Progress

As the second semester started, I couldn’t help but feel more anxious about my future in Jumpstart. At this point I had already gotten the feel of how things were supposed to go and the whole flow in the classroom but there was a sense of insecurity in my technique. Was I actually living up to what had been expected of me?

Monday and Thursday mornings were a little monotonous. My fellow corps members and I followed the same routine with different sessions every week. The kids were always eager to see us often exclaiming “Jumpstart is here!” with such eagerness in their eyes, well most of them anyways. Some would be occupied in their own world, dragging their feet to the next activity required of them.

I only have two partner children, a fidgety, easily bored little boy and a quiet, polite little girl. They’ve always had an interesting chemistry and do well when presented with their activities. I remember when I would spend a good portion of the reading time trying to get the boy to be square and focused, chasing after him while the girl would sit there quietly just observing what was happening. As the year progressed they both became increasingly attentive and reading regularly became smoother and more natural. Name cards just became part of he routine as both of them were able to identify all of the letters in their name as well as the letters in each others name as they previously had not been able to.

As I noticed that these kids were indeed making progress, I felt reassured of myself and that the kids had been retaining what had been taught. I remember after winter break when I experienced them telling me every letter in the alphabet and I was just in awe; they had been practicing and had a desire to learn. The boy had settled down a bit although he still had his moments. The girl became active in more activities and always had a smile on her face. She was still a little bit hesitant during circle time but with some help and encouragement she would raise her hand or even shout out the answer in excitement. They still have much to learn but it’s always nice to know that I was able to contribute to their progress through jumpstart.


~Vincent Guerrero
Corps Member
Team Determination