(If you need to catch up on Make A Difference posts, click HERE)
On a recent Saturday, the MAD teachers visited a shelter housing many, many children (I'd guess a couple of hundred?).
On a recent Saturday, the MAD teachers visited a shelter housing many, many children (I'd guess a couple of hundred?).
The MAD teachers (all college students) have committed to teaching at this shelter two times a week, for a total of four hours.
The MAD volunteers that led our site visit explained that they tested 90 children for the program they would begin, and 50 of them passed the assessments for placement.
We sat in on several of the classes as they were underway.
Several things struck me.
(1) I have had a bit of a nauseous tummy at times along this process, wondering just how effective I would be as an English teacher to these kiddos. I talk fast, struggle to find the right words (unless I'm typing my thoughts out) and really have NO idea what it means to be a teacher. It was fantastic to realize that the only requirement asked of me is to SHOW UP and be dedicated to them. The rest will follow.
(2) I'd also wondered how on earth these students would be able to sit still and focus for TWO hours for class when they'd also attended school already earlier that day. Guess what?
They are SO motivated to learn English, that there was not one discipline problem, very very few moments where the teachers had to ask for them to refocus. The teachers were amazingly able to simply teach and work with the students for TWO straight hours. No bathroom breaks, no reassigning seats because of misbehavior, no requests for the students to quiet down. Just the sounds of teaching, pencils being sharpened and the erasing of an incorrect word or letter.
It was special and amazing to watch our group of teachers interact with students (that weren't even our own clan) and jump right in to assist, help and just spend a bit of time with them.
After viewing these classes, I am that much more motivated to JUST get started. Get in those classrooms with our precious students and start to ... Make A Difference!
Next up? I'll share with you about our first meeting with OUR students ... what an icebreaker it was!
Next up? I'll share with you about our first meeting with OUR students ... what an icebreaker it was!
