http://www.kinderfrogs.tcu.edu/

I found this image at this website.

I think this image would be a good addition to my paper because it does show visualiziation to a specific scene in my paper.  This particular scene is the scene where I explain when the children have gym class and they play on the mats.  I also exhibit multiple times in my paper their gleaming smiles and I think this is an incredible example of how happy the children are!    I think this image could help the reader understand how normal these children are, happy children.  But at the same time, it also exhibits (with the use of the mat’s he is in) that they are playing in the gym  which could also be reinforced in my paper to describe a scene. 

These last two images were also found on the kinderfrogs website, however they were found in the “About Kinderfrogs” section.  I think these two are very valid also.  The little girl reading the book is also a scene in my paper.  I think the last image though is the best yet.  The reason I think this is because a man is helping a child and is playing with this child.  The reason I find this image important is because the whole point of kinderfrogs is for involvement with the children and for volunteers to come in and help.  This image perfectly displays that.  It displays a child learning, while volunteers are also helping! 

            As the smiling children walk into school holding their parents hand, they check in, and place their lunchbox in the cubby with their name on it.  As they hustle and bustle, finding their place mat on the floor they joyously give their mothers a goodbye hug.  The parent’s wave goodbye, and the day begins.  While this sounds like the average kindergarteners, this is actually the average morning for a student at Kinderfrogs, an early education center for children with Down’s Syndrome.             

While most parents experience taking their child to their first day of kindergarten, and talk their daughter through their first date, some other parents are less fortunate.  These are the parents who have enormous amounts of patience and kindness; these are the parents with children with disabilities. 

            Throughout the campus of TCU, Kinderfrogs is a well-known school located on campus.  This is a school with a wide number of TCU students volunteering to play with the children and help the teachers out.   I walked in for my first time about a month ago.  I immediately noticed the gleaming faces of the children and the incredible amounts of joy presented in their faces.  They seemed so incredibly normal to me, just like my brother at home.  But there was something captivating about them, and different at the same time.  I wanted to know more instantly. 

Kinderfrogs and other day care schools offer programs to help.  Some of them include Mommy and Me classes, music and movement, dance and adapted physical education, sensory activities, sign language, computer instruction, art education and socialization skills.   ( I want to add observations here and maybe something an interviewee said)

————- THE REST OF MY PAPER I need observations to talk about and interviewing WHICH I WILL HAVE TOMORROW AND WILL EDIT   I want to hear about:

·      -The emotional attachment

·      how the parents handle everything

·      is there anything they do to help the parents

·      is it really tough job for them to do

·      why did they chose the job

·      how do they feel about education for these children in public schools where special attention isn’t constant and not as hands on

·      I want to hear about their daily routines

·      I want to play with the children and see how my emotions change with theirs

http://www.silive.com/news/index.ssf/2008/11/a_new_hope_for_kids_with_menta.html

I stumbled upon this website and found things I didn’t even think about that actually can enrich my paper.  I am going to incorporate the brutality that kids go through when they attend a regular school opposed to one where they can fit in more comfortably.  This issues included things such as: “The need to focus on giving them the tools they need to face the challenges of their disability.  There’s no dumbed-down track.  The expectation is that everyone is going to college and that expectation makes all the difference.”  Schools for children who need special attention gives them hope and a future ahead of them.  However, when they go to a regular school they can experience being tormented and punished for their illness rather than praised for how hard they work.   Another woman in the article actually said: Siri Kagan – a West Brighton resident whose 10 year old son has learning disabilities, she said loved that the school’s academic curriculum is based on entrance requirements for Harvard University. 

While in this other article I found a lot of negative remarks about those who have disabilities and the effect on families when they seek help.  Clearly, some places are for children with more severe symptoms than others but this illness can effect families:

The illness, and sometimes the treatment, can strain marriages, jobs, finances. Parents must monitor medications, navigate therapy sessions, arrange special school services. Some families must switch neighborhoods or schools to escape unhealthy situations or to find support and services. Some keep friends and relatives away.

