During my internship at CMCS I learned that there were real on and off days that I felt passionate about what I was doing. Some days I couldn't get into the work and connect with kids, and other days I felt outgoing and passionate. I'm not sure if that speaks towards me not loving this setting, or if it was just that some days aren't always the best. I sort of feel undecided in the area of teaching. I think I would need to take a child development course to determine if that's what I want to do, so I sort of feel more undecided than I did before. On the other hand working at Gently Hugged where I had the independence and leadership project really spoke to me. I think I'm naturally a leader and I'm drawn to people and things that allow me to express that part of me. I think I would feel more fulfilled if I found a career in management, which is really open ended when you think about it. I've always thought it would be amazing to have my own non-profit organization, but I can't be sure right now. Through my discovery though I think I should look into more colleges that focus on business(specifically management), because in the end I could no anything with a business major.
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Gently Hugged is an organization that is based entirely on volunteers. That being said, they have many people sign up to help, but seeing that it's not a full time job, it is difficult to train all of the upcoming volunteers. In order to make that easier I created a series of volunteer training videos that can be shown to new volunteers or people that are interested, that way everyone can understand the work they're in for. To do this I met several volunteers (who were all wonderful!) and filmed some that in turn also taught me how to do certain things like pack bags, or sort clothes. Then I would edit the videos, take close up shots, and so on. I also had to learn how to do all of these steps myself, that way I knew how to construct and phrase it for the people learning.
CMCS For my final product I created a video of student life at CMCS. It was important to create because there is some switching going around at this school and a site near by, and many of the teachers are changing location, but no matter what you can still get a sense of the students and community there. I wanted to create this to help incoming students get a sense of what's to come and give them something to look forward to. In order to do this I captured videos each day of students working, playing, the environment, and even going to field trips to show some of the special events that take place. I also interviewed students about what they love about their school and their friends. On my own time I also sent out a survey to teachers, and made observations about the school. I just wanted to get a glimpse of the community as quickly as I could, in order to set an image for others.
Part 1: Respond to 2 or 3 questions from the following list:
Community Montessori Charter School In order to advocate myself during my internship, as well as helping the teachers and students, I voice my needs in order to finish my project. For example these past few days I've had to re-think and brainstorm new topics for my project, because I noticed a few problems that could only be avoided by change. I recognized that my goals for the video I wanted to create for CMCS had already been accomplished by someone else. I realized I should have looked at their website first to see that there was already a video about why students should attend their school and what they do there, so I needed to shift my focus. I communicated with my mentor that I wanted to focus on the campus life at their school, and he thought it was a great idea to show the community and upcoming students what a day at Mary Ln. would look like. I think I also have been following the advice of being an intern that everyone remembers, but I could improve the aspect of always working on something. In the classroom there are times where it's really busy, or the students are working fairly independently. It's times like those where I'm not quite sure what to do, but usually I can find at least one student that needs some one on one attention. Gently Hugged At Gently Hugged I find it very easy to advocate for myself. A majority of projects their working on are organizational and I would call myself a very organized and neat person. Because of that I feel very confident sharing my advice and speaking my mind. I also feel like I communicate well with my mentor, and we have talked about pulling my focus from busy work into my project since I won't be here for much longer. I think I have already become a memorable intern because the people that work there have talked with me and we have bonded. But I also think it's difficult to to get to know all of my colleagues early because I meet someone new everyday (since it's volunteer based).
Community Montessori Charter SchoolMy project for CMCS is creating a video that highlights the uniqueness of the classrooms and why upcoming students should attend the school. So far I've been taking videos of the classroom setting, and in order to create a well informed video I'll need to overview what Montessori is and the perspectives of a teacher, parent, student, and administrator. I want people to understand the philosophy of Montessori and the goals of their school. I'm concerned that I won't be able to achieve all this in the amount of time I have, because at this point I only have six more days at my internship. Fortunately I made an effort to make a schedule for the next couple days in order to finish things on time. Gently HuggedMy project for Gently Hugged is to create a video that explains what their non-profit does, and then create additional videos that can help train upcoming volunteers. In order to do this project I need to plan out the message I want to send when training volunteers. I need to make sure their well informed so they feel confident. I will need at least one volunteer to demonstrate all the steps. I'm also worried with this project that I have a lot to do with little time, but I have also organized my days so I can be as productive as possible.
