Introducing Di, short for Diana.
Di is here with us for 6 months as part of a Danish degree course in Early Year’s Education.
She wanted to write a blog post to introduce herself and her motivations behind why she has chosen to pursue a career in Early Years.
Di is currently based in the Den, but can also be found across all rooms of Free Rangers.
Everyone say hi to Di!
Hi, I'm Diana, and I’m a Danish student here at Free Rangers for 6 months. I am one of those who have chosen to take a half-year placements abroad. I am very excited about the opportunity to be here and hopefully learn a lot. I think it’s an important work for the whole community. How we, as role models, can develop and educate these children who will grow up to become active citizens of the great community.
MY CHILDHOOD
Another reason why I have chosen to work with this area pulls traces back to my own childhood, where I myself fought with my own self-esteem and self-confidence.
Why would anyone waste their time on me?
Why am I always being so stupid and always appear out so awkward and almost impossible to have a normal conversation with?
Why am I not like the others?
It was just some of the questions I always asked myself being young….
I had a kind of a rough childhood and experienced a lot of bullying, some of it because of growing up in a family that didn’t have much money. My mother was at home trying to get it all together in her best possible way. But with a grumpy father in the house drinking too much, it could be difficult to make the economy fit and creating a safe environment for us. I therefore spent most of the time on my own, since I didn’t feel I belonged anywhere. I've always had a feeling of being in the way and not being good enough for what I was doing.
The feeling inside being useless has been strengthened all the way through my life, mostly it is by others' comments about things I do, words will always hit me hard and I still sometimes have to think extra if it’s just for fun. Because I have heard all these words before while growing up, and back then it was not for fun or joking around. When I think back, the hardest was from my mathematics teacher who almost thought it was fun that someone could be so stupid to solve mathematical tasks. So I was always pointed out and had to solve them by the board. - It took me time to understand he was being a bully instead of being a supporting teacher.
WHY I WISH I HAD GONE TO NURSERY
So how did it even come to that point I had a hard time in school and wasn’t confident? My own conclusion is, that it was because of I never gone to any type of child day-care and always been at my mother's home until the day I started school. Therefore in the beginning of my childhood, I have not learned the same social skills as my classmates. And of course the fact that I had an old school teacher who failed to support me. I am sure that safe surroundings, support and the learning of social skills from a good teacher are a major factor in a child's life.
THE IMPORTANCE OF CHALLENGING YOURSELF
It has taken me many years to become who I am today and the ability to socialize with others. I am now at a place in my life where it's time for me to get new experience and I find it exciting to get out on my own feet and learn to navigate in new situations. In my placement here at Free Rangers I will learn about new methods and get an insight into other ways of doing things. At the same time, being here is giving me a new knowledge about myself, and Iearning about a new and different culture than I am used to.
I think it is a good thing for me and a good challenge, trying to start from scratch with the building of new personal and professional relationships, and then it’s even in a language I’m not used to speak daily.
So with my own childhood in mind is it one of the reasons I feel dedicated to this area. I want the best for all children and in somehow achieve success in life. Not everyone needs to be good at mathematics. Because as Howard Gardner says:
“It is not about how smart you are; it is about HOW you’re smart”
I know that I can't change the whole world, but by being here, I can get knowledge about the world, that I can use to make a difference for someone else in their journey through life.