Just a Little Girl by Alicia

Just a Little Girl by Alicia - December 2024 Scholarship Essay

She was just a third grade girl. A little girl who was ready to learn and grow. That little girl was me. I was an eight-year-old girl who loved the classroom and always put in my best effort. That was, however, until it came to reading. With reading, I always had to try a little bit harder. Silent- reading time was always a major struggle for me. While reading a book I always had to ask what a word was or how to say it. As a young girl I didn’t understand why I couldn’t figure it out and why the teacher would get frustrated when I asked. I was just trying to learn and understand. It only took one day to ruin that all for me. Anxiously and embarrassed I walked up to the teachers desk to ask for a word for the third time. In a harsh tone She said, “Go sit down if you don’t know it, make it up or skip it.” Humiliated, I went to lay back down in my spot wondering why I couldn’t be like everyone else, willing to do anything just to understand. Now as an eighteen year old, twelfth grader I still skip words, and make up characters' names when I can’t figure them out because that is what my young brain was taught. Since then everytime I try to pick up a book I remember what was said and automatically think I won’t be able to read or understand it. Little did she know what she said would alter and impact the way I read forever.
As I have gotten older I have realized that what my third grade teacher said, had a bigger impact on my life than just a word on a paper.As a little girl I learned self doubt, and insecurity which are still things I struggle with. It not only ruined my confidence in the classroom but also my self- esteem. As I start to unlearn these things and find who I am I have learned that my teachers have played a role in the person I have become. I believe that teachers in childhood education have the biggest impact on a student's life.
This belief is what led me to pursue early childhood education. Not only are you teaching them the foundation of their education, you are teaching support, confidence, and empathy. By becoming a teacher I never want my students to feel the way I did that day in third grade. My intention is to make sure my students feel understood, supported, and comfortable in my classroom. This is so important to me because every child no matter the circumstances deserves to have a positive adult that supports them, whether it is encouragement while doing an academic problem, or listening and advising them when they are having a bad day. Another objective I desire to have in my classroom is interactive learning. I want this in my classroom because it is one of the main ways children learn. This is demonstrated in the constructivism learning theory, which I learned in my Intro to Teaching class. I took the class so I could get a basis of what I would be learning in my postsecondary education. During this class is when I fell more in love with teaching and knew becoming a teacher was something I wanted to do forever. To obtain my dream of becoming a teacher I have worked hard while in highschool to have a GPA of 3.0 and have been accepted to PennWest Clarion for their Early Childhood and Special Education (Dual) (BSED) program. My goal is to complete the program and achieve my dream of becoming a teacher.