About+me

about me: I have always been interested in education. My first job on a work release from high school was working in childcare. I worked under a wonderful teacher in a 5yr old room. Childcare is often a stepping stone job and so I saw teachers come and go. I established much about that room as my own, and during the times in which their was no teacher took on extra responsibilites. I took advantage of the chance to be creative. It was during this time in which I developed a love for education and childrens literature. I went to the library frequently and took out books, read along cassettes and film strips for the students. Before I left that job, I recieved a certificate from Suffolk Childcare Council for 5 yrs in service. I was encouraged and decided to get an A.S Degree in early childhood from SUNY farmingdale, but my desire to learn more about education did not stop there.

I enrolled in a B.A program at CW Post called "educator in a non-school setting". This degree was like a combination of education and human services. I felt it was a broad degree and believed I could work in a variety of educational settings. I became interested in the children's museums as a place for being an educator. As a child I had spent a good deal of time in this environment and I believe very much in hands on learning. As a member of the honors program I wrote an undergraduate thesis in which I applied Howard Gardners multiple intelligence theory to a childrens museum as a learning environment. That was a very interesting research project done in 1996, when research was very different than today.

I interned and eventually got a job at Long Island Children's museum. I did museum tours and was a floor manager several days a week. I wanted to help develop the weekend programming, but someone was already doing that job. I did however help attend and conduct a lot of the museums out reach programs. We would set up stations and do a discussion about the program, the kids would explore the materials, which always included a take home item, such as their name written in braille. I particularly enjoyed a colonial kids program where the kids would expereince toys, games and crafts from colonial america. I had some wonderful expereinces there, but the money was not good at the tome and i wanted more responsibility for the programming

I took a job for SCOPE childcare services as a before and afterschool child care supervisor. It was a challenge for me at first, but I enjoyed the added responsibility. One of my responsibilities was to create monthly activity calendars. I select crafts, science, food projects, games and more to fill up the month. We do season themes ands well as multicultural crafts and celebrations. I have found my job to be interesting, and very rewarding. My job helps a create a very meaningful and purposeful place in my community fro children. However I was not done with my education. I could envision bringing more hands on into the library, more realia and primary documents, more visual leanring and more technology. I decided I would be happiest teaching a library environment. I think I will be good at teaching information literarcy in ways that are interesting, fun and engaging.