Child and Youth Worker – BGC Kamloops
I’ve been employed at BGC Kamloops for two years now, overseeing after-school programs and summer camps for children in grades K-7. I have really appreciated working with these age groups, because it has opened my mind about where I eventually want to teach in the future. Initially, I wanted to only teach intermediate ages, but through working at BGC I have realized that working with primary is a lot of fun as well. Getting this wide range of experience has given me a lot of confidence in my practica, and I look forward to implementing the skills that I have learned in this position to my teaching practice.
Summer Camp Leader – Engineering Science Quest (University of Waterloo)
Over the summers, when I was in high school in Waterloo, Ontario, I worked as a leader at UW’s Engineering Science Quest (ESQ), which is a science and engineering camp for kids. As a leader it was a part of my job to create, prepare, and teach a lesson on acoustics. I taught the children in my group about how sound waves work, and led them in an activity where they created their own elastic band guitars. I really enjoyed my time working at ESQ and I believe that going through the process of writing what was essentially a lesson plan, sourcing materials, and delivering a lesson was my first time formally teaching a group of students.
Trip to Vietnam
In 2014 I went on a trip to Vietnam with my mom and did a bike trip across the country. It was fascinating for me to go there because it was so completely different than North America in so many ways. I was incredibly impressed by how welcoming and hard working the Vietnamese people were, and the landscape of the country was nothing short of spectacular. This trip has inspired me to one day teach English abroad in Vietnam or another country in Southeast Asia. This part of the world is incredibly underrated for travel and I look forward to returning one day to gain more experience teaching English as a second language.