Day in the Life: Mrs. Basuil

I returned as a Second Year AmeriCorps Member for City Year Sacramento at St. HOPE Public Schools. I decided to serve again because I saw City Year as an opportunity for growth. It took me a long time to figure out what I wanted to do after my first year of service and it was this organization that opened my eyes to what I’ve been denying my whole college life, becoming a teacher. I didn’t feel ready to start the next steps in becoming a teacher because I wasn’t sure if that was a decision that I was confident in. I also didn’t want to leave City Year because I finally found a job that made me feel important. Now, after returning to serve a second year, it has given me the confidence I needed to finally take the next steps as a teacher. I’ve learned so much in these past two years and continuously grow more every day.
 

Every day our team of nine starts our day at 7:00 AM. We create a strong circle that always includes a readiness check of our uniform to ensure we’re prepared for the day. We do a check-in by answering a fun and interesting question to hear everyone’s voices. One of my all-time favorite questions was “How might you act at 100 years old?” My team is full of jokers who always have something hilarious to add. Then we all say good morning to each other and head out to greet the students of PS7 Middle School. 
 

Power Greeting is a ‘Power Tool’ used by City Year to energize and motivate students and Corps Members at the start of the day. We try to promote a positive culture with smiles and cheers to get students excited to come to school every day and start them on a positive note. The morning gets even brighter when students join in and Power Greet with us!
 

The rest of the day I spend in the sixth grade supporting students in English Language Arts. I was thrilled to work with the same partner teacher as last year! Having the privilege to work with my partner teacher again has given me more growth opportunities in the classroom as a teacher. We have five class periods and four of them I get the chance to pull small groups in the back. My fifth period is unique. I get to run my own intervention group in a separate classroom with a separate lesson plan. During intervention we read as a group and take summary notes on what we read. With extra time I give them the opportunity to work on homework or other class assignments.  

On Wednesdays, I check in with my attendance students. One is a student I worked with last year whom I built a strong relationship with. Being able to work with her again made it easier to find a plan that will work for her so that she can improve on her attendance. Thursdays are special to me because I get to run my sports and activities club with 6th, 7th, and sometimes 8th graders. This is an opportunity for students to bond over playing sports like volleyball or kickball. The favored activity is freeze tag inside the building where there is open space for students to run around in. It is what I look forward to the most throughout the week besides lunch with students because I get to know more about the students we serve and who they are outside of the classroom.

At 5:30 our day ends similar to how it began. We close our day with announcements from our team and share some joys, ripples, appreciations, or whoopsies. The communication doesn’t stop there. My team and I are always talking with each other and spending time together outside of service, usually around a dinner table. This family keeps me grounded and my cup full. Days do get hard but serving with this team and impacting these students makes every day worth it. I love my City Year!