Annette Rodriguez Shares her Storytelling & Artistic Talents

I started working with Annette Rodriguez as she was starting the Transition Program in the Grossmont High School District.  We worked on her being better able to focus on those around her so she could work with them as a productive member of a team, whether that was the  Home Team with her mother and siblings, her Classroom Team, or any of her Work Teams in which she was involved for developing appropriate social and on-task behaviors.  Over the years working with Annette in that program, it was a pleasure working with her, watching her successfully develop her ability to be aware of what is happening around her, instead of being internally distracted.  She coined the terms of using her “outside magic” to see what is happening around her, instead of focusing only on her “inside magic”, resulting in her needing constant cues to pay attention to others around her. 
     
Annette spent her time during the pandemic period living with her father in Tijuana. I had the opportunity to continue working with her through Zoom sessions to keep up her skills in working as a productive Home Team member with her father AND to help her engage in her own productive activity that showed off her unique talents as a storyteller and artist.

​You can see from the attached videos that Annette has been able to work successfully with me to produce separate segments for the Annette’s Storytime Project, in which she dictated familiar stories to me and then followed through on adding her fantastic illustrations at other times during the week.  Annette then cooperatively engaged in the final step with me of recording her storytelling.  Annette edited her own stories, making sure she chose the best words as well as appropriate punctuation.  She displayed her increased skill in being flexible and communicating effectively as she let me know what changes she wanted me to make.  If there were any errors, she did not get overly upset about them, but instead, just moved on to making any modifications or otherwise moving forward without having to start from the beginning.  She became an incredible team player for this project. Credit also is given to her father for sending her finished work to me so it could be on the screen while Annette’s storytelling was being recorded.
 
Annette has been very supportive of me as she has seen me engage in my own productive activity of writing my Growing G.R.E.E.N. InterActions books and writing songs for my music albums. The picture of her below is in my InterActive Lesson Book in the chapter called “Self-Calming Strategies” as she has used my strategies to gain the self-control needed to then be able to think of making her best positive choices in her social interactions. 
 
 Annette has considered me to be “famous” since my book and music is out in the world.  Now I have the opportunity to let the world see Annette and her own talents.  I am so proud of what Annette has been able to accomplish!  Please enjoy Annette’s Storytime!
Herb Hein, MMSc, CCC-SLP
 
 Annette’s Storytime of “Three Billy Goats Gruff” on YouTube

Annette’s Storytime of “Peter Rabbit” on YouTube