Service Learning Site Blogs

10/6/10

Today I worked with two third grade girls again. First, I helped one girl go through a worksheet of multiplication problems. Then, I had to listen while one girl read her poem out loud to me. I was surprised by how well her reading skills were. Compared to the math skills of these kids at St. Thomas, their reading skills were more advanced. After she finished her homework, I played "Speed" with both girls. They each tried to compete to see how many games they could beat me at. If they won the game, they would run around cheering and dancing with a huge smile on their faces. If they lost, they still would shout out that they won and told me I lost. They never wanted to lose the game. However, they seemed happy that someone would play these games with them. They might not have a parent that would be willing to play with them at home.

10/20/10

At my service site today I helped tutor two fifth grade girls and one fifth grade boy. They worked on their math homework for the full hour and a half I was there. They had problems that involved long division, word problems, ratios, and decimals. They all seemed to struggle with their homework. I constantly had to correct their mistakes. Also, they all used the comfort of a multiplication table. When I was in school, I had to know my multiplication table in my head. They kids seem to have a lack of basic math skills, and it seems that they will struggle in the future. It makes me want to help them learn how to do math better.

10/27/10

I worked with the fifth grade girls again today. This time, they were working on their spelling homework. They had to put their spelling words in alphabetical order, and then they had to make each singular word plural. They all seemed to struggle with this homework. They took anything and everything they learned in class and applied them to the words. For example, one girl was trying to figure out the plural form of "fruit." Without really thinking about it, she wrote "fruites." After I told her that was incorrect, without even thinking about the word itself, she wrote "fruitives." Finally, after several attempts, she was able to figure out that there was no change needed. These girls definitely seemed to struggle with this concept. I feel that the teacher may have given the assignment without actually teaching the students how to do the work.