Community Montessori Charter SchoolFor this blog I interviewed my mentor from CMCS rather than Gently Hugged because my I wouldn't see Gently Hugged again until Friday(tomorrow). Below are the questions I asked my mentor and how they answered:
1. What's your job title and what responsibilities do you have? Adam Nolan is the Regional Manager of the Montessori school on Mary Ln. He is also an upper elementary teacher. His responsibilities include; daily operations, 2. Why did you choose to work at CMCS? He used to work at a small private school in Arizona. He decided he'd rather work at a larger organization(preferably not private) because he wanted to work at a school that gave equal opportunity. 3. How did you receive the education you needed for this position/where did you attend college? Adam received his Bachelor's at NAU in science forestry, then received his Master's and teacher training at GCU. He then received his Montessori training at Boulder University and finished his training at High Tech High. 4. What's your favorite part about your job? He prefers working in in the classroom, because it allows him to connect with his students and make a difference. 5. What are some growth areas you've recognized in yourself since you've started your job? Adam has realized that this job requires a lot more flexibility. In his position he has had to work on becoming more organized, especially with paperwork. It also requires that he has more parent communication, which brings a different dynamic to the school. Reflection: I've found that what I do at internship is more closely related to what I did at my old job rather than what we do in school. There have been a few times when I'm correcting students work and I don't feel totally confident with my answer because it's concepts I haven't learned in such a long time. There are a few comments I've heard from students that have made me feel good about how well I'm connecting with them. Some kids were talking about me and how awesome it was that I was in their class. And during their field trip today a student shouted me out said they were excited to get to know me! What connections can you make between this internship and what you've done in school? My commute to internship is easy because it's near home, but I've been having to tweak my schedule back and forth because the number of hours I receive gets complicated when it comes to internship. Community Montessori Charter SchoolMy first day working at CMCS went really well. I was surprised by how welcoming and kind everyone was. So far I've been able to work in a few classrooms, and it's starting to give me a feel of how each age group works and how they act. I really love how in each classroom the teachers make an effort to connect with their students and make sure that each student is on a path towards success. I watched the teachers in the classroom and they work one on one with their students and assign them things based on their individual progress. Through observing each class I decided to create a project where I will highlight CMCS, and talk about why children should attend that school. I also will create parts that introduce each classroom and the benefits of being in each. I'm really excited to work more with each class to see how each one varies and what sets them apart from each other. On the other hand I am worried that I may not get a fantastic sense of the school in the amount of time I have, but I hope that I can observe carefully and take good notes and interview teachers in order to get a better idea. Gently HuggedWhile working at Gently Hugged I was shocked to find that the women working there are all very similar in the same ways. They are kind, detail-orientated, and committed volunteers of Gently Hugged, and make sure that it is their commitment rather than a part time thing, and if it is part time they still give a lot of effort. They work in a small and quiet location and the relationships between the volunteers I've met so far are fairly close. Immediately I was assigned a big task of creating a volunteer training video for the organization. I appreciate that my mentor trusts me and gave me responsibility, it makes me feel like I am a leader which allows me to do better. I'm worried that I'm not as technology savvy as they'd like me to be for this project, but I also think that I'm driven enough to learn what I need to in order to succeed.
For my internship I split my time between a social work business called Gently Hugged, and a Montessori school. At Gently Hugged, my mentor's name is Judy Blackford, and she was the originator of her business. At the Montessori school, my mentor's name is Adam Nolan and he works as a 4th-5th grade teacher as well as some administration. During my internship with Gently Hugged I will be helping them create a volunteer training video and take photos for photo-op pieces. I'm exciting to see the process that goes into making a difference for this internship, and how rewarding it will feel to give back to my community. I'm nervous that I won't be able to find a big project like we are supposed to do and rather I will end up doing busy work. For my internship at the Montessori school my project isn't defined yet, but I will mostly be spending time on the playground with kids trying to help everyone to play together. I will also be spending time in different classrooms, to assist teachers with any activities they have going on. I'm really excited to see what age groups I enjoy working with to help me find out what age I'd like to teach for my career.
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