Laura Granros
Interview
- Q: How did you decide The Chicago School was the right place for you?
- A: I graduated from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls with a bachelor's degree in psychology. I enjoyed studying several areas of psychology as an undergraduate. When I started coaching gymnastics at Hudson School of Gymnastics and working with children with disabilities at Fraser Child and Family Center, it became clear to me that I wanted to specialize in working with children and families. I decided to pursue school psychology because schools provide a wonderful context for interacting with and helping large numbers of children. School is where many aspects of development and personal growth take place. Experiences that children have in school largely influence their lives. I chose The Chicago School because it seemed to be a very active learning environment, closely connected with the surrounding communities. I felt I would receive training and experiences across diverse settings. I wanted to build competence working with individuals from various cultural backgrounds as well as experience working with individuals with a range of needs.
- Q: You were awarded an Albert Schweitzer Fellowship, which helps graduate students dedicate their time and service to underserved communities. What role did the school play in your receiving this award?
- A: The Chicago School's philosophy and values are aligned with The Schweitzer Fellowship goals. The Chicago School encourages students to become involved in local communities, especially where there is a great need for services. The Chicago School is dedicated to celebrating diversity and emphasizes social justice, integrity and reverence for those who we serve as developing professionals. Knowing that my school would support me in pursuing the Schweitzer Fellowship gave me more confidence in applying. Also, my experience volunteering as a teaching assistant in an underserved community (contributing to my school psych shadowing requirements at The Chicago School) introduced me to issues and situations that I may not have been aware of otherwise. The hands-on, personal experiences that my program encouraged were eye- opening for me.
- Q: Do you remember how or when you came up with the concept for your final project? Can you give us a brief description of the program?
- A: I developed the initial idea for Storyworks through a project in one of my school psychology courses. The goal was to develop a program proposal, which could be implemented in schools or other community sites. As I began to research various community needs and interventions, I found a great deal of literature that said that interactive activities not only have academic benefits, but more importantly, social and emotional benefits for children. For children who have experienced trauma or have poor social or coping skills, engaging with positive role models while sharing narratives or creating art can be very powerful. I decided to create an after-school program at Rachel Carson Elementary School, which would consist of weekly shared-book reading sessions, each week focusing on a theme such as self-esteem or anger management. Student volunteers from The Chicago School will go to the elementary school and read with children in small groups. Discussions and related art projects will follow the educational (themed) readings.
- Q: Was your idea always about an after-school program?
- A: Originally, I designed it to be carried out in shelters for homeless women and their children I had done a lot of research on the benefits of shared-book reading and art- making and the ways to build rapport and communication with children who have been exposed to trauma. It creates a dialogue between a child and an adult, and you can engage the child in discussion about the characters and making predictions, and talking about applying the lessons in the book to different experiences the child has had. So it can really be good for building emotional skills, and just building relationships. Also, the art-making helps many children who have experienced trauma; they might not be able to talk about certain issues, but art is a very natural way for kids to express themselves to communicate, and even to get to know themselves further through different materials.
- Q: What was the most challenging part of creating the plan?
- A: Finding and reviewing storybooks for the program has been challenging. I need to allocate stories that feature the weekly themes (self-esteem, coping skills, social skills, etc.) and will also be engaging and exciting for a third-grade crowd. I am still in the process of developing the curriculum and obtaining the needed materials.
- Q: Can you tell us about the support The Chicago School provided through the execution of your plan?
- A: My academic advisor, Dr. Walsh, is available for me to consult with regarding program development and methods and other issues that may arise. The Department of Community Partnerships and Service Learning at The Chicago School is helping me recruit volunteers for the program. Student volunteers will travel to Rachel Carson Elementary School for shared book-reading and art activities with the children. I am going to have a booth at The Chicago School's Job and Volunteer Fair advertising the program to grad students who are looking for opportunities to get involved. Also, involvement with Storyworks may potentially contribute to first-year school psych students' required school shadowing hours. The School Psychology program, and The Chicago School as a whole, has been very supportive and involved in my program.
- Q: So after you train your volunteers, will you be touching base with them?
- A: Yes. I'm going to be there doing each section right along with them. There are going to be about 10 to 20 students involved from Carson Elementary School, ranging from second grade to fourth grade roughly. We'll be breaking them into small groups for the storybook reading and the art project. So we'll probably have about five volunteers as well as myself for the afternoon. And we'll also be meeting outside of the sessions back at The Chicago School periodically, just so we get feedback from the volunteers.
- Q: Your program involves using children's books to help kids explore and express their feelings. What was your favorite book when you were a child, and why?
- A: As a child, I loved The Berenstein Bears series of children's books. I enjoyed the colorful, detailed illustrations and all of the situations the Bear family went through. These stories always contained a lesson but achieved it with humor and imagination... things that really engage kids.
