Closing into a new beginning

Tired and Groggy, we started our morning at 530 am. After checking out the 6 of us got into our stylish, sleek green minivan and made our way to J.H. Gunn elementary. It was the only day all of us were working together in one classroom. Mr. Khosravi welcomed us with guidelines for the day as we arrived and we were prepped on our responsibilities while we were waiting eagerly for our class of second graders.

The day had an interesting dynamic, as the particular class to which we were assigned was an all boys classroom. We divided ourselves to work with groups of students at very different learning levels in math, reading, writing and science. It was also the day where we were working with students over the largest range of subject matter. 

We began the day with morning assignments and working together with decomposing numbers. The boys worked with building blocks, conversion, the number line and number equations. I liked the way Mr. Khosravi provided a variety of tools for his students to express their thoughts. Soon after math, we continued on to reading and science where we helped the students learn new words and concepts. Later, we broke up into small focused groups as we worked with students tackling problem areas in math. After all the hard work we headed out for lunch with the students where we were entertained with funny stories and jokes. We spoke to the students about their favorite classes and their future plans. We finished the day with a small comprehension assignment and reading.

Throughout the day I noticed that in all the classes the teacher tried to focus more on the analytical skills of the students rather than the answer of the problem. It was a unique style of teaching and definitely an important skill. The students were encouraged to think of different ways to come to a solution, connect their personal experiences to their readings and interpret what was being in the text. Mr. Khosravi knew the strengths and weaknesses of each of his students and had formulated different ways to tackle them. Jose had trouble reading so his classmates tested him on different words while they lined up to go for lunch or recess. Elisjah had trouble understanding abstract concepts so he was taught with blocks so he could see visually see the changes when he manipulated numbers. It was a remarkable way to deal with specific problem areas!

After the long day finally ended we went back to the van and started our long journey home. Once again we had to deal with the wrath of the impossible highways and had to detour, which added 2 hours to our journey. Tired angry and frustrated we continued driving until we found our savior in the form of “Bojangles” where we stopped to drown our sorrows in food. J. After our big meal we reflected on the week and our different experiences. The highlights, the things we didn’t agree with, the funny stories and best moments. We all connected with the children we worked with in a rare and extraordinary which left lasting impressions on each one of us.  I fell asleep thinking of all the unexpected things I discovered. It was the perfect ending to an amazing week. J.

Chandni Chopra

Sophomore, Marketing Major