Journal Entry 7 - Sherlyn Aldas

Emelin was absent due to jury duty so I worked at the Audobon clinic with one of the foster grandparents. I read to a kid and then he read back to me but he was not so sure about the words so he made it up. He had a very vivid imagination and he made me laugh.

Later on, a lady with a child asked me to help her translate. I felt great being able to help her, especially since I haven't translated for my mom in a while and it made me feel useful. I also have been thinking of an idea in order to get people interested in participating in my book donation. I was thinking of offering a prize as more people would be interested in donating more books.

Journal Entry 7 - Sherlyn Aldas

Journal Entry 6 - Sherlyn Aldas

I have not spent a lot of time at my externship due to schedule changes. However, I did not just spend time doing nothing. I decided to start working on a new way to get more books for the Reach Out and Read program.

I also got evaluated by Emelin, my mentor for my performance review. Although she mostly had positive things to say, she wants me to converse more and be a bit more outgoing. I shared with her the idea of extending the book drive and she told me I should go to her in case I need more help but to mostly try to solve the problems immediately and face on.

Journal Entry 6 - Sherlyn Aldas

Journal Entry - Sherlyn Aldas 5

On Thursday, I went to New York Presbyterian Hospital to see Emelin after a long break. I learned a lot about her after asking her questions for the Mentor of the Month survey. She gave me advice which I intend to follow. After that, I went to Audobon Clinic to read to the children but it was mostly filled with infants so I instead began talking with one of the foster grandparents and we discussed the Haiti earthquake. I was a bit inspired because she told me that she was planning to donate to the Haitians.

Journal Entry - Sherlyn Aldas 5

Mentor Informational Interview - Sherlyn Aldas

This is an informational interview between Mentor Connection student, Sherlyn Aldas and her mentor, Emelin Martinez. Ms. Martinez is the Reach out and Read coordinator at NY Presbyterian hospital.

Sherlyn: What is your official title?

Emelin: Reach Out and Read Coordinator.

Sherlyn: What were your goals when you were 16?

Emelin: My goals were to graduate high school, go to college and get my first car!

Sherlyn: Have the goals stayed the same throughout your life?

Emelin: No, they have changed.

Sherlyn: What are your current goals?

Emelin: Well now I want to go back to college and get a Masters degree in social work and start a community pre-school.

Sherlyn: Why did you choose to pursue your goals/career?

Emelin: I like to help children, especially those who are underprivileged.

Sherlyn: What books or movies have influenced your career goals and choice?

Emelin: The Purpose Driven Life.

Sherlyn: What qualifications, courses, experiences or work did you do before going to University?

Emelin: I worked at a pre-school for two years and I also worked in a camp.

Sherlyn: What university did you go to?

Emelin: Fort Lauderdale College for pre-law and I got a Bachelors in Human Services at St. Thomas University.

Sherlyn: How many years have you been in school after high school?

Emelin: 6 years.

Sherlyn: Was tuition an obstacle? What advice can you give me on this?

Emelin: It was hard to get financial aid. Do not get a student loan unless absolutely necessary and be sure to look for scholarships.

Sherlyn: How do you handle obstacles/roadblocks?

Emelin: I face my problems head on and find a solution or an alternative. I also pray to God to help me.

Sherlyn: Did you have to confront any obstacles to become what you are today?

Emelin: Not really.

Sherlyn: What are your strengths and weaknesses?

Emelin: My strength is that I am cooperative, empathizing, organized, compassionate and persistent. My weakness is that I am a perfectionist and very sentimental.

Sherlyn: Who is your hero?

Emelin: Jesus Christ.

Sherlyn: Who do you listen to? Who do you accept advise from?

Emelin: My mom or anyone who is an expert in the situation I need help in. It varies.

Sherlyn: Do you have personal or professional mentors?

Emelin: My personal mentor when I was in high school was Shermaine Brown, who i worked in the pre-school with.

Sherlyn: What overall advice do you have for me in terms of the career I want to pursue?

Emelin: Make sure your career is something you love, that you would do for free. That is how you know you love it. Find what you are passionate about and enjoy, no matter what obstacles come along.

Mentor Informational Interview - Sherlyn Aldas

Writing Workshop - Sherlyn Aldas

Exercise: Learning Log on Resident Dr. Blair Heinke's lecture on diet and exercise.

On Wednesday a resident, Dr. Heinke, came by to discuss diet and nutrition with the group. She asked us how we exercise and she gave us some ideas on how to continue. An example was using a pedometer and to make a goal in order to encourage exercise. She also told us that when making goals, to be sure to make them realistic goals. Fore example, we can not expect to lose 20 pounds in a month and if we do and fail, it will only make us give up. Another topic Dr. Heinke informed us of was about artificial preservatives and trans fats. Artificial preservatives are chemicals placed in foods in order to prevent spoiling, which can usually happen a lot quicker without it. However, these chemicals are very foreign to our bodies so it makes it hard to break them down. Trans fats are also similar; they are added in order to make food taste better but they are also hard to digest. Dr. Heinke recommended eating more organic food and healthier food as well such as vegetables and fruits or whole grain break. Even though Dr. Heinke gave us lots of information, I wish to learn about the chemicals and other things added to fast food which makes people addicted to it.

