I am thankful for...

Around the holidays, it is easy for us to remember what we are thankful for. Sitting around a table adorned with food and surrounded by friends, we find ourselves most reminded of all the good things we have in our life. It is a shame that this phenomenon only occurs for a month out of the year. For the other ~330 days, we drone on through daily routines: class, work, grocery shopping, lunches with friends, phone calls to family. And we continue this way until turkeys, fall leaves, Christmas ornaments, and trees have taken over the ‘seasonal’ section of every store and remind us to reflect on all the good things we have. 

            Obviously, this isn’t quite true for everyone. Sometimes we are reminded, in a quick moment, how much we have to enjoy. It is these small moments that I found in my Jumpstart classroom. Twice a week, my team and I embark on the journey to our partner school: a shuttle, a metro, a transfer, another metro, a walk, and then three flights of stairs stand in our way. We usually tackle each one. Then, we gather our things and head to our class room – room 118: the place where these small moments remind me of what I have to be thankful for.

            Entering college, I had no idea about Jumpstart – it was a lucky find. At a career fair table sat my site manager – I paced around, peering at the materials she had brought. She told me more about what Jumpstart was and we briefly chatted.  I left her with a resume, went home, and logged onto jstart.org. Occasionally, when I am watching my Corp members, I think about how that exchange started this amazing experience.

            Although every amazing experience comes with some struggle – and our team has had plenty of struggles – I can’t imagine a better way to devote my time to my community. Even after a difficult day in the classroom, we all leave feeling that we accomplished something that was worth the effort and frustration. Despite all the work that we put into Jumpstart and the added stress that comes along, I have never thought, “You know, this isn’t worth it.” It isn’t easy, but it most certainly is worth it.

            Jumpstart has given me so much to be thankful for – I am thankful for my teammates who put in the enormous effort to provide the best service to our children. I am thankful for the squeals of “Jumpstart” that welcome us into the classroom. I am thankful for kids who enthusiastically sing Eensy Weensy Spider. I am thankful for washable paint. I am thankful that my name has become Ms. Jumpstart. I am thankful for hand sanitizer and Emergen-C. But most of all, I am thankful that there are organizations like Jumpstart give children the tools to succeed.  And I am thankful that Jumpstart is giving me the tools to make a better future.

Thanks Jumpstart, and Happy Thanksgiving.  

~Hannah Holley

Team Leader

Team Opportunity

Benefits of the routine

After every Jumpstart session, on my walk back to my apartment from the shuttle, I call my mom. She has worked in early childhood education for longer than I’ve been alive. She truly enjoys hearing my stories from the day, and by this time has even started learning the names of “my kids.” We talk about the session’s core storybook (most of which she is familiar with), and all of the fun and challenging moments of session.

I tell her the sweet moments, too. When one of the girls draws me as her friend in the writing center, identifying me by my orange painted nails. Or when one of the girls takes notice of my glasses and asks why I wear them and I explain how they help me see better. Or when my dramatic play center of “grocery shopping” turns into picking up the fake fruits and vegetables from the floor, or when we played the alphabet matching game in puzzles with ALL of the cards because they were getting bored with only a few matches available at a time.

I tell her how smart the girls are, in addition to how much I notice their progress. I told her on the first day about how one of the girls in my reading group knew all of the letters well enough to help me go through everyone’s name (including the card labeling it as “Miss Simpson’s group.” (Apostrophe and all!) I told her about how familiar they were with the story of “Little Red Hen Makes a Pizza” and “Peter’s Chair.” And how silly they think the idea of a frog walking a dog is in “Down by the Bay.”

I also share with her the challenging moments: when we were short two team members and I had to cover dramatic play. Or when someone is crying and I have to try to figure out why, when they don’t want to tell me what’s wrong. Sometimes she gives me advice on how she would handle the issues I face. Sometimes she tells me stories about issues she has faced in her interactions with young children and how she has handled them.

I know the children we work with benefit from the routine of the Jumpstart session. They aren’t the only ones. I benefit from the routine of it, too. In my crazy school week, it’s nice to have a few hours that I know, at least roughly, what I’ll be doing, and that I’ll be enjoying it. From the moment I meet up with my team at the metro, to the moment I get off the phone with my mom after session ends, I know my Tuesday and Friday afternoons will be fun.

Caitlin Simpson

Corps Member

Team Compassion

My Jumpstart Connection

I finally made my jumpstart connection. I knew I was helping out but I didn’t really see how this work truly correlated with the success of an older child. But a few weeks ago, I finally figured it out.