Parents can feel guilt, anger, helplessness. Siblings can feel neglected, resentful or pressure to be problem-free themselves.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/10/22/health/22kids.html

NOW this website has details about tips for teachers when dealing with students with mental retardation as well as parents.  This article also shows a promising side to those who have retardation and can get help and go to schools.  I want to explore both sides and how schooling in a regular school can be incredibly difficult on a “special child” and I also want to explore how incredible it is to go to a school such as Kinderfrogs and have that treatment.  And by interview and observation I want to see the effects it has on the teacher.

http://spiritlakevr.org/NAFS/downloadfiles/mentalretardation.pdf

            My heart was pounding as the doors opened to my last sorority house of the day.  My head was beaming with sweat and I wondered if they would notice how nervous I was behind my smile.  The doors opened and I was completely blindsided by the sight of 180 girls jumping and screaming “Go Tri Delta be a Tri Delta” – and then I entered.

             Tri Delt captured me at once.  I was taken back by how loud they cheered for me as I entered the house.  All of the girls made me feel at home right away.  They walked me through the room and sat me down, making me feel at ease in the chapter room.  Instead of kneeling in front of me, as most other sororities had done, they sat next to me making me feel equal.  I was truly content, and excited to meet all the great people surrounding me in the room.   

            I joined Tri Delt In August of 2008 as an incoming freshman.  Tri Delt is a national a social organization, also known as a “sisterhood” that is offered on campus for girls that attend the college. In order to be accepted into the sorority, you go through an incredibly turbulent road.   This road was rocky, but well worth the ride.  The steps I took were quite tedious.  First, all the girls rushing would get into small groups, and go to different sorority houses each day in order to get to know the girls and find out where you would fit in best.  This made the experience much easier because we would get to know the girls in what they called “rho gamma” groups which were small groups with other PNM’s (potential new members) with non-biased leaders who led the girls through rush.  These groups also gave girls the opportunity to meet new people.  Then each day we would have to lessen the amount of houses we wanted to go back to.  And by the last day PNM’s had a maximum of three choices of houses.  The experience itself was quite nerve-racking, but incredibly exciting at the same time.  In each of the houses the girls would perform skits, give us different drinks, and tell us all about their sorority life.  The final step consisted of opening up a single letter from the chapter that had chosen you.   This single letter told it all.  And right when I opened mine, I knew I had made the right decision.  That was the “it” moment for me.

            The very first night of being involved in the sorority, I was beyond excited.  We played games to get to know the girls and I had a beaming smile on my face full of thrill to meet all the people that had been selected to be a part of my pledge class.   This was what we had been anticipating all summer; would we find a sorority that fit our mold, and would we have fun with them?  Tri Delt had planned activities to get to know one another and we were able to bond immediately. The first month we had so many events to get to know the girls, and to my surprise I made close friends immediately.   Fraternity parties or Tri Delt Mixers were always a fun way to get to know many of the freshmen.  Date nights were by far the most exciting part of getting to know my pledge sisters and some guys on campus.  This is when the freshman in a certain fraternity asks our pledge class out on a date.  At first I was baffled and confused on how this “date night” was going to work.  When really, it consisted generally of a fun dinner with dancing and going to mingle at the fraternity house or at the party of the night. 

After we got to know the girls in our pledge class, it was time to make friends with the sophomore class.  We had “big little week” where we found out who our “big sister” was going to be.  It felt like a whole new rush week; getting to know the girls and finding out which ones you did and did not click with.  It was a hard and naïve choice, but it worked out well for me.  Tri Delta even made it an exhilarating event to find out who your big sister was going to be.   The process began with getting a hat with your name on it in the chapter room, and then finding the girl with the matching hat in the house, which led you to your “big sister”.   This made getting to know the upper class much more fun and we also got to have family dinners with your extended families.  I have a cousin, an aunt, and a grand big who is my big sisters “big” so I have quite the Tri Delt family.

