Abigail Janney

Dr. Bidwell

SOCL 222-01

December 6, 2019

Project Reflection

Through the Family Engagement Project process I learned valuable information on program development, implementation, and development. A program assessment regarding the need for the program had already been done, so there was an established need in the Farmville community and surrounding areas for a parental engagement program that facilitated the cognitive development of children ages 3-5 years old. Using teamwork skills to decide on an appropriate activity, the animal dice game was decided on to reach the SMART objective. The SMART objectives ensured our project was specific, measurable, attainable, relative to the need, and time appropriate for the families and researchers involved.My understanding of related course content related to parenting and child development was deepened throughout the process of the project.

The importance of healthy cognitive development of young children was continually expressed throughout the goals of the project. We wanted to offer an activity that would not only enhance healthy childhood development, but also family engagement. The overwhelmingly positive feedback from the surveys sent home with the children by the end of the projects showed the satisfaction of the parents in having help providing a fun and educational activity they could engage themselves and their children with. The strengths of the project was having clear guidelines on the goals of the project, while a weakness was poor team organization which could have been solved with better communication. I practiced skills relating to team work, project development and assessment, leadership, and presenting skills. My strength that resonated throughout the course of the project was time management as well as speaking skills, seen in the final presentation of the project. Overall, my personal understanding of childhood development and the importance of family engagement grew over the process of the project.