1. How many hours did you complete?
I completed 6 hours.
2. How did you spend your time?
I ordinarily visit Toddler Story Time for one hour each week with my granddaughter
at the Whitley County Public Library. I am claiming 4 of these visits as field experience.
For the first 3 visits, I was an observer/participant, as usual. During the fourth visit, I read
aloud two picture books to the children; then distributed kits for the craft project. Two
additional hours were spent at the W.C. Library. For one hour, I cut out paper hands,
hearts, and other shapes that were to be used in an activity with a group of young children.
The second hour was spent wrapping the jackets of new books, which I had not done
before.
at the Whitley County Public Library. I am claiming 4 of these visits as field experience.
For the first 3 visits, I was an observer/participant, as usual. During the fourth visit, I read
aloud two picture books to the children; then distributed kits for the craft project. Two
additional hours were spent at the W.C. Library. For one hour, I cut out paper hands,
hearts, and other shapes that were to be used in an activity with a group of young children.
The second hour was spent wrapping the jackets of new books, which I had not done
before.
3. How did the experience help you to strengthen at least one Kentucky Teacher Standard?
The
nature of my field experience activities should probably be categorized more as
service than leadership. However, while
cutting many paper shapes, sitting by a window where I could see the top
of the Judicial building that houses stained glass windows representing a year
of my life’s work, I thought how different this cutting activity is from the
(glass and metal) cutting I was doing a year ago, but similarly it would
quietly touch some people’s lives. I
reflected on different events from my 38 years of living and participating in
the Williamsburg community, events involving the library, the schools, the
college, churches, the Art Guild, adult literacy, Scouts, 4-H sewing &
shooting sports, etc. These endeavors
have included a variety of leadership roles.
My life and work continue to be somewhat invisibly interwoven with the
fabric of the local culture. Like the
children who would glue the papers I was cutting, and the fathers who would
receive the cards from those children, most of the people I saw coming and
going in the library that day knew nothing of me, what I had done, or what I am
doing. I was just an old woman sitting
there in the cool, quiet library, making too much noise cutting with dull
scissors, reflecting on the many faces of service. Punctuating my varied roles, a young, tall,
handsome African college student that I had not seen for maybe 2 years,
happened in and greeted me with a broad smile and some chit-chat. How gratifying to realize that my work, my “leadership”
roles also invisibly impact the broader community.
4. Talk a little about one thing you learned because of this field experience.
I think it is interesting that my
little one, who adores books and stories in other settings, rarely pays attention
to the Story Time book reading. Play
time seems to be the highlight for her and many of the children—it is more a
socializing time than book time. She has
on occasion taken a book from the shelves, sat down and looked through it. I think the reading aspect might be more
effective for some children if structured specifically as reading time,
separate from play time, although the play time is excellent for what it
is. It is interesting to observe the
different interactions among the children.
It seems that their having fun in the library environment establishes
that setting in their consciousness as a positive and friendly place. I have learned that maybe that is the
goal. My little one recognizes the
building, knows what it is, and looks forward to going there.
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