User:Diaza

My name is Adam Diaz. I am in the process of building this Wiki site in the goal of making a difference for current and prospective preschool teachers. While I should be doing my own homework writing lesson plans, I am putting time into this with hopes that it will meet my expectations in the end!

I was born and raised in southern California. I have lived in the High Desert for the majority of my life and it has been interesting to watch all of these tiny towns grow over time. I served in the United States Air Force for four years and came home to a very busy little community.

After my military service, I attended Victor Valley College (VVC) where I earned my Associate degree in Liberal Arts. I then attended California State University San Bernardino (CSUSB) where I earned Bachelor degrees in Psychology and in Human Development. Currently, I attend VVC again, this time working on an Associate degree in Child Development.

I have worked directly with children since 2010 when I volunteered with the Project CUIDAR program through CSUSB. This is an intervention program that is fully funded by a grant from First 5 to provide parenting classes at different locations around San Bernardino County. While parents attend our parenting classes, we also conduct enrichment groups for their preschool aged children, however the ages of the children's group range from 2 to 12 years old. Some of these children may have special needs ranging from: Autism, ADHD, foster children, various types of abuse, aggression, and parents are going through or are divorced.

I was also selected to work with other programs in the county. I was recommended to be part of the Safe House of the Desert in Thousand Palms, California. This program is a residential living facility for adolescent runaways and wards of the state (ages 12-17 years). My duties were to interact with the teens during their free time, assist with homework, and attend outings with the teens in the community. Additionally, I was also recommended to assist with Christian Counseling Services. This program provides mental health services for children and their families. I assisted in scoring assessments, entering data, providing childcare, observing Parent-Child Interaction Therapy sessions, and daily tasks of the clinicians.

It is my goal to receive the experience and education to offer my own parenting guidance classes. I believe that many issues in our culture and community can be improved upon by improved parenting techniques. Happy children raised to be productive citizens should reduce the jail/prison population. With a smaller prison population and a positive perspective on childhood education, money that the government allocates to jails could then be applied to the children to further our understanding of children's needs.

With more positive interactions with our children, they can grow up feeling valued and important. As they grow older to have their own children, the next generation can benefit from the efforts we put in today!