Funds+of+knowledge

Lauries background and interests. My interview was with a young girl who I know very well as I look after her and her younger brother and sister on a regular basis as well as tutoring her on a Saturday morning for two hours in literacy. Laurie is a motivated and outgoing young girl around me because I have developed a positive and encouraging connection with her. This is evident through her ability to have a go at everything I challenge her with or put forward to her. I had great feedback throughout my interview because of this.

Laurie has a younger sister who is six and a baby brother who is 16 months old. She loves to play outside in her back yard with her sister. They have many games they play including tigy, hide and seek, I spy, schools and swinging on the monkey bars they have outside. She said her and her sister fight sometimes but most of the time they play together. Laurie’s dad takes her down the beach and to the park as much as he can. They play games and make sandcastles, play in the rock pools and he pushes her really high on the swing. They ride to school most mornings. She also loves the time she spends alone with her mum because she feels like she doesn’t get much alone time as she is the eldest of three. She likes to go for lunch or do the shopping with her. She has a special time where she reads her take home reader and her mum listens to her and talks about the book. When her mum goes for a run sometimes Laurie gets to ride her bike beside her and she loves this. Laurie has so many toys in her room and a huge playground in her back yard, but her favourite toy is “meow meow” which is a soft toy cat that Laurie has had since she was a little girl. She takes it to bed with her every night and loves to cuddle it when she is sick or sad. She says “it makes me feel comfortable in bed and helps me to get to sleep”. She also loves her doll “Miss Polly” because she is beautiful and is dressed in old fashioned clothes with frills and lace. I read stories to the girls before they go to bed if im over. We talk about the story before we read it.

Laurie’s family travels to France between June and September each year. They go to school over there and have other friends and family there also. This is huge thing for Laurie as she misses term three of each year at school in Point Lonsdale so is behind in some areas, however she has many other rich experiences and knowledge constructed from this lifestyle. Lilly can speak French and can read and write. She learns different cultural aspects in France and has been opened up to a new world where things are different on many levels. Her best friend in France lives near her and she send letters and cards when she is not there. He grandma and grandpa live in whales which they go and visit each year also. Her favourite thing to do over there is baking cakes with her grandma and playing in the cubby house with her sister, she loves the look of the houses in France because they are “hundreds of years old and they are so different”. She also explained to me, “I know a lot about France from living there. The food is different we eat a lot of a cheese and meat. I don’t like the music like I do in Australia because I find the songs are too slow and hard to understand. The whether is cold and the people dress differently”.

Between school, France and play Laurie is involved in netball and swimming lessons, she also loves to run to the dog beach and back from school on Fridays. She has a gorgeous little group of friends at school who live near her and she loves it when they get to spend time with her and play at her house.

Laurie has many opportunities and is from a great family. Her mum says that she just wants Laurie to be happy and healthy and understand the importance of education to become the best she can be.