Circle Urban- Round 2

Going to Circle Urban for the second time this semester, I was expecting to do a lot of the things I did the first time. I thought that I would be working with the 7th and 8th graders and helping with their homework. When we arrived, we were brought to the same room to hang out with the 7th and 8th graders, but after a few minutes, we were asked to separate and have a few of us help with the younger children. I looked around and realized quickly that no one wanted to help with the younger children, so I volunteered.

I think most of our Trinity students wanted to stay with the middle school students, because they were planning on playing a game, and some earlier students had had some negative experiences with the younger children before. I remembered how we talked in Ed. 203 about having a good attitude and giving each experience and students the benefit of the doubt, instead of making assumptions before we spend time with them. So, I volunteered and was open to whatever they had in store for us.

I was pleasantly surprised when I got to spend my time with the Kindergartners and 1st-graders. I joined in on their silent play time and was able to interact with the students and play legos, color pictures, and put puzzles together. I made lots of friends very quickly. They loved my "smooth" hair, made me a necklace, and all asked to play with me. To say the least, I felt loved. Next, they had snack time and we helped the children open their snacks and drinks and made conversation. I especially liked that a couple of the children wanted to share with me some dance moves from their African Dance class that they had just attended. That was fun for me to be able to interact with them in this way and learn something new. Overall, we had a great time, but the few hours went by so fast and I would have liked to have spent more time helping out.

In my future classroom, I hope to be able to continue to have the mindset of being open to whatever new experiences and students I will have. People talk, but sometimes if you have an open mind, you can be pleasantly surprised at how different the outcome will be. I was told that the younger children were a bit of a hand full from fellow classmates, but I loved every minute of spending time with them and I thought they were so well behaved. I hope also to remember that God loves all  of his children and I also should. It is important to have God be the center of my classroom and my heart, so that His light and loved can be spread through me to my students.