About me

I grew up in Port Washington, NY, with two siblings, my older brother, and my identical twin sister, in a small town on the North Shore of Long Island. As a child, if I wasn't outside playing games and sports with my siblings and the neighborhood kids, I was indoors reading books or creating some art projects. I graduated from Queens College with a Bachelor's Degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders, gearing towards the Speech-Language Pathology field. After receiving my degree, I decided to take a step back before applying to graduate schools to work full time and gain more experience working in a classroom with children. I currently hold a full-time position as a Teachers' Assistant at a private daycare center on Long Island. I work in a preschool classroom of 16 children with a fantastic team of educators! On the side, I am in the process of completing my Child Development Associate (CDA) certification to enhance my knowledge and practice in early childhood education.
  I have about six years of experience in child care, specifically ages 2-5, from babysitting in a private family home to working in the classroom. My childcare experience began in 2014 when I was in high school, and I worked as a summer program teacher's assistant at a local childcare center in Port Washington, NY. I cared for preschool children and assisted the headteacher in carrying out lesson plans and activities. This was my first time working with children in a classroom, and the experience showed me that I had a passion for educating and caring for children. I cared for a preschool classroom of about ten children and a teaching team of 2 teachers assistants. We worked collaboratively to assist the headteacher in carrying out lesson plans, organizing outdoor games/sports and indoor projects in art, music, literacy, and math. Once the summer program ended, one of the parents reached out to me for an on-call/date night sitter position for their 5-year-old daughter. My responsibilities included; playing games and toys, creating arts and crafts, entertainment with dancing/movies, serving dinner meals, and putting her to sleep. In summer 2015, that same family referred me to friends who needed a babysitter to care for their four children; fraternal twin 2-year-olds (boy and girl), 4-year-old girl, and 6-year-old girl. Depending on the day, the schedule was for 3-4 days/week for about 5-7 hours. My responsibilities included; carrying out morning routines, preparing meals/snacks for each child and supervising meal times, assisting with bathroom/potty training, diaper changing, playing games, playing with their favorite toys, reading books, drawing, arts and crafts, writing, dancing/music. After the summer, I became their go-to babysitter for date nights/events/errand runs during the week. The babysitting experience gave me the foundational skills to handle multiple children with multiple needs. Still, it showed I could teach children to communicate their needs/ideas effectively and appropriately, inspire their creative expression, give them the confidence to be independent, caring, and fun human beings. My experience as a teachers' assistant began in October 2020 after I graduated from college and was itching to return to the childcare field. With my previous babysitting experience, I was able to fine-tune my childcare skills within the preschool classroom. My duties include; administering lesson plans to foster cognitive, socio-emotional, and physical development, prepping activities for various topics (math, science, reading, writing, art, and music), connecting with families via the Procare app to send daily updates, completing weekly observation reports to track development, serve three meals/day, playing indoor games/interest areas, and playground/outdoor activities/sports. It has given me the skills to juggle multiple tasks, provide structure with activities/play for numerous children, foster creative expression and passions to honor each child's unique personality.
  With each childcare experience, I have learned so much about the families I worked with and myself. When I babysat for that second family with four children, their only 2-year-old son had a speech delay and received early intervention services with a Speech-Language Pathologist in the home. I discovered the beautiful field that transformed his speech abilities to boost not only his learning abilities but also his confidence and self-esteem. That is why I went on to study Speech-Language Pathology and hope to become an SLP in the future. Some of the most important aspects of life for me are to provide love and safety, encourage strong bonds within families/friendships, and foster communication. I am always an advocate for communication so children can be heard and express their needs/wants effectively and appropriately; most often, challenging behaviors arise from miscommunication or an inability to get their message across. We all know what it feels like to be unheard and frustrated. My goal is to show children how to do that in a way that works for them. At the same time, I aim to foster children's creativity, individuality, communication and encourage them to be the best they can be in a safe and fun learning environment! I love working with children and hope to create strong bonds with your children and your family as well!