I know this makes sense and I know we were told this in training but no one really stops to think about it until they are in the situation. I had a 4 year old at my writing station who could not write the letter "C". He really wanted to get it right. I tried to help guide his hand, have him trace dots, have him trace over a capital "C" to practice the motion, to explain that he was very close but had it just a bit backwards- but he could not do it. The teacher came over and tried to help but was struggling as well so she moved on to help other students at a different station. For a minute I thought, "that's ok he will get it eventually, let's just move on to what he is good at." But then I realized that this was the connection. This is how children fall behind. It starts when they are 4 and can't write the letter C and it gradually gets worse as they are pushed through the public school system never able to read at grade level. When I got back to my dorm room and told my roommate about my day she told me that she had a fifth grader in DC Reads ask her what the letter “W” was. He got all the way to fifth grade without knowing what a “W” was. It wasn’t his fault that he didn’t know this letter, and it wasn’t the four-year-old’s fault that he could not write the first letter of his name.

It took a few weeks to make this realization, but my entire outlook on Jumpstart completely changed after this day. I love when children tell me about new rhyming words they have found since last session. I also feel like a total celebrity while walking through the halls the preschool. The students, teachers and staff love Jumpstart and so do I.  

~Christine Asetta

Corps member

Team Dedication

Getting children ready to succeed

Before coming to school this year, I worked with a summer program that served residents of the Pawtucket Housing Authority in Rhode Island. It wasn’t a very structured program, so I was able to work with children of all ages. It was a program that was intended to provide activities for the children of the community to keep them out of trouble. Volunteers of the program were encouraged to be role models, to encourage children to read and explore different endeavors. I really enjoyed working with these kids, but there were also many difficulties. Although we were supposed to get the children excited about books, it was a difficult task to undertake when many could not read. I remember working with Jazmine, a small, soft spoken, second grader. I was reading to her a Curious George book. And, I was also trying to get her to read the book with me. But, she couldn’t read many of the words. The book that we were reading was fairly simple as it was intended for first graders. So, I couldn’t believe how much she was incapable of reading. I suppose it was then that the issue of the achievement gap became very real to me. It was upsetting to know that Jazmine was going through the Pawtucket public school system unable to read at grade level. Why was she so ill equipped to read a first grade level book? I was appalled to find out that she had been neglected during her first few years in school.  

As a Corp Member of Jumpstart, I am glad that I am part of a program that works to prevent students from falling behind like Jazmine already had. Every day that I go into session I am happy that I am there to get preschoolers excited to read and learn. There is warmth in the connection that is formed with these three year olds that allows them to become excited. I remember drawing a family picture with Lyric, one of my students in my reading group, during one of the first few sessions. She drew every one of her family members for me and I could tell that she was so excited that I was listening to her.  Since then she has been attached to me at the hip. So, I have been keen to her progression in Jumpstart. During reading and circle time, she has become more responsive to the stories and songs. When I first started Jumpstart, Lyric was often inattentive and distracted during reading and circle time. But, now she gets excited to take part in many of the activities of Jumpstart. I am very happy that I am able to be part of her excitement for the program and that I can help in her preparation for kindergarten.

~Katie Kuy
Corps member
Team Courage

My Jumpstart

Now that my team, Team Kindness, has been in the classroom for six session plans we are starting to see the kids becoming attached to us; we are their Jumpstart. I have had a student propel herself at me when we walked into the classroom and attach herself to my legs. Our students have also started to learn our names and they now are starting to remember the order of activities we do and our transition songs. The changes in how the students react and behave to Jumpstart from our first session to now is a drastic difference and it is amazing to see.

We walk into our classroom and the kids start singing “Goodbye Jumpstart” we start laughing and just tell our kids that JumpStart just started and its not time to go yet. Then when we are going over our name cards my students hold up their cards in the air and ask for Miss. Alexis, who is the team leader for Team Kindness, to come around and collect them so we can start reading. During reading time my students always sings “It’s time to put the books away” even though we just started reading. They laugh and laugh when we tell them that it isn’t time to put the books away.

Even though our kids are just now starting to understand the schedule of Jumpstart they became attached to Jumpstart by our third time in the classroom. They will scream and literally jump when its time for Jumpstart and when it is time to leave because their parents came to pick them up they started to introduce us as “my Jumpstart” from the very beginning.

Even on the metro rides to and from session we have encountered kids and parents who see our shirts and go “Jumpstart?”. I wasn’t sure to believe those stories when we heard them in training but they are true!!

Anyone that is involved with JumpStart in some way gets connected and finds that connection soon after being introduced to the program. Corps members, students, classroom teachers, and parents alike all see the red shirt or Jumpstart logo and heads turn looking to see if the person wearing the shirt is “their Jumpstart”. Seeing the connection that I have made to the program and the connection that my kids have made I cannot wait for all the good things that come after we have been in the classroom more than a few months! Things will only get better and the smile will only get bigger. 

~Stephanie Dudek

Corps member

Team Kindness

Session Plan 6

            Team Connection just finished session plan 6, first implementation. I am even more excited about Jumpstart and its mission than I was initially. All of the techniques taught to the corps members on how to effectively treat children are applicable to my daily life. I have 9 nieces and nephews, and thanks to Jumpstart I am able to apply these skills that corps members develop during trainings and sessions. I recently e-mailed my boss to let her know how grateful I am for being a part of a mission to help children who come from similar backgrounds as me. Working toward the goal of preparing children for kindergarten is an ambitious objective that becomes more attainable every day that Jumpstart corps members and volunteers step into the classroom.

