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