Blog 14 - Third Interview Preparation

EQ: How can a care taker best ensure the proper development of a child under the age of 5?

1.  Who do you plan to interview? What is this person's area of expertise?

I plan on interviewing a family friend who also works at a Montessori center. She works at the Montessori of San Dimas. She has been working their for several years, and before that she had a daycare in her own home. She even has two daughters of her own, one of which is a high school student and the other is attending elementary school.                       

2.  Verify that you have called your interviewee to schedule an interview.  What is the date and time of the interview?

Next Friday at 5 p.m. My sister tutors her daughter so I will be going with her to interview Miriam, the family friend.

3.  Phrase an open-ended question that will help you find research resources that would help to answer the EQ.

There are many ways to go about on shaping the best development for a child. What ways do you find most helpful and necessary to their education and development?

4.  Phrase an open-ended question that will help you think about other useful activities you might do to help you answer the EQ (IC2, possible experts to talk to, etc).

What educational activities do you find most helpful for a child in a classroom?

5.  Phrase two open-ended questions that help you to understand your interviewee's perspective on an aspect of your EQ.

• What are some ways to best ensure the proper development for a toddler?
• What are the best ways to get a toddlers attention when they are misbehaving?

Blog 13 - 10 Hour Mentorship Check-In

1. Where are you doing your mentorship?

I am doing my mentorship at Montessori Academy and Day Care of West Covina. 

2. Who is your contact?  What makes this person an expert?

My mentor is Mrs. Martha. She is an expert because she has been teaching there for a few years now and has the experience of a mother and working with kids. She has taken the required courses and classes on Child Development to prepare her for what she is doing now. 

3. How many  hours have you done during the school year? (Summer Mentorship Hours and Mentorship Hours should be reflected separately in your Senior Project Hours log located on the right hand side of your blog).

Including my summer mentorship hours with the hours I have done throughout the school year I now have a total of 32 hours done. 

4. Succinctly summarize what you did, how well you and your mentor worked together, and how you plan to complete the remaining hours.

I have been going to the Montessori Academy and Day Care since the middle of my junior year. I've known my mentor for a little over a year now just by doing my hours there. I do a routine of what other teachers would do there, but not changing diapers. Going there has taught me a lot of things, especially patience. We deal with a lot of different kids and personalities, and as a teacher(or student as I am one) we learn how to adapt to their needs while being able to educate them and use the proper forms of discipline and structure. My mentor and I work really well together, and I work well with the other teachers too. We coordinate what to do and who does what while following the routine the kids have. I plan on completing the remaining hours by continuing my mentorship and possibly exploring other classrooms of older age groups. 

Blog 12 - Holiday Project Update

1.  It is important to consistently work on your senior project, whether it is break or we are in school.  What did you do over the break with your senior project?

Over break I went to mentorship. I also talked to a woman that studied Child Development. She told me about her experience of taking the classes and how she had to quit school because she was expecting a baby. I also found an article in a magazine at the hospital talking about how technology now-a-days actually helps a child learn faster.

2.  What was the most important thing you learned from what you did, and why?  What was the source of what you learned?

The most important thing I learned was probably the experience that the woman told me about. She seemed really passionate about taking courses for Child Development so it was an inspiration for me. It pushed me to look more in depth about child development and the different stages kids go through. 

3.  Your third interview will be a 10 question interview related to possible answers for your EQ. Who do you plan to talk to and why?

I plan on talking to my mom's friend who is also a daycare teacher at Montessori Academy but at a different center. She has 2 kids of her own and she is a full time teacher. Her house is almost set up like a daycare itself because she used to take care of children in her own home. I feel like she would have enough experience and knowledge to tell me about Child Development.