i n t r o d u c t o r y s t a t e m e n t
After my first missions trip to Guatemala post-Freshman year of high school, I knew I wanted to work with kids and/or youth in some capacity. Prior to my missions trip, I worked with children in the church and fell in love with the children's ministry, yet this did not develop into an aspiring career until I spent time with the young people of Guatemala. Whilst there, I witnessed what REAL struggle looked like. At one of the feeding centers and schools, I saw a young boy not eating the soup that was placed in front of him. I wondered why he was not eating as I could tell he was already extremely small for his age. Soon, I realized that he was pulling a small crinkled up plastic bag that looked similar to a Ziploc bag, but it was not quite as nice as what we have here. I watched as he struggled to put the soup into this bag to take home to his family. A fellow missionary and I went and helped the boy once we realized what he was doing. This boy had nothing, yet he sacrificed everything for his family; this story stuck with me over the years.
Between the boy with the soup and my experiences with the other kids in Guatemala, I KNEW that God had called me to work with kids. Upon my return, I spent time reflecting on my time abroad. I contemplated how I could work with kids in the greatest capacity possible, and that is when I recalled that kids spend a majority of their lives in school. What better way to reach kids than where they spend most of their time?
Over the years, I spent more time abroad and went to Nicaragua three different times to do missions work, one of these trips was for three weeks when I traveled overseas by myself for the first time at the age of 18. During my time in Nicaragua, I bonded with the teens and realized that God gave me the gift of communicating and empathizing with the depth of struggles that I saw in those teens. Over time, my Spanish skills developed, and I eventually was fluent at one point. My Spanish literacy gave me the ability to talk with some teens and learn their stories while sharing mine and offering them encouragement.
Since coming to college, I honestly have questioned this calling that God placed in me from a younger age than I may have once realized (I used to play school as an elementary schooler with my sister, and I always wanted to be the teacher). I have realized there is both a need in third world countries and in the U.S. for young people to learn English and to learn how to effectively communicate. I have had days where I question whether I am inadequate or even good enough to be a teacher.
I have realized I am NOT good enough to be a teacher, but I do not have to be. God has gifted me the ability to encourage, offer mercy, share wisdom, and give to others. Even though I may feel like there are better people out there that convey higher levels of English content knowledge, I know that God has placed me here for a reason. I am an individual who works hard and has the ability to teach myself the skills I lack. I have seen what real struggle looks like and I have seen how everyone's struggles may look different. I know that I NEED to be a teacher because there are students out there who need someone who cares enough to ask them how they are REALLY doing and who cares enough to know them better than they know themselves. My future students need me because I have the ability to empathize with them and read right through the facade they show their peers. I am needed because I am willing to be one of the adults who is honest with teens and is not afraid to tell them the truth, but I can also say it in a loving way. I am, of course, not perfect at this, and I recognize I have so much work to do as a teacher and an individual. However, I am willing to put in the time and the effort to meet my students where they are and remind them that they are loved, special, and important. It is my role - it is my responsibility - to help young people discover their gifts and what makes them who they are, so one day they can use those gifts to make the world a better place; even if the world may not recognize them for their small differences, what they do matters and they have a purpose.
So, I may not be the perfect person for the job, but I am the perfect person to love and care for these students more than anyone else. I have a lot of growth to do until I can become as confident as veteran teachers, but I can use my struggles appropriately to help students in their struggles. No matter what, though, I know that my students do have a great purpose, and I am willing to do what it takes to try to help get them there.
Thank you for checking out my e-portfolio and listening to my story. I hope one day I get to hear yours.
An Aspiring Future Teacher,
Kelsey Hayes
Between the boy with the soup and my experiences with the other kids in Guatemala, I KNEW that God had called me to work with kids. Upon my return, I spent time reflecting on my time abroad. I contemplated how I could work with kids in the greatest capacity possible, and that is when I recalled that kids spend a majority of their lives in school. What better way to reach kids than where they spend most of their time?
Over the years, I spent more time abroad and went to Nicaragua three different times to do missions work, one of these trips was for three weeks when I traveled overseas by myself for the first time at the age of 18. During my time in Nicaragua, I bonded with the teens and realized that God gave me the gift of communicating and empathizing with the depth of struggles that I saw in those teens. Over time, my Spanish skills developed, and I eventually was fluent at one point. My Spanish literacy gave me the ability to talk with some teens and learn their stories while sharing mine and offering them encouragement.
Since coming to college, I honestly have questioned this calling that God placed in me from a younger age than I may have once realized (I used to play school as an elementary schooler with my sister, and I always wanted to be the teacher). I have realized there is both a need in third world countries and in the U.S. for young people to learn English and to learn how to effectively communicate. I have had days where I question whether I am inadequate or even good enough to be a teacher.
I have realized I am NOT good enough to be a teacher, but I do not have to be. God has gifted me the ability to encourage, offer mercy, share wisdom, and give to others. Even though I may feel like there are better people out there that convey higher levels of English content knowledge, I know that God has placed me here for a reason. I am an individual who works hard and has the ability to teach myself the skills I lack. I have seen what real struggle looks like and I have seen how everyone's struggles may look different. I know that I NEED to be a teacher because there are students out there who need someone who cares enough to ask them how they are REALLY doing and who cares enough to know them better than they know themselves. My future students need me because I have the ability to empathize with them and read right through the facade they show their peers. I am needed because I am willing to be one of the adults who is honest with teens and is not afraid to tell them the truth, but I can also say it in a loving way. I am, of course, not perfect at this, and I recognize I have so much work to do as a teacher and an individual. However, I am willing to put in the time and the effort to meet my students where they are and remind them that they are loved, special, and important. It is my role - it is my responsibility - to help young people discover their gifts and what makes them who they are, so one day they can use those gifts to make the world a better place; even if the world may not recognize them for their small differences, what they do matters and they have a purpose.
So, I may not be the perfect person for the job, but I am the perfect person to love and care for these students more than anyone else. I have a lot of growth to do until I can become as confident as veteran teachers, but I can use my struggles appropriately to help students in their struggles. No matter what, though, I know that my students do have a great purpose, and I am willing to do what it takes to try to help get them there.
Thank you for checking out my e-portfolio and listening to my story. I hope one day I get to hear yours.
An Aspiring Future Teacher,
Kelsey Hayes