Take a walk in our boots
When you serve at City Year New Hampshire, every day is a chance to make a difference. No two days will be exactly alike, but here is an example of what a typical day is like for one of our corps members.
by Sam Slaughter
7:30 a.m. Readiness Check. After a hearty breakfast and, more importantly sometimes, some hot coffee at my apartment, I meet up with my team for a readiness check at the Bedford parking lot. After any announcements are read, we pile into our van, nicknamed Aslan, and head to school.
7:35 a.m. Ride to School. During the ride to school, my teammates and I listen to our team mix cd that we made together to get pumped up for the coming day.
7:40 a.m. Arrive at School. We arrive at school, greet the crossing guards and head up to my classroom.
7:45 a.m. Classroom Prep. I start the day by prepping my classroom. I sharpen pencils, erase the whiteboard, tidy up and make sure that my math group materials are ready to go.
8:05 a.m. Morning Greeting. The team meets back up on the playground and disperses to different areas to chat with students in a certain grade as they come to school in the morning. We also make sure the students don't get too rowdy by keeping them in line and quiet. This time gives us a chance to see how the students are feeling every morning before school.
8:20 a.m. Head to Class. Teachers pick up their students from the playground. I rejoin my own fourth grade classroom and head upstairs.
8:25 a.m. Morning Work. First, I collect student’s homework and help them with their morning math and writing review work.
8:40 a.m. Math Time. We begin math time with a multiplication "Minute Quiz" meant to see how well the students know their multiplication facts.
8:45 a.m. Whole Class Support. While my teacher introduces the day's math lesson, I walk around the room monitoring behavior while offering help to students if needed.
9:00 a.m. Intervention Block 1, Math Group. I work with 4 students from my class on math problems that are related to the daily lesson. We utilize different methods, from worksheets to coloring to handling physical objects to illustrate the different ways the specific lesson works in everyday life. Sometimes, I work with students individually instead, applying the lesson to something in their life I know they can relate to.
9:30 a.m. Snack Time. My teacher and I take turns reading books to students. I try to pick my favorite books that I read as a fourth grader. By doing so, I can later on engage them in a conversation and hopefully spark a lifelong interest in reading.
9:45 a.m. Science or Social Studies Time. I spend this time walking the class, monitoring behavior and helping with the lesson. I use my travel experience, and the photos from it, to bring different terms and places to life for the students. It's one thing to read about Old Faithful, and a completely different experience to see real photos of it.
10:15 a.m. Specials Time. My students have their "Specials"--art, gym, library, music or health. I use this time to prep for the upcoming writer’s workshop, check the minute quizzes, make photocopies for myself or my teacher, check in with my team leader or work on anything else that needs to get done. I also make sure to take a big, deep reenergizing breath.
11:00 a.m. Transition Time. If the students are in their classroom for Specials--art, music and health are held in the class--I help the students’ transition into the next period, Writers Workshop, by reminding them to get their Writers Notebooks and any other supplies or books they may need.
11:05 a.m. Writer’s Workshop. The students sit around the teacher on the carpet, while I sit at the back of the circle and listen in to the workshop lesson, participating if the lesson allows for it. I also monitor behavior, using my proximity to ensure the students are quiet and listening attentively to the teacher.
11:25 a.m. Intervention Block 2, Writing Group. With five students, I run through a brief writing recap lesson--such as how to use italics or what homophones are--then we move into a writing lesson that supports what my teacher just explained. Usually, this involves having my students write in personal journals, which gives them the chance to creatively approach the lesson and experiment with finding their own style.
12:05 p.m. Lunch time. Twice a week, I eat with one or two my students in the cafeteria, giving them a chance to talk about whatever they want that is not related to school. This gives me a chance to get to know my students better and understand their likes and dislikes. On the other two days, I eat lunch in my classroom with my fellow corps members serving in the other fourth and fifth grade classes.
12:30 p.m. Recess. In the fourth grade, we continue a program implemented by last year’s corps members called homework recess. Any fourth grade student that did not complete the previous night's homework stays in to complete it. This allows for extra time for 1-on-1 tutoring in all different subjects. When I don’t help with homework recess, I go outside with the students and play a variety of games, from basketball to jump rope, while also making sure they follow the playground rules.
1:00 p.m. Word Study. I walk the class helping students when needed and monitoring behavior.
1:35 p.m. Intervention Block 3, Reading Group. With the same five writing students, I lead a reading group that alternates days between having all students read aloud and discuss the book or engaging in activities related to the assigned reading. Sometimes, I work with the same students 1-on-1 for focused reading aloud.
2:20 p.m. Prepare for Dismissal. During this time, I hand out homework or papers that need to go home while students gather their belongings to get ready for dismissal.
2:30 p.m. Dismissal. I escort the students in “car patrol” down to the building’s main doors, where they are picked up by car. Three other corps members and I stand at the curb with school staff to ensure that all parents and students cross properly at the crosswalks.
2:45 p.m. After School Snack. I head into the gym to help oversee snack time for the afterschool program.
3:00 p.m. Homework Help. I head with fourth and fifth graders to the library for homework help. This gives students a chance to get a jump start on their night’s work while having help available if needed.
4:00 p.m. After School Program. I help out with a variety of after school clubs, depending on the day. For example, on Tuesdays, I engage the students in creative Lego construction during Lego Builders Group. On another day, I lead a no-cook cooking class where we learn about food and get to have fun with it at the same time.
4:55 p.m. After School Dismissal. Students line up and are dismissed from after school programs.
5:05 p.m. Team Meeting. Our team meets to listen to announcements and debrief our day at school.
5:20 p.m. Head Home. We head to the van, get in and head back to the Bedford parking lot.
5:30 p.m. Leave for the Day. We arrive at the Bedford parking lot and disperse for the day. Usually, I self-manage and relax by heading to the gym immediately after for a run or for some yoga.
About Sam Slaughter:
"I serve because I believe that any change for the good, no matter how small, can be momentous."
Hello! My name is Sam Slaughter, I’m 23 years old and I was born and raised in Bloomfield, New Jersey. After spending the first 18 years of my life in the same place—the same house, even—I began to move. I received my B.A. in English and Anthropology from Elon University in North Carolina in 2009, spent one year working on my Master’s of Anthropology at the University of Montana in Missoula, then moved back home to New Jersey and spent one year working as a municipal beat reporter for two weekly newspapers.
I chose to land in Manchester, and to join City Year, because, despite being able to write—which I had wanted to do since I was young—it didn’t feel right. Day in and day out, staring at gray carpet, desk chairs and cubicles and drinking terrible coffee, I felt hollow. In college, I had served at animal shelters on an almost-daily basis only to find myself back in New Jersey not doing anything but working for a paycheck. I decided I needed to change that, so I did.
In this next year, I’m looking forward to stepping beyond the boundaries of every comfort zone I have ever known in order to work towards changing the world for the better. To do so, I will keep a quote by Kurt Vonnegut close to my heart: “New knowledge is the most valuable commodity on earth. The more truth we have to work with, the richer we become.”