TERESIA, 24 YEARS

Dear host family, thank you for taking time to read my letter. My name is Teresia but you can call me Terry in short. I am 23 years old. You surely get a lot of these letters, but rest assured, you will not regret to read my reasons why I want to become an aupair. I come from a family of 6. My mom is self employed and run a small business. I have 4 brothers and I am the only girl. My eldest brother Gikunga, is 27 years old and is an electrician in Nairobi. Our second born brother,is 25 years old has his own small business in Kisumu, the other 2 brothers are schooling in primary school in Nakuru. I am currently living with my grandmother, she is 80 years old. In about two years I plan to pursue masters degree in child care. So, at the moment, I would like to take sometime out of academics to have a different life experience. To this end, I think spending an year abroad would be particularly interesting. My first language is, ofcourse English and Kiswahili, I am fluent in both. I started learning English in primary school and it was also the language of instruction in secondary school I attended. I also speak an intermediate level of German . I begun learning it in high school and I am taking german language classes as well. When it comes to child care experiences, I have looked after children in both formal and informal contexts. Last year, I spent one year period Volunteering in a children's home in Nakuru. Among others, I provided after school tuition to children aged 5 to 9 years. I also organized them and took part in recreational indoor and outdoor activities. We sang, danced, played games, drew, painted, and narrated stories. We also visited local animal park and camping trips. I have also helped my parents look after my brothers since birth. In addition my two young siblings, also spend a lot of time playing with our neighbors two children Johnie and Alice (aged 5 and 7years), so from time to time I find myself in their ever animated company. I can comfortably say that I enjoy spending time with children. When it comes to leisure, I take pleasure in the simple things in life. I enjoy being outdoors, going for walk, visiting places I have not been to and reading a good book.I also enjoy painting on a dull and rainy days. Did I already mention that I love to read and write? I always write a monthly article for students. As far as preferences are concerned, I am looking for a live in arrangements with a host family, that would be happy to have me stay with and work for them for atleast 12months. I would also prefer looking after children aged between 6months to 10years. Lastly, although I am flexible, I would prefer to have working hours that would allow me to attend day time language classes. Living with me is really easy as I am a not a demanding person. I do respect that the house is your house and that I have to follow your house rules. If something works not quite as it should, I prefer to talk instead of ignoring things. I would be happy to have the opportunity to speak with you, to answer whatever question you may have about me, to learn more about your family, your interests and to know more about what you expect from the aupair arrangement. Thank you very much for your interests in my application. I look forward to hearing from you. yours sincerely, Teresia.