On Sunday, September 7th, the Roslyn Aylus branch volunteered at the Chinese Cultural Association of Long Island (CCALI) from 1:00-5:00 PM. Our roles as volunteers were to serve as teacher assistants and assist both students and teachers on their first day of school.
As teacher assistants, we started our afternoon off by introducing the students to the class and helping them adjust to the new surroundings. As it was the first day, many students were upset and anxious, however, TA’s were able to console them and help them feel comfortable to open up and get excited for class. We started class with short introductions, in order to learn about each student’s names and hobbies, then proceeded into simple worksheets to ease them back into a learning environment after an eventful summer. Afterwards, a short break was given where TAs would bring the children to the bathroom or grab a snack and spend their coupons, a currency system students can earn while participating during class.
Other than helping the students, TA’s would help complete tasks for the teacher to lessen their workload. Although these tasks were simple, such as bringing students to the bathroom, cleaning up water bottle spills, bringing worksheets to get copied, or just simply handing out papers, this was one less task for the teacher to complete. With TAs, the teachers were able to fully engage and educate the class without worrying about minor inconveniences or distractions.
At the end of the day, TA’s helped make the pick-up process easier. Volunteers helped students pack up, and ensured they were picked up safely by their designated parent or guardian, while bearing a warm farewell. Afterwards, we would help organize the class, rearranging chairs and desks, ensuring the classroom was the same as how we entered it, ready to be met with students excited to learn again next week.
Overall, this experience allowed volunteers to take a glimpse of the responsibilities an educator must maintain while teaching a classroom. Although what we were tasked with was simple, TA’s were still able to lessen the workload of the teachers and brighten the environment of the classroom.
Members who participated include: Sofia Chen (4 Hours), Jasmine Lin (4 Hours), Lyann Lin (4 Hours), Joy Zou (4 Hours), Abigail Zhao (4 Hours), Rita Meng (4 Hours), Kayden Cheng (4 Hours), Joanna Huang (4 Hours), Ethan Liu (4 Hours), Shinree Zhang (4 Hours), Jenny Chen (4 Hours), Serena Wu (1 Hour), and Tiffany Lin (1 Hour)
Reporter: Sofia Chen
