During my enrolment in Niagara Colleges Early Childhood Education Program, I worked part-time as a teaching assistant at Way to Grow Daycare. Upon Graduation and registering with the College of Early Childhood Educators, I was promoted to a full time Early Childhood Educator. This experience had introduced me to a variety of different childcare programs through working with all ages from 0 – 12 years of age in many of the different childcare locations within the Niagara region. During this time, I was the consistent RECE for our new Saturday care program, was one of the first employees to return in June 2020 to provide emergency childcare during the pandemic and assisted in remote learning in the School-Age programs which started in September 2020. I believe all these opportunities had influenced my outlook on taking on new challenges, from once shying away, to welcoming them with determination and poise.

I took on this job opportunity to gain insight into the daily tasks that are required to maintain a household, while experiencing a new culture. I established a strong relationship with the family I resided with through consistently applying various communication strategies.

Provided respite support for an individual with a cognitive delay. I planned and implemented activities which supported linguistic development and decision making. I developed communication logs to document developmental growth, increase collaboration with the primary caregiver, and increase my own understanding of the impact of my practices through self-reflection.