            For one of the sessions I was at the puzzles and manipulatives center where I made alphabet matching boards. That center is paired with reading since we are short a few corps members. Several of the students finished the boards and others took longer to finish just one. During this particular session one of the students was matching the cards with the card’s corresponding color instead of letter. I worked with him for several minutes, but he did not understand what the directions were. I looked over to the other students and gave them high fives to compliment them for finishing their board, while acknowledging that they had matched the letters correctly. After several more minutes I turned back to the student who was having difficulty understanding the directions, and he had paired all of the cards with their correct letter. My voice embodied the high pitch teacher voice that Jumpstart members are known for. I congratulated him which followed with a heartfelt high five. He smiled and ran to show one of his teachers. That student stayed at my center for the rest of session and successfully finished all of the alphabet boards he attempted. It helped him see his peers get rewarded with a high five when matching the letters.

            For another one of our sessions, during circle time we sang Down by the Bay and the children absolutely loved it. After every verse they excitedly asked us to sing it again. We kept saying how silly it was for a mouse to paint a house, a verse in the song. They all laughed and agreed. Their expressions were priceless when we noted the verse that read a frog walking a dog. They adopted the form of the song when they came up with their own rhyming words because the pairs they chose were just as hilarious as the ones in the song. 

~Belen flores

Corps member

Team Connection

2nd Year in Jumpstart

            I began this semester as a Corps member for my second year. I learned a lot in my first semester as a Jumpstart Corps member, but as I proceeded to my second year I found that there’s still a lot to learn. I had an entire year of experience under my belt but I was entering a new school with new students and a different classroom culture. I was moving from the Sunshine Early Learning Center to Cedar Tree Academy, a much larger school. The tactics I learned from my reading groups last year were not necessarily working in the new reading groups. The team dynamics were completed changed and I needed to learn to adapt to them. Despite the differences, I find this year to be as rewarding as before. Even though I have entered the classroom with certain expectations and ideas about education and elementary education in DC, I have learned a lot this year. I transitioned from three years old to four year olds. I was surprised how smart my kids were in the classroom when I first met them. I had to learn how to interact with them differently as well as how to implement the Jumpstart curriculum in a way that is more challenging for four-year-old students. At face value, it may seem like Jumpstart’s intentions are to merely promote the learning of preschoolers. Once you become more involved, though, you realize how much the Corps members benefit from learning so much about our communities and the education system as a whole.

Christina Mills

Corps member

Team Joy

Let's Play

            Working with children is something I’ve always done. It’s something that both relaxes me and makes me happy. Before coming to college, I was concerned that my chances with working with children were going to be over, but I was extremely lucky to have found Jumpstart. Jumpstart is a LOT of work. Being a team leader, planning sessions to perfection and making materials is something done on a daily basis. Oftentimes friends on my floor will ask me in the middle of frantic materials creation in the lounge why it is that I do Jumpstart. My answer is always that I do Jumpstart for the incredible children I get to see twice a week. Hearing fourteen adorable voices scream “Jumpstart!” when I walk through the door to room 101 every Wednesday and Friday is an extremely rewarding way to start the session. A striking moment in Jumpstart for me was after asking one of our children why he was sad. This adorable little boy while being sad was drawing a picture of himself looking sad. When I asked what was wrong he replied, “no one at home wants to play with me.” Taken aback, I quickly answered, “I want to play with you!” The teachers had told us that he has some issues at home, but most sessions he hadn’t shown it. Hearing this one simple sentence made me realize Jumpstart’s importance in these children’s lives. Jumpstart are friends that they can rely on to come every week. We are always willing and ready to play (and of course learn at the same time.) On Friday, as we were leaving session one of our little girls came up to me as the kids flowed to sharing and goodbye and said, “I don’t want you to go,” but I reassured her we would be back on Wednesday. Another little boy cried when his dad had to pick him up early, and take him away from painting a fantastic pizza. These are the reasons I love Jumpstart. Whether it be watching a face light up as a child gets their letter to match with the one on the board, or watching a child try oh so hard to pronounce correctly the word delicatessen, Jumpstart always finds a way to make me smile. Seeing the faces of fourteen amazing children that I know appreciate our company is one of the most rewarding things I have every done in my life.

~Alexis Maxwell
Team Leader
Team Kindness

Let’s Try to this new thing called Jumpstart

How could I not be attracted to this organization? I love working with children and helping them to develop their young minds. Jumpstart does just that. I realize training days for any job does not seem like the most fun a college student could have but my supervisor used every trick she knew to keep us entertained during our 8 hour training days. Unfortunately, I still felt overwhelmed by the wealth of information she gave us. For the next several days I second- guessed my decision to join the team. I wondered whether I was truly qualified for the position; was my love for educating children enough to really make a difference? Luckily, my supervisor never gave up on us. She kept training us until we were comfortable enough to set forth into our classrooms.

