Anastasia Ivanova

October 2013

Internship Reflection

Internship Reflection

Knowledge is power. Its probably a little idealistic to think that proper

education could be the solution to so many of the various problems we face today, but I truly believe ignorance is one of the main causes of many of those problems. A good education, though, cant be the only solution. Adults have a responsibly to foster a curiosity and a love for learning in children from a young age, so that their quest for knowledge never wavers. The way they learn best and what they want to focus on learning will be different in every child, of course, so I think the most important thing we can do is show all children that learning can be fun. I. Describe the different educational settings where you have taken the role as an educator/facilitator. Identify and describe some of the common threads between those experiences as well as some of the components that made them different. My first introduction to working with and teaching kids was through my job as a lifeguard and swim instructor at Hazen Pool, my high schools pool, starting near the end of my sophomore year. Before that, my experience working with younger kids was limited to my sister, family friends, and volunteering once or twice at my elementary schools Field Day. As a swim instructor, I mostly got to work with my own small group of kids, usually ages three to about seven. The sessions were short, only thirty minutes, but even that is a long time to keep young kids occupied in the water. I remember it being chaotic, some kids crying for their parents, other not wanting to hang on to the wall, all surrounded by the noise of everybody

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Anastasia Ivanova

October 2013

Internship Reflection

else in the pool, but I think it was a good initial exposure to working with kids. Getting to know the kids a little, seeing them happy to learn, and watching them succeed were all wonderful rewards and this was the first time I saw what I enjoyed about teaching. The following school year I remember having to earn volunteer hours for a class. I decided to volunteer at my elementary school and came in to read with kids a couple of times a week for a few months. It wasnt until my senior year though, that I had my most memorable and rewarding volunteer experience working with kids at Highlands. Because I informed them about my plans to volunteer early on, they were able to place me in one classroom for the entire time. In Ms. Scotts first grade classroom, I got to know the kids over a couple of months and felt like I truly connected with them. The rise in class sizes made it difficult for one teacher to give individualized attention to twenty or so six and seven year old kids. I truly felt like both Ms. Scott and all the kids were happy to have me there. Helping in the classroom I got my first exposure working directly with kids, one-on-one and in groups, on subject such as reading, writing, math, and art. It was a total change from teaching swimming lessons and I was able to take a step back and let the kids guide their own learning process a lot more than I had been during the thirty-minute session in the pool. This experience was what truly showed me the joy and rewards of working with kid and drew me to Jumpstart about two years later. After I stopped working at the pool and volunteering regularly, I worked several brief babysitting and tutoring jobs over the years, but my primary job was as a receptionist at a clinic on campus. Although it was a good experience in its own way, by the end of sophomore year I knew that ! #!

Anastasia Ivanova

October 2013

Internship Reflection

job wasnt going to go any further for me. Every day I saw kids come into the clinic, and although I interacted with them briefly, I missed working directly with them, seeing their faces light up when they did something theyd never done before, learned something new, or they were simply having fun. At the beginning of the following year, I started off on a new path in my university career, as a newly accepted junior in CEP. I wanted to have a job that would give me some of the experience that I was looking for, while doing something I actually enjoyed and something that was beneficial to others, so I applied for Jumpstart. In my two years at Jumpstart, first as a Corps Member and second as a Team Leader, I learned a lot of strategies for interacting with and teaching kids, general information about education and early childhood education, as well as about my own leadership style. Although parts of the Jumpstart curriculum are strictly guided, making sure children can make their own choices and explore is an important part of the teaching philosophy. In that way, this experience was similar to and expanded upon my volunteering experience at Highlands, as well as one of my experiences tutoring a threeyear-old boy in various subjects. In all of these I learned that it is especially important to allow younger children to choose their own paths in order to keep them interested and attentive. Through this, as well as my own personal attitudes, I think I have developed a fairly informal, open, and free leadership style. I usually prefer to sit back and only take charge when I think things are getting out of control and it is necessary. I have discovered that although I like to guide whoever Im working with from the background, even when I am technically not the one in charge, I generally like to let ideas and events unfold naturally.

