Service session was one such activity which provided me with the opportunity to teach something I like (arts and craft). The aim of this activity was to give exposure, to students from an underprivileged background about different activities they can do apart from academics. Sessions were conducted every Saturday for 6 weeks, we were divided into groups according to our preferences and were asked to plan the activities in the week prior to our session.
When I was assigned a group of students and was asked to execute the activity planned then I realized that I had good teaching skills. I was a little reluctant to teach in the very first session as I was a little nervous, fearing I would do something very clumsily and mess up the plan. After doing the activity I realized that I need to improve my socializing skills when working in a group, of people with different opinions in order to cooperate well and complete our task on time and with precision. To improve my social and communication skills I tried socializing more in events and on regular days to work on my weakness. Though initially, it was a little difficult for me to start a conversation with someone I don’t know well and am not acquainted well with gradually I picked up the pace and learned how to socialize with such people.
When we were assigned different groups and fields I was very enthusiastic about the sessions. The six sessions (Saturdays) didn’t seem like a long journey but later did I realize that were long enough to test your patience. When the 3rd Saturday came, I was not willing to go to school and conduct any activity. But then when I thought about the amount of fun we had and learning that the kids took with themselves, I realized the impacts of my actions. I was able to attend five sessions in a row, but could not attend the sixth session as it was postponed to the next Saturday when I was supposed to go out of town. It generally is a task for me to be committed to things that last longer than four weeks but this I was able to do so because of my perseverance and enthusiasm for the activity.
Working with people is generally a challenge for me since at times it becomes difficult for me to interact with anyone who is just an acquaintance, also because if the person doesn’t understand what I am trying to say or the idea I am trying to deliver then I feel as if we are lost and so I get stuck in the conversation. There were some students from 7th or 8th grade who were a little difficult to interact with but then eventually from 3 or 4th session we were able to find a common ground where we were able to discuss and not fight. Through this activity, I was able to understand the importance of teamwork and I also learned the importance of cooperation and persistence.
For me, the overall the experience was fun, engaging and learning. Through this activity, I learned about the importance of cooperation and commitment. I was able to improve my social skills and was able to empathize more with the people around me.
