Features
Hamilton students take the reigns on teaching
By Lindsay Heyer ’17
May 7, 2015
This past semester, eighteen Hamilton students taught Spanish to students at Clinton Elementary School. These Hamilton students attended a two-day training workshop prior to beginning the program to learn about different teaching methods and share ideas for activities. The program began on February 9 and continued until the end of April. This year, for the first time, the program was conducted outside of the classroom, during recess, to allow a more interactive and immersive experience for the children. Throughout the program, Hamilton students prepared different types of activities including games, worksheets and lessons, and worked with the children in groups once a week. The volunteers focused on a different theme each week—from weather to food to colors. Each group consisted of students from different grades, ranging from kindergarten to fifth grade. Teaching Fellow in Hispanic Studies, Maria Portal, Visiting Assistant Professor of Hispanic Studies Christine Fernández, Emily Hess ’16, and Lindsay Heyer ’17 coordinated the program. This semester concludes the third year of the program.
Overall, the program proved to be a fun and rewarding experience for the volunteers. The volunteers not only learned to teach Spanish, but also learned how to lead and approach lessons in a new, creative way. Upon finishing the program, one student volunteer commented, “I enjoyed seeing some of the kids really get into the Spanish, which I wasn’t entirely expecting as I was tutoring first graders.” The Hamilton students also enjoyed the opportunity to interact with the youngest members of the Clinton community and said that they look forward to participating in the program again next year.
The Hamilton volunteers include Ian Brown ’17, Emily Morris ’17, Brian Maldonado ’18, Tyler Hagedorn ’18, Lindsay Heyer, Alec Talsania ’17, Fletcher Sherrod ’18, Jeremiah Lowe ’15, Ashleigh Stephan ’15, Diane Aguilar ’18, Courtney Anderson ’15, Cindy Li ’16, Rebecca DeTurk ’17, Emily Hess, Fabio Velasquez, Rosalie Campbell ’18, Natasha Espinosa ’18, and Katja Dunlap ’18.