When I interviewed at the PC regional office last July, I asked my recruiter where education volunteers gained experience while awaiting their clearances. She mentioned AmeriCorps was a popular option, so I hopped on the organization's website, filled out a common app, and applied to several positions before finally accepting a spot with Birmingham READS AmeriCorps.
Working as reading tutor with struggling kindergarten and first grade students has had both its ups and downs. In an environment where 10+0 often equals 11, cat is spelled c-a-t-sdf7q, and The United States of America is a country far, far away (a common misconception among third graders), I've had my patience on edge for months. But can these kids really be held responsible for being behind in a state where kindergarten is optional, parent(s) may not model excellence, and teaching can probably be improved? They probably deserve some slack. After all their childhoods are certainly tougher than mine ever was. But... it's easy to forget this admirable understanding when little Darius is wrestling with Anaya, Jahari is sucking on my pencil, and Malik won't spell because superheroes have better things to do.
Honestly, though, I've grown attached to my thirty-three students these past five months despite their rampant ADD and tattle-telling. Their ridiculously is infectiously endearing. Over just the past few weeks, I've...
- been gifted three new coloring book masterpieces to add to my growing collection;
- been offered all of a student's lunch money because he thought I was hungry;
- had a student refuse to go home after school because he wanted to do more flashcards;
- been spontaneously hug-mobbed by five unknown pre-kindergartners;
- received personal invites to several birthday parties; and
- been told "I wish you were my daddy."
And now I digress in closing by drawing attention to the above AmeriCorps action shot taken with Garth Brooks at a recent Habitat event.
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