My Philosophy About Working With Children

I believe we can all think back to a time when a teacher touched our lives and made us feel special, brilliant, or loved. It’s equally easy to remember the teachers who brought negativity into the classroom or made a stinging comment that stuck with us through life.

With this awareness, and keeping in mind the immense responsibility and power teachers naturally hold as authority figures, role models, and care-givers, I have developed the following core beliefs about working with children, regardless of context:

1. Meet each child where they are, regardless of educational history, socioeconomic status, developmental level, social skills, etc.
2. Realize that children deserve the same respect as adults - they just happen to be younger than us!
3. Create a rhythm to help ease children through the day using song, ritual, music and movement, or anything else that seems appropriate for the group you are working with.
   
4. Always be on the lookout for teachable moments! Follow through on bringing child-initiated and emergent interests into the classroom and building on prior learning experiences.
5. Observe, listen to, and watch the children in search of opportunities to help the children understand how all things are connected.
6. Trust my intuition and teach with my heart.
7. "Never stop learning, growing, and loving" is a life philosophy I hope to pass on to the children I work with, even if it's only in small ways.
   

Employment History

Over the past 10 years, I have chosen jobs that ensured that I could either take my children to work with me or keep the same daily schedule as them. I have never accepted a job that I did not think I would love or that I did not believe I could put my whole heart into.

Gaps in my employment can be accounted for by time spent as a stay-at home mother, home schooling mom, college student, and primary caretaker for ill or dying relatives. Further details provided upon request.

06/08/09 - 08/07/09 Co-Lead Teacher for the Summer Garden Camp (ages 4-6)
Austin Waldorf School, Austin, TX
Responsible for co-teaching the Summergarden camp with 13-20 children between the ages of 3 and 7 in attendance weekly and supervising / mentoring one assistant. This entailed maintaining the daily and weekly rhythm, administrative duties, creating healthy snacks, curriculum planning, nap care, gardening activities, supervising swimming activities, photo documentary work and the creation of a camp photo album, handwork and other arts and crafts, and paying close attention to group dynamics to ensure that the emotional health and well-being of each child was met every day. Of special importance to me was taking a team approach to my relationships with parents and creating strong foundational relationships by keeping in communication with them daily to ensure that any emergent issues or concerns were resolved immediately.

11/08 - 05/08 Special Education Assistant (MIMR/MOMR)
Sahuaro Ranch Elementary School, Phoenix, AZ
Assisted in the academic instruction and supervision of 10 mildly to moderately mentally retarded 2^nd and 3^rd grade students in a self-contained classroom. Applied creative solutions in order to adjust instruction to the needs of each child. The majority of my academic focus with the students was on teaching letter sounds and basic reading and writing through the use of songs, games, simple phonics, teaching beginning sight words, and the whole language approach (depending on the learning style and developmental level of each individual child). Math was taught through a variety of hands on activities including the use of manipulatives, calculators, worksheets, and counting (working up to counting aloud by 2's, 5's, and 10's per each child's ability). Accompanied children to all activities, sought out teachable moments. Planned and executed opportunities for hands-on learning through activities like paper making and gardening. Chose challenging and engaging age-appropriate literature. Planned curriculum for the last hour of the day, four days per week, for the five 3^rd grade students.

11/2007 – 12/2007 Temp. Nanny / Mother's Helper
The Allen Family, Austin, TX

Provided temporary care for a 12 month old child while mother worked from home. Supported their breastfeeding relationship and attachment parenting values. Planned age appropriate activities such as finger painting and bread making. Transported child to activities such as Music Together, the Children's Museum, Zoo, parks, and story time at the library. Prepared meals for child, washed dishes, and assisted with occasional laundry. I continue to maintain a relationship with this family and babysit for them.

10/2006 – 05/2007 Nap Care Assistant
Desert Marigold Waldorf School, Phoenix, AZ
Coordinated the extended day program for up to 14 kindergarten children. Chose age appropriate literature, implemented developmentally appropriate recreation activities, managed the snack budget, and planned nutritionally appropriate snacks. Provided emergency medical treatment on the first responder level. Resolved class conflicts. Reported developmental milestones and behavioral issues to parents and administration.

08/1999 – 02/2002 Outreach Coordinator / Retail Sales Associate
BESTFed, Phoenix, AZ

Developed and implemented an informational and promotional outreach program to local hospitals, doctors’ offices, and community based organizations. Counseled new mothers on breastfeeding related issues, answered phones, scheduled appointments, and utilized QuickBooks, Excel, Word, and Access to file reports and maintain databases.

09/1997 - 09/1998 Nanny
The Wambach Family, Cave Creek, AZ

Picked children up from school, transported them to activities, ensured their emotional and physical well being and supported social development. Supervised children while parents traveled. Provided emergency medical treatment. Scheduled activities such as play dates, musical instruction, and extra curricular activities. Tutored on school subjects.

07/1995- - 07/1997 Assistant House Manager
Marcus House, Phoenix, AZ
Assessed needs of newly admitted children and communicated with social workers, doctors, and teachers to develop and implement intervention plans for each child. Assisted with the development of policies and procedures. Trained and mentored new staff and volunteers.

Current Certifications:

Certified Permaculture Designer
Arizona State Fingerprint Clearance Card through 2012
CPR and First Aid Certified through May 2010
Arizona Food Handler’s Card
Current Negative TB Skin Test – May 2008

Skills, Talents, and Volunteer Experiences

Creative Skills and Endeavors

I have a firm foundation in the visual arts including ceramics, two and three dimensional design, jewelry, paper making, book binding, a wee bit of glassblowing, and a love for fiber arts in particular. I crochet, knit (a little), sew, dye wool, felt, upcycle felted wool sweaters, and love all things crafty. I have also made several Waldorf dolls, finger puppets, and felted and sewn wool animals. I can design just about any type of Halloween costume a child can dream up and love making creative contributions to class parties. I can create cakes in virtually any theme, with a sensitivity toward whole-foods and low sugar content baking.

