Natalia Martinez who is in second grade! Natalia, eight years old-- born
December 30th, 2005. Natalia, or Tall as we call her, is my step-niece. Tall lives with her grandparents (my father and step-mom.) She is Mexican and is bilingual. She has recently moved in with my dad, step-mom, and younger sister, a move to which she is still adjusting to. Her mom (my step-sister) has been struggling with a drug addiction which has played a toll in being able to raise her. My Parents thought it would be best if they would now take over in raising her. It’s apparent that Tall misses her mother and father very much; which breaks all of our hearts. However, she knows that both her parents love her immensely. Since Tall has moved into my parent’s house she has had to switch schools as well. She’s got spunk, is incredibly smart, and quite witty.
Tall was very excited to be the subject of my interview, it’s very clear that she loves to be the center of attention—as any 2nd grader does. I conducted the interview in the living room of her new house. Even though Tall has only been living with her grandparents for just a couple of months, she seems very comfortable there. When asked what her favorite subject in school was she quickly responded with math. Which was refreshingly surprising because I just assumed that all kids of that age would just say recess. Tall said that her favorite subject was math because she’s not only good at it but is also very entertaining and fun. She likes that when she doesn’t automatically know the answer, she gets flustered and her brain starts working faster and faster. She feels accomplished when gets the answer to a hard problem. When asked who her favorite teacher was she responded with Ms. Garcia, her current teacher.
Tall said she was her