            Clearly there are parts of the sorority that must remain secret including initiation and the talk amongst chapter.   The language is very private and we have to say certain things to begin chapter meetings and to end them.  We have songs we sing while initiation.  Also during rush, each sorority makes up a routine, skit, and songs, which makes each of the sororities completely unique.

            Throughout the course in which I have been involved with Tri Delt, I have adopted many new and interesting values.  While we have social events we also must take part in community service each semester.  We also doing small things such as bringing in books, staples, clothes, and trinkets for the needy.  Although I hate to admit it, I never really did these things in my hometown or with my community at home.  Being required to do community service has opened my eyes to many new experiences.  I recently served as a volunteer at Kinderfrogs, which is located on TCU campus.  This is a school for the mentally disabled in particularly Down Syndrome children.  The ages range from two to even twenty-five.  I got the lovely opportunity of working with the youngest, and they were adorable.  While it is an incredibly fun thing to do, it has also taught me more values and to get involved in more community service because it can be more fun than you may presume.   I think this is one of the most wonderful things we as a sorority take part in.

            Now, when I enter the doors to Tri Delta I no longer have fast heartbeats, and beads of sweats of nervousness.  I am truly at home.  Especially with my pledge class of 46 girls, in the Phi Lambda chapter; solely the best community I have ever been a part of.  Its diversity, excitement, service, and everlasting friendship make it extremely important to me.  While I’ve only been involved for five months, I can only imagine the endless opportunities I will endure over the next three and a half years.

KINDERFROGS 

1.      

a.    a.  I am interested in the subculture of the school Kinderfrogs in Fort Worth. 

b.    http://www.kinderfrogs.tcu.edu/   This is a school of early childhood education for children with Down Syndrome and for developing children.  It’s a learning environment for children with disabilities.

Beyond providing early childhood educational services to children with Down Syndrome, the mission of KinderFrogs School is to serve as an on-campus-training site for TCU students in the School of Education and other university programs. TCU students are an active and vital part of KinderFrogs School as observers, practice teachers, classroom aides and beginning educational researchers. TCU professors are also available to offer their expertise and knowledge to the KinderFrogs School staff and students.

2.     I want to learn more about this subculture because I think it’s amazing how much patience the teachers who work there have.  I want to know what they learn from this experience of working with these children and if they find it difficult at times.  I think I am really interested in this because it’s often very hard for me to even volunteer for a few hours because I don’t know if what I am doing is right etc.  I want to hear how it affects their lives, and if they find it difficult.

3.     I don’t know if there’s a specific stereotype for people who work at Kinderfrogs, but rather the idea that the people who work there are really kind.  I also think I might find the people to be really too kind and maybe get too involved in the work; treating the children as if they were their own.  I also think they are considered to be very patient people to be able to deal with such an tedious job.  All of these things are what I assume about the subculture.   I assume that the people get involved in their work, have to be connected with childhood, and that they love the children.  Some may say they picked the job because its easiest, but I think it would be so incredibly hard.  The teachers have to know sign language, and certain routines on trying to help the children learn more. 

4.     I plan on going to Kinderfrogs one day after school and asking if I could observe how they interact with the children for an English paper.  Then I will ask one of the teachers a few questions on how it is working with the children in this school and the affects it has on their life.  

My heart was pounding as the doors opened to my last sorority house of the day.  My head was beaming with sweat and I put on smile wondering if they would notice how nervous I was behind my coy smile.  The doors opened and I was completely blindsided by the sight of 180 girls jumping and screaming “Go Tri Delta be a Tri Delta” – and then I entered.

             That was the moment I knew I was going to be a Tri Delta.  All of the girls were incredibly genuine and made me feel at home right away.  They walked me through the room and sat me down, making me feel at ease in the chapter room.  Instead of kneeling in front of me, as most other sororities had done, they sat next to me making me feel equal.  I was truly content, and excited to meet all the great people surrounding me in the room.   

