4. Grandparents raising children and generational issues
5. Lack of extended family support
6. Communication difficulties
7. Cultural conflicts between the family and program
8. New immigrant status

For each of the obstacles you have chosen, complete the following prompt with critical thought and elaboration.  Each obstacle should have a minimum of two ways that you will support families who are facing the challenge.  

Prompt:
As an early childhood educator, in an effort to support families who ________________, I will _____________.