Latinas Learning and Leading

The step that I worked on for this week was interviewing my first young girl. The interview was a learning experience to say the very least. Before this interview, I had not developed my questions to ask and just winged it. Although it wasn’t the most horrible experience, I now realize the importance of being prepared. It was surprisingly hard to come up with questions on the spot (mostly follow up questions). Also, the interview was very one sided which is not what I had hoped but worked out that way anyway. I would ask a questions and she would answer and revert back to herself. From this interview I developed some questions I would like to bring up during less formal conversations and I would like my future “interviews” to be less formal and more conversational. But here is an overview:

How old are you? /What grade are you in?
14 and in 8thgrade

What about high school are you looking forward to?
Meeting new people and taking new classes.

What do you see yourself doing in the future?
Wedding planner or interior designer

Where did you learn about these careers?
Movies and TV

Do you know anyone that is currently doing that job?
No.

What about doing either one of these careers call your attention?
I am crafty, I love to paint, I like making stuff.

Do you belong to any clubs or programs that foster this for you?
Yes, I belong to the ART club and we meet every Tuesday.

Do you feel your parents (family) are supportive of your career choice?
Yes.

Are you going to go to College?
Yes.

Why?
I just am.

Who in your life has accomplished goals that you actually witnessed?
My sister—I admire her very much because of her perseverance but also because she accomplishes what she sets out to do. She is a great listener.

Are you friends going to College? If so, what are they studying?
Yes, one is going to study to be a surgeon and the other a veterinarian

Do you think they will accomplish their dreams?
Yes, because they are smart and their parents are supportive.

Have you ever been to a summer camp? If not, would you want to?
No, but it depends.

What are 5 things that you want to accomplish post College?
Own my own home, get married, have a family, be independent, travel (I really enjoyed going on summer road trips with family but as we grow up we travel less due to schedules and different responsibilities.

What advice would you give to someone that is in 6th grade?
Listen to what you think and not other people. Be independent.

What has been the best lesson/advice you have received from your parent(s)?
Not to make choices that other people have made and later regretted (example: not going to college)

What is something that is currently in your life or has been that you will not have in your life when you grow up?
Negative energy-- if someone is having a bad day, they try to get me to have a bad day too. I don’t like D-R-A-M-A either.

There were other questions that were asked but this is the majority of our interaction contained. From this interview her little brother a 2nd grader wanted to be interviewed too. I complied and really enjoyed the honesty of such a young mind. He really grilled me on why I was doing this?

Some of the things I learned were:

I need to be prepared

I need to bring my rhetoric down to an elementary school child level

I need to ask questions that really get to what I am trying to find out

I need to be able to communicate to people my vision/dream/purpose