            I joined Tri Delta In August of 2008 as an incoming freshman; a social organization, also known as a “sisterhood” that is offered on campus for girls that attend the college. In order to be accepted into the sorority, you go through an incredibly turbulent road.   It was rocky, but well worth the ride.  The steps we took were quite tedious.  First, we would get into small groups, and go to different sorority houses each day in order to get to know the girls and find out where you would fit in best.  This made the experience much easier because we would get to know the girls in what they called “rho gamma” groups which were small groups they placed you in with non-biased leaders who led the girls through rush, while giving an opportunity to meet new people.  Then each day we would have to lessen the amount of houses we wanted to go back to.  And by the last day you had a maximum of three choices of houses.  The experience itself was quite nerve-racking, but incredibly exciting at the same time.  In each of the houses the girls would perform skits, give us different drinks, and tell us all about their sorority life.  And the final step consisted of opening up a single letter.   This single letter told it all.  And right when I opened mine, I knew I had made the right decision.  That was the “it” moment for me.

            The very first night of being involved in the sorority, I was beyond excited.  We played games to get to know the girls and I had a beaming smile on my face full of thrill to meet all the people that had been selected to be a part of my pledge class.   This was what we had been anticipating all summer; would we find a sorority that fit our mold, and would we have fun with them?  And indeed I did.  We played games to get to know one another and were able to bond immediately. The first month we had so many events to get to know the girls, and to my surprise I made close friends immediately.    Through all sorts of mixers, whether it is a Tri Delt function, or a mixer the fraternities put on.   Date nights were by far the most exciting part of getting to know my pledge sisters and some guys on campus.  This is when the freshman in a certain fraternity asks our pledge class out on a date.  At first I was baffled and confused on how this “date night” was going to work.  When really, it consisted generally of a fun dinner with dancing and going to mingle at the fraternity house or at the party of the night. 

After we got to know the girls in our pledge class, it was time to make friends with the Sophomore class.  We had “big little week” where we found out who our “big sister” was going to be.  It felt like a whole new rush week; getting to know the girls and finding out which ones you did and did not click with.  It was a hard and naïve choice, but it worked out well for me.  Tri Delta even made it an exhilarating event to find out who your big sister was going to be.   The process began with getting a hat with your name on it in the chapter room, and then finding the girl with the matching hat in the house, which led you to your “big sister”.   This made getting to know the upper class much more fun and we also got to have family dinners with your extended families.  I have a cousin, an aunt, and a grand big so I have quite the Tri Delt family.

            Clearly there are parts of the sorority that must remain secret including initiation and the talk amongst chapter.   The language is very private and we have to say certain things to begin chapter meetings and to end them.  We also have songs we sing while initiation.  Also during rush, each sorority makes up a routine, skit, and songs, which makes each of the sororities completely unique.

            Throughout the course in which I have been involved with Tri Delta, I have adopted many new and interesting values.  While we have social events we also must take part in certain amounts of community service a semester, while also doing small things such as bringing in books, staples, clothes, and trinkets for the needy.  Although I hate to admit it, I never really did these things in my hometown or with my community at home.  Also, being required to do community service has opened my eyes to many new experiences.  I recently served as a volunteer at Kinderfrogs, which is located on TCU campus right behind Colby Hall Dormitory.  This is a school for the mentally disabled in particularly Down Syndrome children.  The ages range from two to even twenty-five.  I got the lovely opportunity of working with the youngest, and they were adorable.  While it’s also an incredibly fun thing to do, it has taught me more values and to get involved in more community service because it can be more fun than you may presume.   I think this is one of the most wonderful things we as a sorority take part in.

            Now, when I enter the doors to Tri Delta I no longer have fast heartbeats, and beads of sweats of nervousness.  I am truly at home.  Especially with my pledge class of 46 girls, in the Phi Lambda chapter; solely the best community I have ever a part of.  Its diversity, excitement, service, and everlasting friendship make it extremely important to me.  While I’ve only been involved for five months, I can only imagine the endless opportunities I will endure over the next three and a half years.