As a young single parent, I forged a career in employability, by devising and delivering employment workshops and literacy and numeracy lessons. I was inspired by many of the people I worked with, as they realised their potential, and utilised the skills they had gained to achieve employment. When my youngest child started school, I completed an Access course in ‘Education Professions’, where I built upon my teaching experience, through studying psychology and learning theories and delivering micro-teach sessions. This qualification ignited my passion for knowledge through research and prepared me for my current degree.
A poignant university module I completed, involved collaborating with a small group of peers to create and facilitate a series of drama workshops, which enabled 11-15-year-olds to explore the difficult issues surrounding online safety and inappropriate relationships. The series of workshops introduced the youngsters to different drama practitioners and techniques, whilst breaking the subject into manageable sections, allowing them to safely discuss and explore the issues and potential consequences of different scenarios. I found this module challenging yet rewarding, because we had raised awareness of potential dangers but allowed the participants to explore, through drama, how they could remove themselves from situations, or help someone else.
In 2018, I took over the role of Director and Chairperson of a community theatre group, in a disadvantaged area. I developed structured rehearsals, to introduce the 30 young members to the essential elements of theatre and drama. I applied techniques such as clapping a rhythm which the children would repeat or singing a line of a song, which they continued, to effectively manage the large cast during rehearsals, as it was difficult to keep the focus of a group who often wanted to socialise. Effective strategies to teach the large group, included placing members in small groups to work on set tasks independently, and ‘carousel classes’, where each facilitator would take a group for music, dance or acting, then would swap after a period of time. Being part of this community has evidenced the importance of ensuring all children have access to good quality extra-curricular activities, which is something I hope to continue, once I become a teacher.
Witnessing my daughter flourish within her academy, reinforced my ambition to teach. In KS1, she would explain to me all she had learned; phonics, digraphs, trigraphs and number sentences, of which I had no prior knowledge, but was in awe, as I witnessed her master skills and vocabulary, that once would have been viewed as above a child’s capabilities. During my volunteering in KS1, I was introduced to creative methods of teaching, such as incorporating drama into literacy lessons, to explore emotions and outcomes of a story. Guided reading presented the children with a purpose to keep them engaged with the text, which was confirmed when they answered given questions. I was impressed with the academy’s focus on growth mindset and how the children were motivated and focussed to learn and succeed.
With the wealth of experience I have gained through adulthood, I believe I possess the relevant skills and attitude to continue my own learning, in a practical and academic capacity, to become a teacher and continue to support and inspire children to aim high and reach their potential.