All About Me by Sydney

All About Me by Sydney - March 2014 Scholarship Essay

As a camp counselor, I anticipated children would have needs, I never expected to meet Ezra, a 4 year old with who has a
Prosthetic leg.

I did not know if the campers would single him out. How would I handle the situation when others asked why Ezra ran differently, I assumed there would be many restrictions, but he surprised me. He was completely independent. Although he could not climb the rock wall, he helped others by verbally guiding them. I was impressed when we took off his prosthetic leg to go swimming; he could not wait to get in the water.

Every time I worked with Ezra I saw myself. As a child I was diagnosed with severe LD. The technical description read: cognitive dyslexia and an auditory processing delay. I struggled when I started school. My tutors, parents, and teachers would help with schoolwork. Tutors treated me differently because they did not understand my way of learning. Interestingly, when resource teachers showed me strategies allowing me to learn on my own, I earned better grades, significantly better grades. I went from having D’s and C’s to A’s and B’s

Being Ezra’s counselor taught me not to judge and to be open to the challenges I encounter in my personal and academic life. Working with a disabled child teaches patience, and the value of enthusiasm, and encouragement. As I deal with my own learning differences, I remind myself of that
every day. I am excited to continue to thrive educationally!