BY LEYLA ASHRAF
Dr. Sara Williams, Scott Stoll, Dr. Farrah Jacquez, Dr. Carlie Trott, and a group of 14 University of Cincinnati students partnered with Parker Woods Montessori to implement and assess Dream It! A Playbook to Spark Your Awesomeness. The Dream It! Playbook was created by Dr. Sara Williams and Scott Stoll with the intention to teach children to become more aware of their dreaming capabilities. The goal of the UC student facilitators was to collect data from the participants from Parker Woods Montessori and track their dreaming progress through a pre/post survey, each chapter of the Dream It! Playbook, and a survey made specifically for this study. The study occurred over a nine-week period. Each week, throughout each meeting and chapter covered, we saw growth in mindset and hopefulness in most participants.
Having not worked with kids before, I had no idea what to expect. I remember being nervous before walking in on the first day of facilitating, but having that feeling be replaced by excitement as soon as I entered the room. All of the kids were happy to see us and to begin the Dream It! Playbook.
By the end of the program, each child in my group would volunteer to read out loud, which was something they struggled with in the beginning. They were always open to sharing their thoughts and dreams with the group. A lot had changed since the first day, for them and for me. After working together for nine weeks, a bond had been formed. On the last day of facilitating, one of my students told me she “wished she could put me in her pocket, so I could always go to school with her.”
When presented with the course description a couple weeks before starting, I hesitated. Looking back now, I feel lucky to have been a part of this amazing study. Through this, I was able to work alongside many passionate people who all had the goal of supporting the children’s development. Working collaboratively on this created many great friendships and memories. I will always be grateful for this experience, the people I met along the way, and the impact it had at Parker Woods Montessori.