By Beau Nichols, St. Matthew's TA
Going
into Bridge, I thought I wanted to be involved in the program to help
young students along the path of their educational careers. I started
by teaching new strategies in mathematics for the
soon-to-be-fifth-graders nervous about adding and subtracting
fractions. It wasn't long before I realized that Bridge is about so
much more than what happens in the classroom.
Every kid here looks up to every one of his or her TAs. Whether we're playing a silly game at 8:00 am, disussing the philosophical weight of a novel, illustrating our own short-story creations, or running around capturing flags under the hot afternoon sun- they look at us with open eyes and open hearts. I expected this to some degree--that's what I thought was so special about the TA position. However, I don't think I could say that I expected to be looking up to these kids in the same way they look up to us. They participate in every activity with a genuine excitement that inspires me to stretch to new levels of enthusiasm.
Every kid here looks up to every one of his or her TAs. Whether we're playing a silly game at 8:00 am, disussing the philosophical weight of a novel, illustrating our own short-story creations, or running around capturing flags under the hot afternoon sun- they look at us with open eyes and open hearts. I expected this to some degree--that's what I thought was so special about the TA position. However, I don't think I could say that I expected to be looking up to these kids in the same way they look up to us. They participate in every activity with a genuine excitement that inspires me to stretch to new levels of enthusiasm.
For Wednesday's afternoon
Enrichment activity, the TAs set up what we thought was a cool way to
cool off: Sponge Tag. This was perhaps the best embodiment of what I've
learned in this first week of Bridge. In watching them run around
soaked and smiling, it became undeniably clear that these kids are
really sponges themselves- ready to soak up all the knowledge,
creativity, and passion that we can submerge them in.