This winter, I
helped children at Booker T. Washington with their homework through the Boys
and Girls Club. It was a program that I greatly enjoyed and I wish to continue
throughout my college career. Through this experience I learned that how much I
really love kids, but also how aggravating they can be when they can’t focus at
the task at hand. It was relatively easy though to get the kids in for homework
because Sarah, from the Boys and Girls Club, gave them incentives. Whenever
they finish their homework, they get a piece of candy and when they come to do
their homework for 20 days then they get a pizza party. I also helped with
their reading program and that was fun because I helped them become more
interested in reading. I helped them sound out words and discover new ones.
The students
that came in for homework were a little different than I imagined. Some
children had name brands like Uggs and Sperry’s while others didn’t. It
reminded me of my high school days when some kids had name brand attire, but
others didn’t. I never made the connection that if they didn’t have name brands
in high school then they probably didn’t have name brands growing up either.
From what I observed, this didn’t affect their academics. Both groups of
children had strengths and weaknesses that had no correlation to their social
class. Any child in the community can go to the center and be successful.
Volunteering at
Booker T. Washington was extremely rewarding and it breaks my heart that my
schedule won’t allow me to continue volunteering there regularly this semester.
Hopefully if my schedule permits, I will volunteer for the Boys and Girls Club
reading program in the summer. This experience has solidified the fact that
without these non-profit programs, children would have a more difficult time with
their homework and educational experience. Children need programs like homework
help and reading to prepare them and help them become more successful in the
future.
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