Tales of a Jumpstart Corps Member
Jumpstart is a national early education organization that recruits and trains college students and community Corps members to serve preschool children in low-income neighborhoods. Our proven curriculum helps children develop the language and literacy skills they need to be ready for kindergarten, setting them on a path to close the achievement gap before it is too late. Jumpstart is not responsible for the content of any pages to which Jumpstart is linked.
Tuesday, July 12, 2016
Wednesday, June 29, 2016
Tuesday, April 19, 2016
It is so hard to sum up how my year
of service has been. But, in an effort to explain it, I’ll compare it to
something I know well: food. My Jumpstart experience has been like a delicious
chipotle burrito.
The first part of my burrito is the
tortilla, the kids. Just as without a tortilla, a burrito cannot exist, without
kids, Jumpstart cannot exist. They are the whole reason I participated in
Jumpstart. They were my motivation and my joy.
Next, we add rice to the burrito.
The rice is a staple in any delicious burrito and my team was a staple to my
service with Jumpstart. They held me accountable and pushed me to bring my best
self to Jumpstart sessions. Rice can really make or break a burrito, and I was
lucky to have a zesty and wonderful team to support me this year.
The beans are the part of the
burrito that add that good protein and heartiness that fills you up. Morgan,
the Jumpstart site manager, is like the beans of the burrito because she really
completed the experience. She is what really gave my experience in Jumpstart
fulfilling and satisfying.
The next part of my Jumpstart
burrito is the salsa. The teachers and helpers in my classroom are the salsa,
because they are necessary and add some nice spice and flavor. Without the
support of the teachers, this experience would have been bland and ineffective.
They added a delightful little kick to my Jumpstart experience, just as salsa
adds some delicious flavor to a burrito.
The final touch of my burrito is the
lettuce, which I will compare to the early mornings. Let’s be honest, nobody
really wants lettuce on their burrito. What’s the point? Even though the
lettuce is not very exciting, it is still part of the experience and adds to
the overall flavor. As hard as it was on some days to get up and deal with the
metro during rush hour, that is what made Jumpstart Jumpstart.
All of these ingredients mixed
together made a wonderful burrito that was both enjoyable and satisfying. Each
part of the burrito was necessary and added to the overall flavor. This year in
Jumpstart has left me feeling the same way. I am fulfilled and so glad I got to
have the experience of participating in Jumpstart.
-Julia Weigel
Friday, April 8, 2016
Making Adjustments in the Classroom, Personalized Approaches
Throughout the year there have been multiple cases where my team and I have had to
find creative solutions to problems that arise. One case stands out to me in particular. It was a
rainy day and most of our children were frustrated and restless from not being able to go outside
for recess earlier on in the day. Once we got the group settled into our Jumpstart reading group
assignments, the restlessness seemed wear off a bit. However, by center time one girl in
particular became disinterested and frustrated. She was at the writing center and I tried to
encourage her to create her own story. I should also mention that it was spirit week for our
students, and she was dressed in a ballerina tutu. Despite my encouragement she refused to
participate in writing and said that she did not want to move to another center. While my other
children were working to develop their own stories, I took five minutes to make a personalized
book for her. On the cover I drew a picture of a ballerina that wore a similar tutu to the one that
she had on. I wrote her name on the cover and entitled the book her “special ballerina book.”
Slowly but surely she regained interest in the activity. I gave her the book and told her that she
should write out stories and illustrations to tell her ballerina’s story. She began to smile and at
last picked up a crayon and began to write her own story and draw her own pictures within the
book. It five minutes to implement a personalized approach that dramatically refocused my
student’s engagement in the center time activities. Ultimately, she was able to receive the
proper enrichment during center time. I learned that sometimes it takes a personalized
approach to get your students engaged in the session curriculum, and sometimes all they need
is a little cheering up from you.
-Maureen Smith
-Maureen Smith
Tuesday, April 5, 2016
The end of Jumpstart
is approaching fast, as is the end of my freshman year. This year has been
quite an experience, with a lot of ups and downs. My team and the team working
with us hit quite a few rough patches, with many people leaving, including our
team leaders. However, these bumps along the road have actually made us
stronger. We bonded and became closer, which allowed us to set up a more
unified front for the students. That’s why we’re doing Jumpstart, after all.
The children are the most important part. Being able to see them improving
throughout our time with them has been the most rewarding thing about
Jumpstart. Sure, gaining skills as an educator has been good, and the grant is
a nice bonus, but seeing how much the children grew and started to love
learning is the best part. Overall, Jumpstart has been a great experience, and
I’m glad I decided to do it. While it made my freshman year quite busy, it also
made it quite fulfilling.
-Melissa Galvin
Monday, April 4, 2016
During my third time arriving at my school for our Jumpstart session, a little girl ran up to
me as she was leaving school. She was not one of my reading group students and she looked
like she was in third or fourth grade. She came up to me and confidently said “Excuse me miss,
what is college like?” I was surprised by her confidence and genuine interest in learning about
college. I looked at her and said “It’s my first year in college, and it’s amazing but it’s also a lot
of work, keep working hard now and some day you’ll be prepared to conquer it.” She smiled and
told me that she would work hard. When beginning my service as as Jumpstart corp member I
had no idea that any of my students or students at the school would be thinking about college,
let alone be interested in asking me about it. However, after that encounter I realized that the
impact of my presence within the school goes beyond the assistance and curriculum that I
provide within my preschool classroom. Other children within the school community see us as
role models. They are fascinated because we are older, accomplished students who were once
their age. They see us as adults who have overcame everything that they will someday go
through in school. As Jumpstart Corp Members we inspire every child we come in contact with,
one way or another. While the little girl who spoke to me may not remember our conversation
when she gets older, the encouragement that I provided when she asked me that question will
hopefully flourish within her. It will help her to stay focused, to set goals, and to value her
experiences within grade school. As for my team and I, the encounter allowed us to put our
service into perspective. We realized our overall commitment to acting as role models and our
duty to pay it forward by serving within the D.C. community.
-Maureen Smith
-Maureen Smith
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