Eventually the first day of session comes and I’m practically shaking from a combination of nerves and excitement. I can honestly say that the first day of session was not the smoothest but the most fun I've had in a classroom in a while. All the students in my class were a ball of energy and were so eager to participate in all the activities we introduced. I left the classroom feeling incredibly confident; I knew I had made the right choice of staying a part of Jumpstart.

I recognize that I still have much to learn but I’m eager to do so. I want to know how to perform my role as a corps member to the best of my ability. Personally, I’m still working on making sure reading to reconstruct is carried out the way it should be. I realized that I’m starting to ask ‘yes or no’ questions but I need questions that require an explanation. But I think that if I spent even just five to ten more minutes prepare more questions that I already have then my questions for the students will become stronger. On the flip side of the situation, when reading for enjoyment is carried out well and prepared ahead of time, by the time the students are at reading to reconstruct, they are dominated the conversation. Sometimes the discussion of the book is so good that I only need to ask three to four questions the entire session.

I guess what I’m trying to say is that I’m slowly adjusting to my new position. I've grown more confident of my ability and recognize what areas I need to improve.

~Ashlee Harvey
Corps member
Team Inspiration

Determination is the key to success

            Determination is the first word that comes to mind when I think of my team Inspiration. My role as team leader has provoked determination out of my corps members, my students, and myself. I am determined to always do better, and push that little bit further to get better results. I started out as a corps member on team Dedication, and it taught me a lot about how to approach Jumpstart and work through any problems with dedication and willpower. When I moved to a team leader position on team Inspiration I encountered different ways in which I was determined. I became determined to be the best leader I could be for my corps members as well as my students. I am determined to be prepared with materials and in the session material because these children deserve the best, and I am determined to give it to them.

            Determination is defined as firmness of purpose or resoluteness, which is a key value of Jumpstart and my team. We show our firmness of purpose when we go into the classroom ready to tackle any obstacle that comes our way. We employ our determination through our ability to be able to go into the classroom fully prepared even if a corps member is sick or cannot make it. My corps members hold the same values as I do, to give the children our best and maximize their learning potential. We all come together with materials and session books in-hand, ready to take on the day. One example of determination from my corps members was when one of my corps members took it upon herself to better our team. She was determined to create some great team bonding so she spent the time researching different methods and came up with a fun game for all of us to play. She gave us each a handful of m&m’s and told us for each color there was something for us to share about ourselves, whether it was a fun fact, or what it is we like about AU. This was a great activity because we got to have fun with it and learn more about each other. Great teams are determined, and I have the pleasure of being part of a team that is determined to be close, work hard in the classroom, get the most out of this opportunity, and always be prepared. 

~Loren Grier

Team Leader

Team Determination

Jumpstart Grocery

As we have had more and more sessions, my team and I have gotten more and more close to the children. We have also grown closer to each other.  When I see my team members around campus we always greet each other with a smile, and are always willing to offer a helping hand. Our common goal of brightening the lives of the children we work with has given us a bond that is unrivaled.

Last week after our second implementation of session plan 4, we were assigned different centers for center time. For session 5 I had the dramatic play center, I had to turn dramatic play into a grocery store. Dramatic play is probably one of the hardest centers to manage, however it is also where some of the most interesting Jumpstart experiences happen. As I gathered materials for my center throughout the week, my team members and I constantly checked in on each other making sure we had everything we needed. We would stop by each other’s room to drop off materials and suggest ideas. Having this kind of communication and concern for one another is extremely important in a job like this.

That week I had made a cardboard checkout counter, “Jump-Dollars” (money), posters for the grocery store, and had brought grocery bags and some empty food boxes for the children to play with. During circle time when our team leader presented the centers, a lot of the kids really wanted to play in dramatic play (which is completely normal). I was both excited and nervous about what was to come. When I got to the center I set up the counter, and organized the signs I made, and about 6 children came over. Every once in a while there was some arguing over the materials, but overall everything was all right.

What moment sticks in my head from this session was when I counted one of the kids’ “Jump- Dollars.” He came up to me and said, “Hey! Look at all the money I have! Could you count it for me?” I counted out the money for him one time, and then I had him count it with me. When we counted together sometimes I would pause before I said the next number to see if he could say the correct one before me. Though sometimes he didn’t always get the right number, there were a couple of times he guessed correctly on his own. His excitement while counting together was a beautiful thing to witness.  Once he knew the exact number of the amount of “Jump-Dollars” he had he was so happy. That one moment made the hours I spent gathering and making all my materials worth it! Jumpstart is awesome!

