Blog 25: Mentorship

Literal

Log of Hours
Elizabeth A. Carr
(626) 917-0959

Interpretive

 What is the most important thing you gained from this experience? Why?

Patience is probably one of the biggest things I gained. Working with children for three hours a day can really take its toll on you, and if you get impatient things won't be too fun for you. Children are spontaenous and can easily change their minds, so you have to learn to go with the flow a bit and not be so strict and set in your ways. Of course, there is a need for structure in some aspects, but when you can, you should let the children have fun and be free - as long as its safe. When things get a little too rowdy, however, it's good to remain calm and collected, getting angry and yelling unneccessarily shows that you still don't have enough patience to be working with children.

Applied

 How has what you've done helped you answer your EQ? Please explain.

It definitely helped come up with my first answer, and gave me reasons as to why my second and third answers were important. It gave me insight and first-hand experience on how children behave in the child care environment, and what things affect the way they act. By seeing these things up-close, it was easy to back up my research and understanding with the real life experiences. If I hadn't done this mentorship, I don't think I would have had the same amount of comprehension in my topic and answers as I do now, because research can only take you so far.

Playtime

Toddler Time

Art time!

Some artwork on the wall.

Talking instead of drawing!

Hard at work.

From the FCCC

Blog 11: Mentorship 10 Hours Check

1. Where are you doing your mentorship?

I am doing my mentorship at a daycare in West Covina called Footprints Child Care Center.

2. Who is your contact?

My contact is Dr. Elizabeth A. Carr.

3. How many total hours have you done?

I have done about 75 hours, but 15 of those are for my independent component, so I have a total of 60 hours, including the hours done during the summer.

4. Summarize the 10 hours of service you did.

The daycare has a schedule that they follow everyday, so nothing much ever changes, except for the behavior and attitude of the children. I always get to Footprints at around 2 o' clock, which is when the younger kids are waking up from their naps and around the time the older kids start arriving from school. The older kids work on their homework until all the toddlers are awake, and then they all have their afternoon snacks. Once everyone finishes their homework, they can go outside and play for about and hour or two, and then go back inside to play until their parents come to pick them up. During all this time, I just aid in any way I can by setting out the snacks or making sure everyone plays fairly and no one gets hurt.

5. Email your house teacher the name of your contact and their phone number.

Emailed.

Blog 1: Summer Mentorship Component

Literal (Know)

Contact information: 

Day Care Center: Castaneda Family Child Care

Owner: Ms. Maria Castañeda 

Phone #: (626) 962-2006

Log of Hours (spreadsheet)

Literal (Need to Know)

Questions that were raised:

• What sorts of extra classes should a person take if they want to care for children with special needs?
• How much paperwork is required before starting a day care center?
• What forms are routinely required to fill out about the day care for the government?
• What are some ways to keep the children entertained, other than just playing with them?
• How much of the money the parents pay to keep their children in the day care is kept by the owner?
• Does it differ by how employees the owner has?
• Are there fees needed to pay to the government for running a day care?

Interpretive

I think the most important thing I gained from this experience is that there is a lot more to taking care of a child than is let on. It really takes a lot of energy and patience to manage a child. You have to be extremely patient with a child, but you also have to be stern when need be, and it really is a lot of work.

Applied

What I did this summer for my ten hours, has made me lean to child care/development to be my senior topic. Playing with the children and talking with them was really a lot of fun, even though tiring, and I just want to know what the best ways of caring for a child are when they are not at home. Having two nieces that I often babysit has also contributed to my interest in this topic. There is a lot of behind-the-scenes work that has to be done before caring for children full-time, and my mentorship experience has piqued that interest.