April 9th: Emma

My work with Project DIRECT thus far has been incredibly meaningful and fulfilling. Between juggling coursework, lab hours and meetings, thesis writing, and an ongoing graduate school search, Wednesday morning preschool hours are a welcomed treat each week. There’s no better feeling than walking into a classroom and immediately having 25 little faces light up with excitement to see you. This is by no means my first experience working with preschoolers, However, working in the preschool classroom has allowed me to enjoy greater freedom and independence in the classroom than I’ve ever had before. I love being able to participate in classroom activities and work one-on-one with the children as I choose. What’s more, I can’t express enough how warm and welcoming the children and teachers have been at my partner school – the environment is the perfect atmosphere for truly being able to engage in working with children of all abilities, backgrounds, and personalities. My partner school is lucky in a number of ways, one being that there are a plethora of available resources, and another being its diverse student body. The opportunity to work in a classroom where children are all working together towards a similar goal despite ranging from practically illiterate to reading and writing at a 3rd grade level is an extraordinary thing to see, and an even more extraordinary thing to be a part of. I look forward to many more Wednesday mornings at my partner school to come!