~Wesley Williams
Corps member
Team Connection

Team Kindness

Hi Jumpstart friends! I’m Maria Lewis, a freshman at American University and a Corps Member for Jumpstart DC! I’ve been a member of Team Kindness for about two months, and since then my team members and I have gotten so close with each other! Making materials, planning sessions, and traveling to and from Appletree Institute Public Charter School together every Wednesday and Friday afternoon has really enabled us to connect and get to know each other! Plus taking group photos together for the Jumpstart Team Picture Contest, which Team Kindness got second place for most likes (344!), has gotten us very spirited about our team and enthusiastic about team morale. We couldn’t be more thankful to have a lovely team with fantastic Corps Members, Natalie, Lauren, Tara, Stephanie, and Jenn, and a terrific Team Leader, Alexis.

Ever since the first time we stepped into our Jumpstart classroom, we’ve had such a positive response from our students and from our classroom teachers. Going to Appletree every Wednesday and Friday really makes our kids smile and, according to our classroom teachers, they can’t wait for us to come and read, sing, and play with them. So far we’ve done five sessions with our students and we’ve really seen an improvement in their performance and their understanding of Jumpstart as a whole. They really seem to be understanding what to expect from when we enter the classroom, which always results in hugs and them exclaiming “Jumpstart!!”,  to when it’s “time for us to part”.

With our readings, our kids have really been able to connect them to other life experiences and lessons they have learned outside of Jumpstart, which is amazing. They especially enjoyed The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza) and were able to understand the basic concepts of friendship and helping friends in need. My center for center time was writing for that session, and they were really able to draw what they liked to do with their friends. After that session, I switched to books for center time and picked out seven books that are related to friendship. It was really nice to read to kids that I don’t normally read with, who are equally as lovely and wonderful, and make more individual connections with the kids. At one point during the reading, the child asked if she could read the book to me next. Even though she couldn’t read the exact words on the page, it was amazing that she could understand the basic concepts. It really opened my eyes to what these kids are capable of doing, and how much Jumpstart has allowed them to expand on their skills inside and outside the classroom.

~Maria Lewis

Corps member

Team Kindness

Materials Creation

Construction paper covers every surface of my apartment. Small strips of colored paper, large pieces of poster board, and children’s books are everywhere, sometimes to the dismay of my roommate. The amount of materials we make for Jumpstart sessions every week has increased significantly as my group has realized the importance of quality materials in the classroom.

As we prepare for our fifth session plan, we’re eagerly anticipating making materials for dramatic play – grocery shopping and item sorting. We’ve collected empty food boxes to use for grocery shopping, and we’re making fake money and cash registers so the students can interact with different aspects of the grocery shopping experience. And although it might seem like a trivial situation, it’s hugely important for developing vocabulary. Words and concepts like grocery lists, cash registers, and supermarkets are concepts that are embedded in everyday life, but aren’t topics that are conventionally covered in school. By incorporating it into dramatic play, we allow students to interact with important daily activities in a fun and entertaining way.

When we first went through Jumpstart training, our site manager stressed the importance of high quality materials. But it wasn’t until I got into the classroom that I realized how important they really are. Our students are incredibly tactile-based in their development right now. Interacting physically with materials increases their desire and ability to learn. For example, one of our most popular puzzles centers has been Alphabet Matching Boards. I was very purposeful in making large, colorful and interactive boards so that our students would be interested in learning their letters. Learning letters seems to basic to me now as an adult, but for my preschoolers, it’s a fundamental building block of their learning, and without these fun games, they might not be as interested in learning the alphabet.

It’s awesome to see our students get so excited to play with puzzles or engage in Circle Time because of the materials we’ve made. It helps create these small moments in the classroom – moments when students finally realize what an uppercase letter A looks like, or can relate our core storybook back to washing dishes in dramatic play. It is these moments where I see Jumpstart making a difference in the lives of children, and that makes all of the work we do entirely worth it.

~Sarah Floyd
Team Leader
Team Determination 

Consistency

                  My experience so far with Jumpstart has been a positive one. During the training, I was learning a lot about how to work with the children, but it was not until I actually met the kids that made it all worthwhile. I had not expected my first session to be actual fun. However, as I worked with the kids during center time, I found myself having as much fun as they were. From day one, I was impressed with how smart the kids were. Many of them could already recognize their name and could identify some of the letters in their name.

Another thing that I had not been prepared for was how open the kids would be so instantly.  Within minutes of meeting me they were sharing things that were important to them: if they were on “green” in conduct or new clothes or school supplies they had received, all the way to stories about their families and friends. This made it a lot easier to build a relationship with the children and my attachments to them formed quicker than I expected.

Before we actually went in the classroom, I heard how consistency was an important part to the program and the kids. However, it became a personal realization just recently. The classroom that my team started with had children in it who was already receiving Jumpstart. In consequence, we had to change the classroom that we gave Jumpstart. The previous Jumpstart session we had was strictly to come in and meet the kids and the teacher, as well as see the classroom. What I found to be surprising in that visit was that the kids, who had been in my old Jumpstart session as well, had expectations of the Jumpstart structure after only 3 session plans completed. One child asked “Are we painting in Center Time today?” caught off guard by the question I responded “No we don’t have center time today.” Not understanding she asked “Then what book did you bring?” When I informed her that I did not have a book either, she asked “Then what are we doing today?” I simply said, “I am here to just say hi and play with you today.” Apparently this wasn’t an acceptable concept to her because she immediately got further confused and exclaimed “Why are you here then?!” This conversation was truly a testament to the structure that the kids had quickly adapted to. 

