Student Reflections
"My mind was littered with worries; I doubted that I was capable of writing a story that could compete with Sponge Bob and Dora the Explorer."
"My own fears regarding unruly children and my overall inability to interact with kids made me more than a little nervous about going to read to a group of fourth-graders."
"When asked about the story . . . I was surprised by how many details they could recall. They talked about the horses, weapons and jewels . . . and proceeded to draw them all into the castle coloring book."
"Not only were they sitting bent forward listening to the story with an attentive ear, but at the end when we asked them what their favorite part was, nearly every hand shot up with a response!"
"I honestly didn't think that they would understand any part of our story. But for first graders, they responded very well to out questions and had a good idea of what the story was about."
"They seemed to not understand the importance of a college education. One girl in particular said that she would rather work at McDonalds so that she didn't have to live away from home. College should be something that young children aspire to attend, but many of them barely knew what college was."
"Everyone at Hamilton grew up assuming that they were going to college. Seeing these kids who might have never considered going to college before express this interest with such enthusiasm was fantastic . . . I felt like I really made a difference in these kids' lives."
"When their teacher explained that Hamilton's library is three stories tall and has thousands of books and computers galore, the kids were more stunned than when we told them how Rostam slew a dragon."
"I think that the YDP helps establish the idea in elementary-schoolers that as college students, it's expected that you get involved in the community and do something to give back to the people who got you to where you are today."
"I realize how important it is to give back to a community that is supporting me. I really enjoyed being a role model for children . . . I would recommend that at some point during a student's time at Hamilton College, he/she participate at least once in the YDP to have a feeling of accomplishment and make an impact, even a small one, on the children's lives."
"I started babysitting at age 14…I've been working in a children's nursery of a fitness center since junior year, and I volunteered as an elementary school tutor . . . none of these jobs were as fulfilling as my experience with the YDP."
"The entire experience for me actually brought me back home: the neighborhood wasn't dissimilar to my own, and I felt like I could recognize old classmates in my audience . . . the fact that I was now reading to them seemed very familiar."
"In the end, I felt like going there was more of an experience for me. It was like looking backwards into my own life, and shedding light on how much things have changed."
