Village project is an after school program that provides SNC education majors the opportunity to ensure that this is the correct major for us. Here are my top 10 takeaways from village project throughout this past school year.

  1. One of the most important qualities of the village project is the reassuring the college students that this is something that they want to do. As a sophomore I was concerned with joining a major I wasn’t totally sure I wanted to stick with. However, doing the village project has proved to me that this is indeed something that I am interested in continuing. It really gave me an appreciation for all of the in class time that SNC gives us.
  2. Another takeaway from the village project is the important connections made between the volunteers and the students. Although we weren’t there everyday, the consistent appearance from volunteers creates a connection that makes students much more comfortable with the volunteers. This allows us to be mentors for the students. This also provides a great feeling for the volunteers creating a connection that we normally wouldn’t find unless we worked in a classroom.
  3. Provides positive habits for students. My mom always said being busy is a good thing because it prevents you from getting in trouble. This is one reason why I participated in any event I could. Having a habit of doing school work/ playing with friends after a full day of school can be exhausting but also great. It can lead to students being more efficient in school and keeping up with their work much more. I am proud to be a part of anything that helps build positive actions for students.
  4. Learning feels more fun. One project that we worked on involved trying to get a plant to grow without using soil. This allowed students to extend their knowledge on multiple science content areas while also enjoying the subject with their friends. This experience provides entertainment due to group activities which is a great experience for volunteers. It really helps us see that learning doesn’t have to be pen and paper but it can be activities as well.
  5. Builds confidence in the volunteers. Going into the village project I only had the backing of “you would be a great teacher” behind me. The village project gave me the idea that I actually could be a good teacher. Despite people telling me this I wasn’t sure until this semester. I took this opportunity to reassure myself and it really helped build my confidence.
  6. Small things that matter. Along with building the volunteers building confidence, the village project gives us an opportunity to learn how to do some of the little things. These would include using a teacher voice, accepting that you will have to discipline students every now and then, and many more things.
  7. Opportunities arise! There have been multiple opportunities that have arisen for me throughout the past couple months. One that I am very excited about is an opportunity to coach football. A teacher came up to my friend and I and asked if we would be willing to help coach his football team. This is a dream of mine so I am definitely taking advantage of that!
  8. Creates patience that a teacher needs. Throughout this year there were multiple moments where my patience was tested. Despite always being a very patient person, it can be difficult after a full day of school. This definitely helped grow the amount of patience I have. Especially the days that the students were emotional and crying a lot, or trying to be funny by hitting us with a ball. These little things helped me a lot!
  9. Along with that patience, the afterschool program gives us a feeling of what its like to be a teacher. Obviously we aren’t there for all of the day with these student, but adding these few hours to my day could be exhausting. It is like having the job without doing all the work. It definitely helped reassure that this is something I will be able to do.
  10. Finally, my last take away from the village project is how it stretched me out of my comfort zone. I am comfortable with most situations I am put in but I would be lying if I said I wasn’t a little nervous going into a situation like this. It turned out to be a great learning opportunity. Some of the most valuable knowledge to have can only be learned by being in a classroom and this significantly improved my motivation to become a teacher!