To be able to earn college credit and high school credit at the same time is such a privilege. I don’t even have to pay for these college credits because they are “free” (Well not actually because, according to Mrs. Nafziger, there is no such thing as a free lunch). By the end of the school year, I will have at least 32 college credit hours from Calculus 1, Calculus 2, AP English 12, Trig./Pre-Calculus, and Child Development.
From taking these classes, I have had the chance to see what college is really like and I’ve learned a lot of life lessons. But out of all these classes, I would say that Child Development is one of the greatest.
Yes, I have learned about the development of children, but I was able to get hands on experience. Students who take this class are able to go to an actual daycare every other day to work one-on-one with children. I was required to teach the preschool room a lesson at least twice a semester.
I, personally, am grateful for this experience.
I first started going to the daycare my sophomore year and it was amazing. Every two weeks our group of about three or so students would be assigned to either the preschool, toddler, or infant room. Each room was something different.
I liked the infant room because I would get to hold babies and hear their cute laughs. I mean, who wouldn’t enjoy that? I also liked the toddler and preschool rooms because children have so much energy and they would improve my mood that day.
This year is my third year going to the daycare. At the beginning of the year, I wasn’t planning on taking the class, but I somehow ended up adding it to my schedule. I’m glad I did. I practically grew up with the children. To anyone who takes this class, I’m pretty sure that you will build a personal relationship with them. You just get attached. I know I did.
I got the chance to watch the infants pass important milestones of their life, like learning how to walk, talk, write, etc. The children who were in the infant room my sophomore year are now in toddler room. The toddlers are now in the preschool and the preschoolers are now in Kindergarten.
Every now and then I reminisce on hilarious moments I’ve had with the children who are longer there. I’m pretty sure during finals week, I’ll tear up knowing that I may never see the children ever again.
Ever since junior high I knew that I wanted to pursue a career involving children. This class made me even more sure about that. I’ve noticed that when a child is barely learning or needs an extra hand I want to be the one to help. While I am college,I want to work at a daycare to continue learning from children and helping them.
I will be forever thankful for this experience and for the many life lessons I’ve learned.
Chanda I think you need to change the coloring of your text, so other people can see it. Reading your post brought back memories of how we used to eat the little kids' leftover food from breakfast, especially the pancakes. I also can relate to how you feel about leaving the children at the preschool. In my case it was the elderly at the nursing home in Winslow when I was doing my clinicals for NAVIT, to this day I still think about them. Awesome blog Chanda
ReplyDeleteChanda, I completely relate to how you feeling about the daycare. When we graduate we will have three years’ experience with the environment and the children that gets us a shoe in for any daycare job we want really and that is not even the best part. The best part of being in the Child Development program at Holbrook High School is being around the children. We really have been with them for a lot of their milestones and it is a very special experience. I fell in love with all of the kids and I often imagine how they will look and how old they will be when I finally come back to Holbrook and I see them again. I love children and being in the program gave me the opportunity to meet so many wonderful hearts.
ReplyDeleteTreading this blog post brought back so many memories from sophomore year of seeing the children at the day care. It makes me feel old of hearing that the children when I was there are grown up in their own way. Also, reading that you earn college credit through high school is a wonderful thing and I can say that it sure is pretty challenging. Taking the NAVIT program sadly put child development out of my schedule but I can see where you are coming from. Reading that you have created a special bond with the kids at the day care creates a positive image to your reputation. I have a good feeling for you from reading this post, just keep pursuing whatever feels good for you.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely loved your blog! You seriously could not have written a better blog for me to read. I also get to go to the daycare every day. I am the only student that goes seventh hour so I am always in the infant room. Now that we have six infants, all three of us adults have our hands full all the time. I have loved watching little teeth sprout out from their tiny, shiny gums. I have loved seeing them build muscles to start crawling, and bobbing their heads to the music. Just like you, I am so grateful for the wonderful chance our school has given us to go have real world experiences and fall in love with the cuties at daycare. I hope you can find a job that brings you as much happiness as those little kids do, then I know you will stay happy for a long time.:)
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