my letter

Essa é a minha carta.
Não coloquei a tradução, mas dá pra ter uma ideia. =)





Dear host family ,

My name is Rhanna , I'm 24 years old . I started Education College this year, which is the fulfilling of a dream for me since I am passionate about children and very interested in learning more about them and their discoverie´s process. I consider myself someone very determined, communicative, cheerful, caring and fun person. I live in Niterói (Brazil - RJ) with my family and I have two siblings. I'm the youngest and despite the age difference between me and them, we are very close to each other. We are a Christian family, raised with principles that define the way we live. 
Currently we have only one child in the family, my cousin, he is 11 years old now. But at the time he was born I still lived next to them and that allowed me to keep up with every aspect of this time of his life. 
To talk about me I have to start telling you about my interest in children. I´ve always had this passion for them and since I was a child myself I enjoyed being around kids and caring about them. I´ve always attended church and had much contact with many children. As I got older my passion has only increased! I haven't ever found a boring part in any of this (not even changing diapers or the cry for colic). Every part of it was always a challenge to me and I really liked it. All this passion became a professional interest and I have decided to follow my aunt´s advice and make this passion a career as she did. So I have started high school in a specialized school for such training. After that, I got a job in an Early Childhood Education School (Children from 9 months to 5 years old). I have learned a lot from this experience of almost a year. I have learned to double my attention, to analyze every single detail on the children, to give medicine on the right time and to follow a little bit of children´s development. It was wonderful! 
Besides my interest and passion in children, I also have hobbies and fun moments. I really like to watch some American TV series and practice English speaking with friends and family. I love to spend time with friends. I have friends whom I share similar willing and affinities, friends that God has placed in my path. With these friends I like to go to restaurants and snack bars. We like to go out to dance, wander around and go to the cinema, among others. Cooking is one of my favorite hobbies and it does not help me a lot to keep fit. Especially because I usually cook on my spare time, which is night time! I cook Brazilian and Italian food. I also like watching movies with my parents and going to the beach. I like to go to church considering it a teaching and learning place. I also love meeting new people and learning with them and I really find this a very healthy and important experience! 
My professional experience with children have began when my cousin was born and after that I started practical activities that I was supposed to do for the teaching training course. I have stayed for one week in each class of Elementary Education in public schools. During this period I have seen and lived with children in their school environment, I have stayed with them following their improvements and helping them on their needs. During each week in each of the classes my tasks were to guide them on their way from the school gates to the prayer place and then to their classes. In the classroom I had to explain the proposed activities and help the teacher to correct the activities that were already done. I´ve had a lot of fun, especially in the moments of recreation; we played ball and other games and was very enjoyable. I have learned that experience to teach and care for children 2-7 years. After that, I have had the opportunity to work for about an year in a school in which I had studied as a child. There, I have worked with children from 9 months to 5 years old and I have assisted the teachers with their classes. My main focus was in the nursery class which I was helping the adaptation of new babies at the school. I have also helped with other things, such as motor skill activities, feeding, changing diapers, bathing, teeth brushing, singing and much more. 
My most recent experiences have been the internship in a Canadian School that I´m still on it, my last job as a teacher in a NGO and also some personal activities such as caring for some friends´ children. I have taught different subjects to children between 5 and 7 years old, such as religious education, English, Portuguese and mathematics. We have also had produced projects that encompassed art, music, dance and citizenship. 
When I had finally found out about the Au Pair program I got really interested! My first expectation, as I have mentioned before, is to learn even more. I think what I will learn day-to-day with the kids will make much difference in my career. Furthermore, I want to improve English fluency and mainly improve my reading and writing in some courses in American universities. I also want to know more about the culture and get to know new beautiful places that I have always seen in movies and series. I would also like to closely monitor children with their school assignments and get to learn more about the American schools. I really want to meet new people as well, make new friends and travel. This is very important to me because I believe that this will add to my culture, personal and professional life. I believe I am a good candidate because, unlike others, my choice for this Au Pair program is not only for it being a cheaper exchange program, but because it involves a passion for me: kids and English Language. This program joins many things that I love and it is the opportunity I have always dreamed. My aim will always be the welfare of your children and I want to be there to help and add to your lives too. I know that as parents you expect much of an au pair, I know I need to be trustful and care for the children's needs while you may not be around. An au pair needs to be responsible and mature, needs to understand the importance of her role in the family and especially for the children. Need to be wise and smart, keep a level head, knowing how to teach with patience and making everyday´s chores lighter. 
From the moment I started thinking about the program I have been dreaming of my Host Family and asking God for them to be a family that has a lot in common with me. I hope my host family to be communicative and help me understand what is best for them and how can I help them. I hope you teach me patiently what I do not know and treat me with respect and empathy. I hope I can meet your expectations and I hope you will meet mine too. I know that nobody is perfect, but I also know that we can always strive to be better and give our best. That's what I want to be for my Host Family and that is what I hope they are for me. I know that this time I will spend with you will be, if not the best, one of the best times of my life. I'm very excited and cannot wait to be with my new family! Therefore I will consider each of you as a member of my own family and I will always try to respect you all and do my best. I will care for the children as if they were my own siblings or my own kids. 
I'll prioritize and respect them as children should always be treated. I will learn from you, the parents, what you want for your children, how you educate them and how you want me to be part of this process. I know that this experience will be positive for all of us and I also know that it is a way to jumpstart my career. I hope to return to Brazil with more knowledge and more ability to maybe open my own bilingual school and educate children transforming their lives through education.
Thank you for reading my letter and taking an interest in me! I am looking forward to meet you! We'll be a great team, a family! 
All the best, 
Rhanna Bastos de Aguiar