I would like to begin my journal by saying the meeting we had last Wednesday was well needed and very appropriate. I enjoyed the friendly atmosphere, conversation, and food of course. The meeting answered some questions for me personally and I think it helped others as well. It was a good experience and I am glad I had the opportunity to participate.
I must admit that I am very excited for the end of this semester. I have been waiting for the “twinkle of light” at the end of the tunnel for some time now. This week I constructed my most challenging genre yet, or maybe I just felt like it was the toughest because I had to tie all of my genres together. I found this rather difficult because all of my genres are focused on the same subject but several of them look at the topic in very different ways. Initially, I thought I would write a story to combine my writings but after thinking some more I changed my mind. I thought taking excerpts from a personal journal of the clinician’s would be a great way to unify my works. By taking this approach I was able to show a personal side of the clinician showing her thoughts about her day and her job. I was pleased with my unifying genre and I am excited to see how my peers review it. Now, having the last genre off my shoulders I do think things will get less stressful, or so I hope.
I am looking forward to pulling all of my research together to have a complete final project. I have been working hard and I am excited to see the finished product.

Adams, M.J (1990). Thinking and Learning about
Print Cambridge, Massachusetts: Institute
of Technology.

Adams, M. J., Foorman, B.R., Lundberg, I., & Beeler,
T. (1998). Phonemic Awareness in Young
Children: A Classroom Curriculum.Baltimore,
Maryland: Paul H. Brookes Publishing Co.

U.S. Department of Health and Human
Resources.(2001). REPORT OF THE
NATIONAL READING PANEL.

U.S. Department of Health and Human
Resources.(2000). REPORT OF THE
NATIONAL READING PANEL.

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**The following are excerpts from an SLP's personal journal. Enjoy!

• Date: 08-26-02
  I start my new job tomorrow, my first in the school system, and I am very nervous. I think I will do fine, however, I hope the children I will be working with and their parents will be somewhat cooperative. Beginning something new is always a little scary for me but I have learned that you just have to jump in and give it your best shot. I want my clients and their families to feel comfortable around me and understand that I am a person just like them. I composed a letter to send home with my new clients to familiarize them with me and give them contact information to reach me at anytime. Well, I guess I better get some rest for the big day tomorrow, wish me luck!

I think I am going to like my new job. Everyone I have met so far has been very welcoming and helpful in my new adjustment. I feel like this will be a great experience, although, I am sure it will be stressful at times and that is when I need to take a time out and do things I am interested in and enjoy. Taking time out often gives me a second wind, even writing my journal entries help. Yesterday I did something very fun and adventurous, I went white water rafting with my family. It was very fun yet tiring because we journeyed 14 miles down the Gauley River. This will be something that I will keep in my memory for years to come. Goodnight for now.

Well, it has been an end to yet another busy day and like every other day I have gotten myself into another project. Since I am the SLP at our school, I have been given the assignment to work with the Title One teacher on a Phonological Awareness presentation to better inform parents what phonological awareness is and how it can be helpful. I am excited about this presentation because many parents or caregivers don't understand how much they can help their children in their learning by teaching them to identify and manipulate sounds. I hope I am able to keep my motivation about this project so I can deliver the appropriate message. Goodnight for now.

It is hard to believe that one year ago our nation was attacked by terrorist and our world has been changed forever. I think many people took time out today to reflect and remember many lives that were innocently lost one year ago today. This is such a tragedy but we must move on and do what we do well. Today, I wrote a poem in regards to Sept. 11 and it helped me feel better about the situation. Then I was thinking about what I am currently working on at school and I decided to write a poem about phonological awareness as well, just to give me a different view on the whole subject. The poem went like this:

Phonological Awareness
focuses on sounds, letters, and rhyming
at school and at play
while reading stories and playing games
to increase one's awareness and produce better readers

I was proud of my poem, it gave me a different outlook on something I work with everyday.

Yesterday at work I had some parents contact me because they have concerns with their son speech-language development. This family is new to the area and they have a foreign background, which they think is contributing to their son's problem. This is something new for me because I haven't worked with a child that has been raised bilingually. I have read some articles and tried to prepare myself for the meeting I have with them tomorrow. Please wish me Good Luck, I'll write tomorrow and let you know how it went.

Today has been a lousy day, it has rained all day and it's cold too. Other than the weather I feel like my day was pretty productive. I had an interview with one of my clients and his parents. I think it went good, the parents seem like they will be very supportive and that is always good when thinking of a prognosis.

I am feeling stress more than ever this week. I have been preparing for a convention in Morgantown on Thursday where I am doing a presentation. I think I have everything together but I always forget something. I am excited to leave on Thursday so I can just get away for a couple days! I was able to get a substitute SLP to fill in for me while I am gone and this made me feel better about leaving. I prepared lesson plans for my sub to follow so my clients will get some practice while I am absent. This makes me feel better about leaving if I know they are still getting the proper instruction. Now, I guess I need to finish packing so I'll be ready for the trip.

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