Volunteer Work

Sustainable Food Center of Austin (current / pending)

Attending volunteer orientation with plans to undergo their School Garden Mentor training in September. This training will enable me to help school gardens in the Austin area with planting, maintenance, organization, and educational instruction on organic gardening methods.

Austin Transition Town (current)

Helping to found an Austin Transition Town initiative to address the dual problems of peak oil and global climate change through finding community based solutions on a local level.

Austin Ecoschool (current)

Assisting with the relocation of the school to their new location and preparation for its opening on September 8th. Assist with painting, installing flooring, cleaning, procuring donations, and connecting with like-minded groups and organizations through community networking.

Sahuaro Ranch Elementary School Garden (2008-2009)

Single handedly took responsibility for creating a 10' x 20' vegetable garden with the special education children I worked with at Sahuaro Ranch Elementary School. Procured over $300 worth of donated seeds, seedlings, soil amendments, worm castings, and biodynamic compost tea. The children were involved in all aspects of the process, including choosing the types of vegetables to grow, measuring the dimensions of the space, plotting the garden plan on paper, tilling and amending the soil, and of course planting seedlings and seeds. Our tomatoes, garbanzo beans, fava beans, calendula, marigold, peas, lettuces, Japanese eggplant, and radishes were all producing before the end of the school year, and the children were as happy as could be when they were able to literally take home the fruits of their labor to their families!

Phoenix Permaculture Guild (2008-2009)

I am a former member of the Phoenix Permaculture Guild and received my Permaculture Design Certification on April 19th, 2009. I was awarded a partial scholarship through the Guild in order to be able to attain my certification. I also attended a 4-week Vegetable Garden Design Series class and was a member of their "School and Community Gardens" group.

I fulfilled many volunteer functions, including teaching a Seed Ball Making class for children at the Glendale Public Library's annual Green Fest. I propagated heirloom seeds for a fundraiser for the Guild and donated 60 of the plants to Arizona Homegrown Solutions to be distributed to low-income community gardens. I also had over 15 hands on hours learning to raise baby chicks and took a class on raising and keeping chickens. In the future, I l plan to focus on learning more about rain water harvesting for the benefit of local school and community gardens as well as individuals.

Desert Marigold Waldorf School (2003-2007)

I assisted with costume making for my daughter's school play in Tina DeSaussure's first grade class. The next year, I coordinating the costume making efforts for 19 children for the second grade play, largely making the costumes on my own. I also made 17 pairs of hand sewn, leather-soled, felted wool slippers while working with John Arnold's kindergarten class. I coordinated the Autumn picnic for my son’s preschool class and had multi-colored Autumn leaves express mailed from a friend in WA state in order for the children to make leaf-crowns (see photo stream). One of my other specialties was helping with preparations for festivals, such as cracking walnuts perfectly in half, filling them with tiny, hand-made necklaces, and gluing them back together for St. Nicholas Day. I was known as the “go-to” parent when my children’s teachers needed help with projects of a creative nature.

Education

My college education has not followed the standard 4-year degree completion format. I believe in learning for learning's sake, and have chosen to take classes accordingly. Over the years, my interests have evolved, but each class has built upon the knowledge attained in prior classes, which has enabled me to apply theoretical concepts to my own life. My education has primarily been in Early Childhood Education, Visual Arts, Non-Profit Business, and Humanities. An overview of my completed coursework:

Glendale Community College, Glendale, AZ

• Child Development
• Parent – Child Interaction
• Working with Special Needs Children
• Discipline and Guidance of Children
• Enhancing Toddler Development
• Arranging the Environment
• Science Activities for the Young Child
• Movement and Music for the Young Child
• Prehistoric through Gothic Art
• Two Dimensional Design
• Three Dimensional Design
• Drawing and Composition I
• Drawing and Composition II
• English 101
• Psychology 101
• Introduction to Philosophy
• Introduction to Human Communication
• Intermediate Algebra
• Algebra and Trigonometry
• Introduction to Astronomy
• US Experience in Viet Nam

Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ

• Art Therapy
• Color Theory
• Jewelry I
• Fibers I
• Art from Renaissance to Present
• Art of Africa, Oceania, and The Americas
• Art and Cultural Activism
• Visual Culture Studies
• Introduction to Social Work
• Women in Contemporary Society
• English 102
• Electronic Communication Theory
• Justice Studies
• Gender Communication
• Swing Dancing
• Tap Dancing
• Dances of Mexico
• Zen Meditation
• The Feldenkrais Method
• Chi Gung

The Evergreen State College, Olympia, WA

Grant Writing

Business and Society : Non-Profit Arts Internship
Yes Yes Alliance, Olympia, WA

Conceptualized, planned, and executed a month long community art project targeting street-involved and homeless youth. Collaborated with other local non-profits to expand service offerings to target population. Researched Washington State statutes located and filed necessary forms for non-profit incorporation. Researched funding sources for grants, identified legal resources for assistance with 501c3 status, initiated contact, and completed applications.

The Spiritual Aspects of Death and Dying (Student Designed Curriculum Contract and Applied Internship)
Hospice of the Valley, Phoenix, AZ

Analyzed how HOV measures and improves quality of service for patient and family outcomes. Completed volunteer training, visited PCU’s, and accompanied nurses on rounds. Read over 15 books on hospice care, focusing on the spiritual aspects of death and dying. Wrote a 14 page research paper addressing the relationship between the foundation of care that hospice provides and spiritual and emotional growth experiences for patients and families at the end of life.