I am so glad I decided to do JumpStart , it’s
the perfect way to close up two years of Peace Corps service doing something I have
no doubt is truly making a difference here in Guardia. The first day was
challenging, transportation hiccups, kids talking too much out of turn and
making fun of other students. The second
day I switched up the seating and reiterated the rules and things went much
smoother. Besides my co-teacher Mauren,
Mireya, the school’s cook whose daughter is participating in the camp has been
helping us out every day. I truly feel
supported by my community and am really proud of my students.
There is no doubt in
my mind that they are an exemplary group of kids and I feel honored to get to
work with them. In one of my seating changes
I placed one of the more advanced students next to a student with a learning
disability. I had planned to talk to her after class about helping him out; it
was great seeing her help him this morning without me having to ask. My
counterpart was hesitant to recommend one of our students for JumpStart because
she didn’t work in class during the school year and was disruptive in class,
she’s turned out to be one of the students who is most eager to participate is
always engaged in class games. It’s been
great running a classroom on the principals the Peace Corps TEFL (teaching
English as a foreign language) project is based on, a truly interactive and
engaging learning environment. It’s so
motivating to see my students wrapped up in games in English and laughing in
class and I look forward to the rest of camp!
