This summer, I worked as a teacher’s aide at Jawonio’s Summer Education Program in my home state of New York. This experience was life changing. My job taught me skills and lessons I will never forget, and could never gain anywhere else. I was introduced to a community of kind and inspiring people.
Jawonio is a non-profit organization in the Mid-Hudson region of NY that centers on helping people with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, behavior health challenges, and chronic medical needs. For several years now my family has had ties to the organization, so I’ve seen first-hand the amazing things that Jawonio employees do.
I applied as a teacher’s aide at their Summer Education Program this past summer, meaning that I would assist teachers in the classroom during a summer-camp-school for children with all kinds of disabilities. This program exists for children who depend on some sort of structure/education to help them retain important skills and knowledge they would otherwise lose over the summer.
In my case, my classroom had ten children whose ages ranged from ten to thirteen. A majority of the children whom I worked with had multiple disabilities, which meant they may have Autism, a cognitive disorder, and CP, while others may have Down Syndrome, or an intellectual disability.
I was hesitant coming into this position, afraid I would make things worse and cause even more issues for my kids who already handle so much. Thankfully, I was surrounded by people who knew what they were doing (for the most part I should say, because I did have some wild coworkers!). They helped me along the way, and I learned that what I really needed to do was trust my gut. If it felt right, it usually was the right thing to do. This method helped me throughout my first week, when I was afraid to even look at my students, in fear of making a mistake.
As I got to know my children throughout the summer, I only grew to love them more. I spent so much of my time helping them with their classwork (and it was REAL classwork!), playing with them in the pool, and having dance parties. Along the way, we truly bonded. One student of mine was absolutely in love. He was the sweetest boy who loved singing the song Lonely by Justin Bieber and the color green (although he only wore all blue, that silly boy). I was his favorite until I introduced him to my best friend who worked in another classroom. Next thing we knew, him and I would walk this boy to the bus, all holding hands, every day.
Another student of mine, who I worked closely with, was known to be a troublemaker. At certain points, I was afraid she might accidentally hurt me or others, but I knew there was something more going on behind the obvious. Over the weeks I got to know her, we became a team. I saw a kindness in her that not everyone else was willing to search for. All she really wanted was for people to speak to her with respect. She wanted to be treated like the tween she was, instead of a little girl. She had complex emotions and feelings that were sometimes trapped behind her inability to communicate. I found ways of communicating without words. When I started to actually see her, her behavior changed a lot. She did her work more, smiled often, and yelled less frequently.
While some students were predominantly independent when it came to changing their clothes and using the bathroom, others weren’t. It was hard at first to work with kids who needed help with such intimate things, and I had to remove my projections of how I would feel from the situation when doing so. These children depended on me, and it was my job to help them retain their dignity and respect while doing so. After some time, it became habitual and I even made the vulnerable moments fun by chanting positive manifestations in the mirror as we washed our hands! We would say things like, “I am worthy!” or “I am capable and smart!” and I think this made a huge difference for them. Overall, I feel honored that those amazing children trusted me to care for them in those ways.
With the good came the bad; we had some students with severe behavioral issues. But, this taught me patience above all else. We spent hours begging students to leave the pool after our time ended, or passionately debating why learning math is important, but no matter what, I reminded myself that everyone deserves patience. Especially my students, who sometimes needed help when
transitioning from one activity to another, or became extremely anxious when they felt they weren’t in control of their routine. I learned that it’s all about understanding each child personally, and using that understanding to cater every single transition, interaction, and lesson to what works best for them.
Yes, this process could get exhausting, and there were days when I was on my feet for what felt like eight hours straight, but I reminded myself that these things were equally (and sometimes even more) exhausting for my kids, who were working hard to accomplish the things I take for granted in doing. We had to read and memorize every child’s IEP so that we could teach and help them in the best ways possible. Again, every child has a different level of skills/knowledge in every single category you can think of.
During math lessons, I would have to jump between two children, each with a separate worksheet and capable of different skills. One child was working on how to write out her name, while the other was working on how to write letters. It felt like I had to switch the coding of my brain constantly, and that was hard to do.
Most days I came home exhausted, unable to speak to anyone, feeling extremely overstimulated and overwhelmed. Sometimes, I would wake up on weekends in a panic that one of my kids might need help and I wouldn’t be there. It crushed me to know there were some times and places where I just wouldn’t be able to.
When the end of the summer came and we all had to say goodbye, all of the teacher’s aides were distraught leaving their children. We bonded this summer, and it was hard to let go of the hands we held for six weeks. Knowing that they were going back to school, a place where they may not get the best help or the perfect amount of attention worried me, even knowing that they were way more well equipped than I was.
To make matters worse, the two children who I got to know the best happened to leave the program a week early without their parents letting any of us know! I never got to say goodbye to my kids who I love so, so much.
I learned a lot from this experience. I am a much more patient and understanding person now because of this incredible opportunity. The entire Jawonio community changed the course of my life, and showed me the grace and beauty of the families and loved ones in need of our care. It is an honor and privilege to help/assist those in need. I only wish that I learned about this program sooner.
I recommend that everyone works in this field in some capacity at least once in their life. There are skills and lessons to learn that you will never learn in any other way. I am grateful for the children I came to know, and am proud to call myself a teacher’s aide at Jawonio’s Summer Education Program.