Writing Workshop - Sherlyn Aldas

Journal Entry 4 - Sherlyn Aldas

Today I went to the Audubon Clinic where I was going to meet Emelin. It was pretty slow at first since there were only a couple of infants and most of the children were sleeping. Later on some kids came in but I found it hard since usually one of the foster grandparents is there to help me out but it turns out that one of them left early so I was on my own. However, in a couple of minutes a bunch of kids came and began to play so it was difficult to get them to stray from there. Luckily, Emelin came by to see me and helped me out by saying I should ask a kid first if they are interested in reading. I began to read a book to a little boy who had to leave because he was going to get checked and weighed in. Emelin then called me to go read to this little girl a story. The story was in Spanish so it wasn’t that difficult but I won’t pretend I didn’t have my clumsy moments, such as stumbling upon long words since it has been a while that I read out loud in Spanish (3 years ago to be exact). However, I am pleased to say that she enjoyed the story and kept asking me to read until she got called in to see the doctor. After discussing a couple of things with Emelin, she left and once again I was alone. Then a mother came in with her two children and asked me to read to them. She was there too so I was a bit nervous since I was scared how I would seem pronouncing words and the tone of my voice. She seemed to enjoy the stories; she laughed and asked her kids what they thought about them. One of them didn’t enjoy the ending to Henny Penny since the hen and her poultry friends end up being gobbled up by a tricky fox. I didn’t know how to avert that situation so I learned that I must be able to think more quickly off my feet. Overall this week was very enjoyable and I hope to experience the joy I get from entertaining the kids with stories.

Journal Entry 4 - Sherlyn Aldas

Journal Entry 3 - Sherlyn Aldas

On Monday, I began my day by working at the Audobon Clinic. However, I was alone since none of the foster grandparets were present at the moment. Although there was a small amount of kids, I was not able to read to any of them since they were so into playing with toys. I couldn't really interact with them at all. Hopefully next time it will be easier.

Journal Entry 3 - Sherlyn Aldas

Journal Entry 2 - Sherlyn Aldas

On Monday, Emelin had me continue stocking books to finish up before winter break starts. I'm getting better at remembering the sticker color and age group now. The day went quickly and soon the day was over.

Tuesday was the day that I was going to go to the Audibon Clinic along with a new volunteer. Emelin was very ecstatic to finally have us read to children. Unfortunately when we arrived to the clinic, the reading table was removed and the staff could not bring it back. Emelin was disappointed and we retured to New York Presbyterian to finish stocking the books. She told me that she was sure that by Thursday, I would be reading to the children.

On Thursday, I went to the clinic just like Emelin had said and I emt with one of the foster gradnparents who was reading to the children. I was waiting for someone to cmoe read to. I met a little boy who kept asking for more and more. I felt really great helping this little boy who honestly loved reading. It gave me even more inspiration to start a book drive at my school. The poster is above - Please bring in new and gently used books before December 11th!

Journal Entry 2 - Sherlyn Aldas

Journal Entry 1 - Sherlyn Aldas (11/24/09)

This past week, I have begun working in the Reach Out and Read program in the New York Presbyterian (NYP) Hospital with my mentor Emelin Martinez. On the first day, she introduced me to another volunteer and we began to watch a training video to help us learn how to interact with children according to age. After that, we left the NYP hospital and took a train to go to the Broadway Hospital, which has an extension of the Reach Out and Read program. Emelin taught us how to organize the books according to age group by labeling them with stickers. She also had us memorize what color stickers belonged to what age group. She also introduced us to nurses and doctors to get well acquainted by. Finally by the end of the day, we began reading to some of the kids who seemed to enjoy reading, especially after waiting in the hospital for long hours.

The second day, Emelin wasn’t there but she left me instructions to work on while she was busy. She instructed me to work on a poster for a book drive to be held in Washington Irving and also to see how many books needed to be stocked. When she returned, she told me that besides reading to children, she also wanted to make activities that go along with the story. I spent the rest of the time researching a couple of activities based on the books listed. After finding a couple of them, I printed them out and shared them with Emelin, who will be posting them with the children next week.

Finally, on Thursday, we began to label the books according to the age group with the help of two foster grandparents who were going to help me next week to read to the children. They told me about the several activities that they did with the children, such as reading with puppets and helping some of the older kids with homework. I am already familiar with these activities after working in the preschool internship so I think it would be easy to adapt to these concepts. I learned more about the labels and memorized which color represented which age group. Next week, I should be able to work with the kids.

Journal Entry 1 - Sherlyn Aldas (11/24/09)