Fieldwork Reflection by

What are the concerns and issues of families in your community?

hannahmoen1 — 2023-11-16 19:39:41 UTC

A lot of my families that I work with benefit from all the resources they are given. My one family has a son that has a development delay. He works with an occupational, physical, and speech therapist. His parents have said that he's made lots of progress in the last few months. He seems to really enjoy it as well. Benji just turned 2 and he's pretty close to standing on his own but not quite there yet. I always learn so much when I talk to his mom. It's interesting to hear about all of the insight and just to know about all the progress he's making.

What are the resources available in your community?

hannahmoen1 — 2023-11-17 22:06:49 UTC

There are so many resources available in this community. Parents have the choice to get help if they want it. If parents have a concern for their child's development they can get tested for what they might think is wrong based on symptoms. The only barrier is whether they have insurance or not because if they don't then it will definitely cost a lot just out of pocket.

What is it like in reality to engage in professional-family partnerships? Opportunities and challenges?

hannahmoen1 — 2023-11-18 20:01:57 UTC

I work with just the families in their own homes so I don't have someone as my leader like there would be in the classroom. This can make it somewhat isolating since there's no one to really share the work with, it's just all on me or if I ask the parents to help out before they leave. A challenging part working with different families all the time is learning how they do things. Each family has a different way of thinking which makes it harder to get adjusted right away. There's a lot of traits you should have in order to be a great nanny. I've seen other nannies value having patience, being kind, and good communication skills.

What have you learned about the dispositions required for family-professional partnerships?

hannahmoen1 — 2023-11-18 20:21:44 UTC

It's so important to have a connection with the family to make it more fun for the student and also just better for everyone. If you update the parents, keep them informed then they could be more willing to help out as well. My strengths are having good communication skills/ strategies and coming up with different activities. I've gained experience in these areas this semester by working with many different families.

What are your personal action steps and goals related to professional-family partnerships moving forward?

hannahmoen1 — 2023-11-18 21:23:17 UTC

My future goal for my classroom is to have conferences twice a year and really get to know the students and families. My elementary school did this which benefited my relationship with my teacher each year. When I interviewed my 1st grade teacher, she was saying "how much conferences help the classroom environment too since each student can start to work on different things at home once the parents are aware of the problem". Another way to show support to the students is by checking-in on them to see how they're doing. Asking them what's going on outside of school is a great way to create a stronger relationship with the students.