It is conversations like that, when I truly get to see the child’s personality come through and learning take place, that make me look forward to more sessions with the kids. I expect to have many more memorable conversations like this as I move forward with the children. 

~Candace Hunt

Corps member

Team Learning

Sassy Scholars

    I particularly enjoy the personalities of the girls I have in my classroom. Some are sassy and confident, some are sweet and friendly, others are cheeky and humorous. I can be sure that every time I go into the classroom, I will see a great variety in the way they express themselves. Within the all girls classroom, many of the girls treat one another like sisters. Though obviously there are squabbles, as can be expected in a class of 26 four year olds, often I see students want to hug each other, draw pictures of one another, and write each other’s names in the writing center. I have even witnessed students offering to give up their items in the dramatic play center to other students who want them, which though it is seldom seems so mature and respectful! I am truly lucky to work with such amazing little girls.

    I can get a good laugh just by thinking of some of the sassier girls. One week I was going from center to center classroom managing, and my core member at the reading center signaled that she needed help because there were too many girls there (this is certainly a rare occurrence, as it is traditionally a less popular center). I spent some time there reading “Goodnight Moon” per the request of a very excited student. Partway through the story, she says, “I’m going to go to the moon someday!” I respond, “Oh, would you like to be an astronaut?” She looks at me, hands on hips and says, “Noooo!” I suppress my laughter, and say, “How will you be going to the moon then?” prompting her to explain. She stands up and says, “like this!” and proceeds to do a fairly talented version of the moon walk on the colorful carpet. My jaw dropped and I had to applaud her. “Where did you learn to do that?” I inquired. She did a sassy little head bob or shoulder move, and replied, “my mom!” As in her mind, who else would have? What was great is after this, we were able to return to our reading of “Goodnight Moon.”

    On the other side of the spectrum, I adore the girls who are significantly less outgoing. There are several students who are very quiet and who have clearly had lessons on manners from their parents. Last week I had a student come up to me and wait patiently at my side, then softly pat my knee and say, “excuse me Miss Kershaw,” in a voice that sounded like honey. I don’t want to say I favor such students, as I try to treat all of my students equally, but when students have such respect I want to respond to their needs as soon as humanly possible! It is so refreshing to see children be so polite when even adults on my metro commute to school can be so incredibly rude. I always make a point to thank students when they are so kind and explain why I am thanking them.

~Dorian Kershaw
Team Leader
Team Compassion

My Day at Jumpstart!

My name is Jennifer Rudin and I am one of the 7 Jumpstart Corps members representing Team Kindness. On my way to Jumpstart on Friday November 8^th, I couldn’t help but think about how tired I was. On top of that, the shuttle bus transporting my team from our school to the metro arrived late. And to top it off, one of my team members got a bloody nose on the way to Jumpstart. It was a mess. I regretted not feeling fully put together on my way to my Jumpstart classroom and I couldn’t help but feel anxious for what was to come.

            Nevertheless, as my team arrived at our site with 5 minutes to spare, as we walked into our Jumpstart classroom, the joy and excitement gleaming on our children’s faces set aside all of our worries. “Jumpstart!” they shouted, as our bright red shirts entered their classroom. They were so happy to see us walking in with our big colorful posters, our outer space craft box, and our minion “let’s find out about it” poster.

            As we were fully immersed into the classroom of gleaming 3 year old faces, our Jumpstart friends found us. They remembered us! My two Jumpstart friends held my hands and guided me to our reading area. Eager to read our new book full of exciting new pictures and new voices for me to act out, my Jumpstart friends sat on either side of me in crisscross applesauce. Always amused by my post-its that contain vocab definitions and remind me of questions to ask, I had to remind my Jumpstart friends yet again that they are for me and must remain untouched. I am excited for the day they remember this and don’t try to pull them off! Until then, I will constantly remind them of this; they will learn soon enough!

            While I was reading the new book, The Little Red Hen, to my Jumpstart friends, they began making connections to the pictures in the story, such as associating the ruler to measuring how big and how little something is, and associating the pans to what their parents bake food (like muffins and cookies) in. I was so proud of their ability to connect these pictures from the storybook to real life events!

            After reading the book it was time for circle time, where we sang songs, including one of the children’s favorites- The Wheels on the Bus. It gets me every time, watching the children quickly transition from their talkative and unable to sit still stage to their interactive and excited to learn stage. I remain to this day completely amused by how a song can bring a whole group together in participation!

