Day 12

5/25/10

10:30-2:30

I arrived at ABC’s at 10:30 for my last day. When I arrived all of the children were having group snack. They all had their bathing suits on because today they got to go in the pool. The teachers attach the slide to the pool so it becomes a water slide. The children were so excited to get outside. During nap time I got a chance to sit on a parent teacher meeting. The meeting was very casual and simple because it was the mothers second child going into preschool. When it came time for me to leave it felt sad because I have really enjoyed spending time at ABC's. I said my good byes and left at 2:30.

Day 11

5/24/10

10:00-3:00

I arrived at ABC’s at 10:00. I took so many pictures of the children playing inside and outside. I could tell that some loved the camera and some didn’t really notice it. Today I didn't play as much as I normal do because of the photos I took. I really got great pictures of the children playing in areas which are used most mornings. It was so gorgeous today they were very tired after playing in the sun. A lot of the children were very tired from the weekend. Most of the kids that don’t usually sleep during nap time slept. During nap time I typed up the answers to my interview questions. So now they are completely done. I can't believe tomorrow is my last day. It seems like this experience has gone by way to fast, I have really enjoyed it. I left ABC's this afternoon at 3:00.

Week 2 Reflection

Weekly Reflection

Week 2

This week I got a better understanding about why teachers do certain activities. I also learned more about how they communicate with parents and what are their goals for the children at the end of the year. When I did potato stamps with the children, I really got to see the children use their imagination with how they create pictures. It is interesting to see them use the stamps because they don’t understand how to paint the stamp with the brush. But after showing them a couple of times, they understood it. I really enjoyed teaching the children. I like seeing how they understand something after trying it. Once they understand something, they get all happy; I love seeing that because I know how good it feels to accomplish something that at first, seemed difficult.

I was surprised with how some of the children acted this week. They seemed to be more sensitive. There was a lot more crying and being upset when they didn’t get their own way. The teachers took care of this by telling the children that they had to sit by themselves and stop crying in order to continue playing. Or, they were no longer allowed to play a game if they got upset with it. So they showed them something else to do so that it would redirect them to a more positive experience. I now know more about dealing with children with emotional situations. I haven’t had that much experience with children since I never got a chance to babysit. I now know how exhausting it is to deal with children for a day. I now have a lot of respect for teachers and stay at home moms; they need lots of patience to get through the day.

I feel like this week was very productive because I accomplished all my major goals for the week. In the last couple of days, I hope to take more pictures of the children at lunch time and when playing. In addition, I will work on my self- evaluation and get organized to put my tri-fold board together for the presentation on Thursday.

Day 10

5/21/10

9:00-3:00

I arrived at ABC’s at 9:00. I brought in my own show and tell. Since Star Wars is so big at ABC’s I brought in my brothers star wars book. They were all amazed by it. Their eyes opened up like if an adult just one the lottery. After morning activity we went to residence part of the hospital to sing for them. I could tell that the residence really appreciated seeing the children sing and dance. The children also had a lot of fun preforming. In the afternoon I got a chance to interview a teacher aide. I know have all of my interviews done. I left ABC’s at 3:00.

Day 9

5/20/10

9:00-3:00

I arrived at ABC’s today at 9:00 so I could do my arts project with the children. During morning meeting I explained how to do the project by painting the potato and pressing down hard on the paper to create the stamp. After show and tell I got to see the children use their imagination. I was so impressed with how the project turned out. It was a little challenging for them to press down on the stamp and to not create a picture by just using a brush. I took lots of pictures of the children using the stamps. I also got pictures of them playing in the classroom and outside at the playground. I left ABC’s at 3:00

Day 8

5/19/10

11:30-5:30

My day started at 11:30. When I arrived the children were watching a movie since it was raining all morning. They only watch movies when it goes with the theme they are learning about. They were watching Homeward Bound. It goes along with what they are studying somewhat which is recycling and ecology. During nap time I final got to practice my potato stamp project. I made shapes using cookie cutters and just cutting them out. I created 3 of each: heart, leaf, square, circle, and triangle. I made a lot so they could use more colors in their pictures. I practiced making 2 pictures and they turned out better then I thought they would. I made a scene of a neighborhood and a scene where a butterfly is sitting on a pile of leaves. I'm so excited to see the children make their own pictures! Also most of the photo requests were returned and they are all approved which I'm thankful for. I left ABC’s at 5:30.

Day 7

5/18/10

11:30-5:30

I arrived at 11:30 again. My goal today was to interview one of the teachers and make all the stamps for my project. I did get to interview a teacher which was very helpful. I now understand more about why they do certain activities at preschool. I also got to make a couple stamps for my art project until I cut myself. I was trying to cut a potato in half but the knife slipped and cut my finger right on the cuticle. It wouldn’t stop bleeding so the teacher told me to go see my sponsor since she has nursing experience. She bandaged my cut by wrapping it tightly and told me to hold it up above my shoulder for awhile. After the bleeding went down somewhat another teacher helped me change it into a normal band-aid. The children kept on asking me what I did over and over again. Before we went outside my sponsor got a nurse to check out my cut. She said it was going to be fine I just had to keep it clean. My sponsor also had to report that I cut myself. My finger just hurt for the rest of the day. But once I started playing outside I forgot about it because I was having so much fun. I left ABC’s at 5:30.