As a teacher’s assistant, our main responsibility is to aid in the efficiency of the classroom. This could range from taking attendance, passing out homework, running errands, or helping kids understand the material. Our work is crucial to the teacher’s ability to deliver the material in such a brief window of time every week, ensuring that the children are able to digest the information. Although our main job is to make sure the classroom stays in order, it is pertinent to remember not to minimize their emotions or needs for the sake of productivity. Genuine interactions and communication between ourselves and the children have really played a major role in making sure that they feel comfortable. Establishing that kind of security allows for the kids to voice their needs and questions, something that in the beginning was hard to do for some as they were more tense and timid.
Being that children will be children, a constant struggle was trying to motivate them to actively work and participate in class, as many of them struggled with concentrating. In order to incentivize them, we set up a system in which they would be able to earn coupons through participating which worked very well. This goes to show that kids have the capacity to learn as long as they are given the proper
The second portion of the day was their cultural classes. In arts and crafts, the kids were instructed to make their own paper snails. The activities engaged their motor skills, imagination, and communication skills. A few of the kids struggled with cutting circles for the body of their snail, but through patience and practice they were able to succeed. As TA’s being, able to work so closely with teachers and children helps foster a sense of community and compassion, helping us become better people. Overall, the day was a great success, and we look forward to the next time!
Yang Amy Wu (3.5 hours), Tiffany Lin (3.5 hours), Mathew Zhong (3.5 hours), William Wei (3.5 hours), Chloe Wu (3.5 hours), Angeline Li (3.5 hours), Charleen Fu (3.5 hours), Christopher Zu (3.5 hours)
Reporter: Chloe Wu