            Afterwards, each team member split up into their sections; I stationed myself in the mini library in the classroom to read books. Despite the fun and exciting other options including dramatic play, art, writing, puzzles, and let’s find out about it, surprisingly enough, I had a pretty great turnout at my books station! This past Friday, I had a really great day at Jumpstart, and I could tell that the children did too! 

~Jennifer Rudin

Corps member

Team Kindness

Scholars and Sessions

            This is my first year as a Corps Member and a Team Leader and my beginnings with Jumpstart were rocky, to say the least. I came into Jumpstart not knowing what to expect nor what was expected from me. I had previously worked with elementary children in a less structured, mentor-based program so I was excited to gain experience in a curriculum setting. After hours and hours of training, I felt like I was ready to start as soon as possible. As we came nearer to Session 1, however, I quickly realized that I was not prepared at all. I was hesitant about everything, from the state of my materials to my capability to lead a team. I felt overwhelmed because it began to dawn upon me just how much responsibility my role in Jumpstart entailed and how much time I needed to invest to produce quality results.

            The first day I went to our preschool, I remember being incredibly nervous because I had no idea what to expect. Things didn’t get any better once we stepped into the classroom. We did not have a full roster, so there were scholars without name tags. The scholars had not finished eating snack so we were at least 20 minutes late before we even began session. There was not a separate area for Let’s Find Out About It which made attention retention difficult during the lesson. The list of problems goes on. I had to think quickly on my feet to make mishaps work and flow with the lesson plan. I wasn’t expecting a perfect session on the first day, but I wasn’t expecting to feel so overwhelmed and unprepared than I did by the end of that first day.

            After talking to my team afterwards, we were able to pick apart aspects of the session that worked and did not work at all. This was incredibly helpful for me because the feedback allowed me to step back and reorganize our approach to the classroom. It also pointed out to me what I needed to explicitly communicate to my Corps Members so that they work with me, rather than contribute to the chaos when they don’t fully understand what is happening during session.

            By Session 2, our team was two weeks ahead in session preparation and we each knew the lesson plans well enough to do them in our sleep. Our second implementation of Session 2 was probably the closest we will ever get to a perfect session. I feel more adept as a Team Leader, especially when I have my Corps Members to back me up. I’m excited to finish off this semester strong!

~Emily Woo

Team Leader 

Team Courage

Ups and Downs

The past couple of weeks, Jumpstart has been filled with ups and downs – as any work with young children is prone to do. When I arrived at our last session I could almost hear my boss’s observation, “you have a loud class.” It’s true our children are very enthusiastic, but their volume issn’t necessarily a bad thing – though my impending headache suggested otherwise. At the end of our few hours, I felt, somewhat surprisingly, fantastic. Yes our class had been loud and rowdy, but it had been our best session yet. The children had all been engaged in circle time, reading, sharing, centers, and sharing. The best moments, however, were found in the children themselves. When the first group sat down for circle, one of the students, sat as close as possible – that I would allow – and gave me a hug while saying how he loved me. I’ve only been working with the students around a month now; that means I’ve seen them eight times, but they still love me, and love Jumpstart as a whole. My team member had another child say that when he was big, he was going to be a Jumpstart. While the same student is very frustrating at times, that one exclamation has re-opened me up to the benefits of being a Jumpstart corps member.  The downs never outweigh the ups.

~Amalia Mendoza
Corps member
Team Inspiration

Early Morning Smiles

Leaving high school, I thought that my days of having to wake up at the crack of dawn were firmly behind me. My college schedule consisted of no class that started before 10:20 am and two days out of the week, my first class started at 2:35. This changed when I started working for Jumpstart. Having never been a morning person I was, at first, apprehensive about waking up at 7 in the morning to work with preschoolers. Don't get me wrong, I love little kids. But as any other college student will tell you, I also very much love my bed.  

So on the first day of session, I rather reluctantly dragged myself out of my bed just in time to catch the shuttle to the Metro. Groggy, still half asleep, and annoyed with myself for not waking up in time to get a cup of coffee, I rode the train for an hour before arriving and entering the class room to work with my students for the first time. Immediately, their energy was contagious. Here were 26 small kids over come with excitement about the fun they were about to have for the next hour and a half, and I was sad that I had to get out of bed in the morning? From the moment I took out the name cards, my five kids were all smiles and childish giggles. They got excited as they spelled their names out loud to one another and noticed the letters that their names shared. When we moved to circle time, two small hands reached for mine and I was told, rather forcefully,    

"You're gonna sit next to me today,"                                                                                                                                                                                               

How could I possibly argue? When we finished singing 'Goodbye Jumpstart', three kids broke out into loud heaving sobs at the realization that their time with us had come to an end for the day. On the ride back to campus, I was amazed at how quickly the kids had warmed up to us. I now look forward to waking up for Jumpstart. Every session since the first has been full of smiles and excitement on the part of my Jumpstart kids and I've found that this is a much better early morning pick me up than a cup of coffee.                  

