Chloe, garde d’enfant - KA6 Drongan

I finished my secondary education at Kyle Academy in June 2012 and began my first exciting year of BED Primary Education at UWS. I have always wanted to work with children and enjoyed my time at university and loved every minute of placements. However, coming straight from school I felt huge pressure. I didn't have much life experience and was still quite immature leading to me being unsuccessful in my second year placement.

During my time out of higher education I have been working full time at Debenhams in Ayr. I work between the cafe and the beauty department. Whilst taking on more responsibility at work I have felt my confidence and maturity grow. I have helped to host in store events and had the opportunity to train new members of staff. I have become the leader of the part time group of staff. I enjoy taking on roles independently as well as communicating and working as part of a team. I am outgoing, sociable and enjoy meeting new people. However this position isn't particularly challenging and has no room for advancement. I would love to gain more experience working with children before returning to university to continue Primary Teaching.

My parents have recently become foster carers and we welcomed two young girls into our family home last year. I have played a significant role in supporting them and set a positive example for the girls. I spend a lot of time with Sophie and Chloe, who are 10 and 12 years old. I enjoy taking them out swimming and to craft daft as we are very creative. I am able to help them with their homework and give them advice. I regularly babysit them at evenings and sometimes weekends. I am confident in dealing with any challenging behaviour.

I hold two full PVG disclosures.

I have a close relationship with my younger cousins, nieces and nephew who I love to spend time with and teach them new things. I like to take them out to the cinema and bowling. I regularly babysit for family and neighbours. When babysitting I am happy to make the children's dinner and do some cleaning/tidying up. I keep the children entertained, watch movies and play games before helping to get the children ready for bed and following any nightly routines. I then sit quietly and read a book, ensuring the children fall asleep without any problems until their parents return.

During my time at UWS I have been on three placements, two in middle school and one in the infant department. I planned, taught and evaluated stand alone and sequence lessons I assessed the children’s work and decided on next steps for the children’s learning. I was able to teach whole class and ability group lessons. I enjoyed teaching a variety of curricular areas. I felt immense satisfaction when teaching the children and supporting their learning of new things. I was able to build a relationship with both pupils and teachers. I have been faced with new challenges but enjoyed gaining new skills to overtake them; passing on my knowledge is exciting. I believe I can contribute to the positive development of children’s academic, social and emotional wellbeing.

During my free time I enjoy reading, going out walks or runs and also swimming.

I realise now where I could improve when progressing with my higher education and feel more able and confident to overcome the challenges ahead.