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Anastasia Ivanova

October 2013

Internship Reflection

My latest experience, as a Day Camp Counselor at Camp Orkila, was both similar and different from all the others. It wasnt at all like a traditional camp counselor experiences because the kids did not stay overnight, and although many of the kids only attended day camp for one week, there were also a lot that came more than a week. Nine hours a day for several weeks is a lot of time getting to know a child. While there were some educational aspects in the camp activities, a lot of the day was about having fun and supervising the kids while getting from place to place, during meals and activities, and simply keeping them engaged and active. The days were all preplanned, but there were still a number of times when the kids could make there own choices and decisions. As a counselor it was my role to be a guide, supportive and friendly, while making sure everything stayed within bounds. The learning experiences for kids at camp are not academic, but more so about personal growth and self-discovery. At camp, even with the younger kids, I had to employ my leadership style much more than my teaching style, but by now I understand that the two are parallel. II. Reflecting on those different experiences, elaborate on the settings where you felt most comfortable and excited about your role? What made this so? I think there is a couple of reasons why I felt the most comfortable and excited as an educator during my time in Jumpstart. One of those reasons is that this was my longest experience working with kids. I really had time to get used to the setting, understand it, and learn how to best work within it. Even during my second year in Jumpstart, although my role had changed, the setting was still the same and everything I had learned in my first year still applied. I was then able to learn more and expand on what I ! %!

Anastasia Ivanova

October 2013

Internship Reflection

already knew. Another reason is the encouragement and friendliness of the people that I was working with. I always felt like a valued team member at Jumpstart, like my presence mattered and my voice was heard, which I feel allowed me to learn more than I would have, had the community not been so supportive. A positive relationship with my peers in turn gave me a positive attitude when working with the children, and made the experience much more valuable. My experience as a Day Camp Counselor at Camp Orkila, on the other hand, could have been just as great, but the challenges of living at the camp and working long days made it more difficult to learn and have a positive outlook. The aspect of working with the kids themselves was great, but I feel like I learned more about my own limits than I did about leadership. I would like to say all my coworkers were great, and maybe they would have been if we only had to be together during work hours, but sticking ten or more strangers in a cabin to live and work together twenty-four - seven is not always going to work out. Working at Camp Orkila definitely taught me to be professional but still have fun while working with kids, and to separate work and personal feelings. This expanded on what I learned in Jumpstart about leaving my worries from my school and home life behind while Im working with kids. Its important to be genuine and pay attention to only them in the moment, because most of all, kids can tell when your mind is somewhere else or you dont care. III. Looking back, but moving forward, what type of an educator have you become? What is your personal philosophy? What type of opportunities to teach/lead will you seek out in the future?

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Anastasia Ivanova

October 2013

Internship Reflection

Because of my personal philosophy about learning and education, I cant really say of what kind of an educator I have become. Although I have some experience teaching and working with kids, its really quite a small amount compared to the experience I will gain throughout the rest of my life. I still have a long way to go. The one thing I know for sure is that Im always learning and my teaching style will continue to develop over time. My personal philosophy is that learning is a lifelong endeavor and education should be a fun, social experience that fosters a love for lifelong learning. Every child (and adult) is going to learn best in a different way and want to focus on learning different things, and its important to focus on that in each individual. It is also important instill a good work ethic in everyone regardless of what they choose to do and how they choose to do it. I think this is what education should accomplish, because although facts can be forced into a childs brain, whether they remain there for long or are utilized in the best way is up to that child and how important they think that information is. As an educator, I want to develop my own positive attitude towards what I teach and learning in general, and pass that on to my pupils. Currently I am seeking opportunities to teach English in other countries. Not only because it is a great way to travel and live abroad, but also because, as someone who learned English as their second language, I understand the number of opportunities knowing a second language can open to everyone worldwide. I not only hope to gain my own experiences while teaching abroad for several years, but also that my teaching can have a positive impression on at least one of my students. After that, I dont yet know what kind of an impact my experiences will have on me and I believe my path can take me anywhere. Whether I will continue in the field of education, or move on to something else, well, well see.

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