CAREER ASSIGNMENTBy Natosha Power & Trisha Taylor

EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATOR

WHAT DO YOU LIKE ABOUT YOUR JOB?

• There’s many, many things I love about my job. I like the fact that everyday is different. Its very rewarding. I like to know that I am making a difference in the early learning with the kids that I care for.

WHAT DO YOU DO ON A TYPICAL WORK DAY? EXPLAIN.

• Begins at 8:00 am by greeting children and parents then I prepare snacks and do bathroom duties ( diaper changing, hand washing, etc). After snack we go outside if the weather is good, if the weather isn’t good we make arts and crafts. Lunch is 11:30 and then there’s quiet/ nap time. When they wake up there is a little free play until snack where we do bathroom duties again. Then pick up time at 5:00.

DO YOU PRACTICE SAFETY AT YOUR JOB? IF SO, WHAT DO YOU PRACTICE?

• Yes. I always practice safety by doing monthly fire drills, logging my fire drills (time it took us), documenting injuries (what was involved, who, etc.), emergency numbers posted by phones, fire evacuation plan posted as well as the layout of my business and I have fire extinguishers inspected annually.

IS THIS WHAT YOU WANTED TO DO SINCE YOU WERE YOUNGER?

• I always wanted to care for children since I finished high school. My interests were in teaching, but I wanted to focus on early learning, so my choice of early childhood educator was easy.

WHAT MOTIVATES YOU? EXPLAIN.

• My motivation comes from the laughs and giggles of the children I care for, and the hugs and kisses I get at the end of the day.

WHAT ARE YOUR RESPONSIBILITIES?

• My responsibilities are to care for 6 children from early morning to late afternoon, Monday to Friday, such as bathroom duties, feeding and preparing food, cleaning, preparing age appropriate activities, and documenting.

DOES ANYONE/ ANYTHING IMPACT YOUR CAREER CHOICES?

• Back in the day ei sponsorship paid me to attend school through ei supplements which helped me down my career path.

WHAT SKILLS AND EXPERIENCES DID YOU NEED TO PERUSE THIS CAREER?

• You'd have to have a liking for children and a great deal of experience with children, nutritional, developmental and social knowledge, as well as a licensing, first aid certificate and a correct certified classification.

WHAT ARE YOUR GREATEST STRENGTHS IN YOUR JOB?

• Patience is my greatest strength. Being able to observe and predict situations and knowing when and when not to get involved.

WHAT COURSES/ TRAINING DID YOU NEED FOR THIS JOB?

• Early childhood education, classified to care for pre school children, infants and licensed as a family home child care provider and first aid.

WHAT IS THE YEARLY SALARY FOR SOMEONE OF YOUR PROFESSION?

• With a full house, yearly, 70,000 to 90,000 yearly.

ARE THERE THINGS ABOUT YOUR CAREER YOU DON’T LIKE? IF SO WHAT?

• The things I don’t like about my job is when a child becomes ill and saying good bye to children when they no longer need my care.

HOW MANY HOURS DO YOU WORK A WEEK? WOULD YOU RATHER HAVE LESS, MORE OR

STAY THE SAME? WHY?

• I work from 8-5, 9 hours a day, 5 days a week, so 45 hours plus about 5 hours every weekend for cleaning and preparation, so roughly 50 hours a week. I would rather have the hours stay the same caring for the kids but more free time on the weekends to do what I enjoy.

IS YOUR JOB STRESSFUL? IF SO HOW DO YOU HANDLE STRESS?

• I don’t think my job is stressful. To deal with stress I try to relax.

WHICH SEASON MAKES YOUR JOB MORE CHALLENGING? WHY?

• Winter. Usually we spend a lot of time outside in the warmer months, but getting them all bundled up in the winter is not fun, it takes to long and someone always gets too hot waiting.

DO YOU REGRET YOUR CAREER CHOICE? IF SO, WHY?

• No regrets!

HOW ARE YOU DIFFERENT FROM THE COMPETITION?

• To compare me to daycares, I am on a lower ratio of children. To other family home childcare providers, I am classified with early childhood education.

IF YOU COULD REDO THE LAST 10 YEARS OF YOUR CAREER, WHAT WOULD YOU DO

DIFFERENTLY?

• I would not do anything differently.

WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF 5 YEARS FROM NOW?

• I am hoping to have a full house, and be as busy as I am right now.

IF YOU WERE OFFERED ANOTHER JOB OPPORTUNITY WOULD YOU

TAKE IT? WHY OR WHY NOT?• It depends on if it dealt with children or not, what I would be doing,

and the salary.

DO YOU CONSIDER YOURSELF SUCCESSFUL? WHY OR WHY NOT?

• I consider myself somewhat successful with the families I work with and my reputation with family connections.

HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WORKING AT YOUR CURRENT JOB?

• As a family home childcare provider, I have been working for 13 months now. Prior to this, I have worked privately for 19 years with children.