Cindy Valentin

Corps Member

Team Inspiration

Students as Scholars

            My team finally began Jumpstart session two weeks ago. I heard fellow Corps Members in other teams gushing over their students before I ever went into the classroom, sharing stories of hilarious encounters, chaotic lessons, and the occasional meltdown. I used to imagine that I would be just the same, redirecting every mundane conversation back to “my Jumpstart kids.” Now, I know that this is the case.

I have three partner children in a classroom of 26, in an all-girls charter school.  The school itself is remarkable; children are not referred to as “children,” or even “students.” At this school, they are “scholars.” The name is fitting, as every four year old is brilliant. In training, I was coached on how to explain the concept of print, and of how to describe each letter in the alphabet, as the pre-kindergarteners wouldn’t have even begun to be exposed to these academic ideas.

My Jumpstart scholars, however, know how to use print. They can sing the alphabet, and write their first names all by themselves; reviewing the letters on their own name cards have soon become passé, and we can now work on spelling my name, and the words of objects around the classroom. Last week, when I pulled Peter’s Chair out from under me when it came time for reading, they shouted the entire synopsis at me within seconds. After Read to Reconstruct, I asked: “Peter’s little sister must like the color pink, but not all girls have to like pink. What’s your favorite color?” Sitting crisscross-apple-sauce on the musty carpet with these four-year-old girls, I was unable to resist combatting gender roles in my own little way. “I like blue!!” one scholar replied, shooting up in excitement. At the same time, and at the same volume of voice, another scholar informs me that she loves pink and purple. “Like my princess bed!!” she shouts.

I have plenty of experience babysitting; I have been caring for children of varying ages since my middle school years. I know how to cook mac n’ cheese and peas with two kids hanging off my arms, I am an expert diaper wrangler, and I can hold a thorough discussion about any Nickelodeon Kids show. However, observing kids of the same age range in an academic setting allows me to see them from a new perspective. I don’t have the same tools for “management,” and I have very different goals for my time with them. Through Jumpstart, I am beginning to recognize their true intellect. My scholars can read me and make calculated decisions about what I want; they act according to their position in relation to their peers, the teacher, and me. Every day at work is a process in humbling myself, and I am so grateful to love what I do. I am also now aware of just how much gratitude my day care teacher deserves.  

~Aya Laurel Iwai-Folk

Corps member

Team Compassion

What else will they say?

Paper bits on the floor. Desk drawers full of children’s books. Stickers, beads, and multicolored feathers disorganized on the counter. Cabinetry space full with two backpacks, a Larissa Gerstel tote, baby dolls, laminate rolls, and miscellaneous craft supplies. A giant polka dotted box labeled “Circle Time” tucked beneath the desk. This is the current state of my dorm room, and I’m more than fine with it.

    Perhaps most freshman dorms don’t look as though preschool threw up in them, but I also don’t know if most freshmen enjoy children’s activities as much as I do. I love preparing preschool materials for many reasons. One, for a full time student who decided to intern at a policy center her first semester, cutting paper, gluing, prepping books, etc gives me time to relax. Making “J is for Jumpstart” books for the class gave me the opportunity to simply color pictures after a long day; how much better could it get? Additionally, I love seeing kids get excited over what you’ve prepped. By the second session my class of 26 little girls started jumping up and down saying, “Jumpstart! Jumpstart is here!!!” Going into a session well prepared and with materials that look fun and inviting is a great feeling as a team leader, my core members say the same, and clearly the children feel fantastic too.

    As my team is still only on session plan 2, I haven’t gained enough experience as to say what my favorite thing about a Jumpstart session is. I might say it is when the entire class catches on to a song and yells the lyrics as loud as they possibly can, because the joy in the girls’ faces is priceless, or perhaps it is when I am able to wander from center to center and support my core members, because then I get one on one interaction with the students. Though these four year old girls are always interesting, last session was particularly humorous. I went to the “dramatic play” center where the activity was meant to be pretending to paint furniture, as Peter and his father did in “Peter’s Chair.” After half an hour of this activity, the girls had diverged into painting shoes and pants and other things creatively. I sat down on the floor with them, and one asked if she could paint my hair. I obliged, which drew the attention of several others. Before I knew it, I was being done up for my wedding!

    “Miss Kershaw is going to get married. Do you want to get married?” one student asked.

    “Oh, I don’t know. Who will I marry? A handsome prince?” In unison, several reply:

    “Noooooo!!!!” Well, though that was a letdown I did my best not to laugh, and continued by asking open ended questions instead. However the girls managed a very interesting conversation on their own.

    “We are going to paint your hair…”

    “And curl it…:”

    “And paint your makeup…”

    “And your hair will be purple for the wedding!”

    “YES!!!”

    “You’re going to be the prettiest purple haired girl ever!” And so on. These girls were having a hay day, and I would be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy it too. I can’t wait until next session, the session after that, and every session to come, really. 

~Dorian Kershaw
Team Leader
Team Compassion