I Need Naptime: Or, Why Teachers are Superheroes by Lily

I Need Naptime: Or, Why Teachers are Superheroes by Lily - July 2016 Scholarship Essay

I had always thought my mother’s job must be exhausting. Visiting her kindergarten classroom from time to time and seeing the whirlwind of 5-year-old activity would drain me in minutes. I had no idea how she could come back, day after day, and teach the innovators and the peacemakers and the geniuses of the future. Right now, they just seemed like illogical, scampering mini-humans prone to tears. Yet somehow, I got first one job and then another working with 10 and 5 year olds, respectively, and began to learn a bit more about my mother. Both jobs were centered around getting young people outside and into nature in order to teach them about the natural world we live in as well as fostering future stewards of our planet. My coworkers and I try to find a balance between free exploration and opportunities for education and have been rewarded each day with the connections children are capable of making between learning and play.
Some little ones, I have learned, can be quite the challenge. My mother will often come home with stories of frustrating children and how she has worked with them to overcome their difficulties. Often, a learning disability or sensory challenge is the reason behind what might otherwise be labeled as misbehavior. As a camp counselor, I am provided with any such information before I meet a child which makes my job easier, but I am still responsible with providing that child with the best camp experience I possibly can. The most important lesson that I have learned from my mother, therefore, is empathy. In the beginning, it might seem that one child is simply “bad”. He refuses to listen, or won’t participate in an activity with the rest of the group. My mother has taught me that, with patience, I can learn what might be bothering the child and work with him or her to improve the situation. Perhaps a young girl with noise sensitivity runs away from a camp meeting because the song is too loud. Our solution might be to listen (and participate!) from a ways behind the rest of the group. Yelling at her to sit still would only have made the situation worse and I wouldn’t have gotten through to her. By understanding what might be bothering her and working to find a solution together, I can provide an optimal camp experience which will hopefully leave a positive impression for years to come.
At the end of each day of camp, I am exhausted and it’s only about 4:30 pm. Yet these are some of the most rewarding moments I have experienced. Seeing a “bad” child enjoying nature and learning through free play and exploration which suits his or her needs is an incredibly gratifying feeling. My respect for my mother has grown exponentially, as well as my ability to empathize with someone and try to understand a situation from his or her manner of experiencing the world. I have decided that teachers are superheroes and we should all learn a lesson from some of the greatest, most influential people we know.