Abby Storm – Early Childhood Education Internship

My name is Abby Storm, and I am a senior here at Garden Spot High School. For my first semester, I have been given the incredible opportunity to be an intern at Brecknock Elementary, the same elementary school I actually attended when I first moved here to Lancaster! At Brecknock, I work as an assistant teacher in a kindergarten classroom, with my lovely mentor Sharon Macadams.
My responsibilities for the day usually depend on whatever my mentor has planned for the classroom. When I arrive at my internship on the Tuesdays and Thursdays I attend, I arrive right when the students get back from recess and are beginning with their math unit of the day. On a typical day, I spend time with small groups of students either working on worksheets, playing number games, or assessing where exactly the students are with what they are learning. Group work is definitely my favorite part of the day, as I love the one-on-one time I get to spend with each of the wonderful students. I am also responsible for walking around the classroom during lessons and sitting with students who may need some extra help and guidance. Furthermore, after the students are dismissed, I often help my mentor with whatever behind-the-scenes tasks she needs to be done! Whether it be making copies, cutting laminations, or setting up future assignments and packets to send home, I love being able to help.
This internship has taught me a lot about what it takes to be an early childhood educator. To take on this job, you definitely have to have lots of patience, determination, and flexibility. I learned that students learn in many different ways, and some approaches won’t work for every student in the classroom. For some students, certain lessons can be quite easy, and they don’t need much extra help. Other students, on the other hand, can really enjoy and benefit from spending one on one time with a teacher. I’ve also learned how to keep students engaged. Some students are more easily distracted than others, and it’s super important to keep them involved with the lesson. Overall, my internship is helping to prepare me for my future plans to become a teacher.
I am truly so grateful for this opportunity and am so excited to see where this experience takes me in the future. While it can be challenging to be a teacher (especially in a room full of kindergartners,) this experience helped me realize just how rewarding this job can be. Being able to help shape these young minds, and seeing their smiles when they see “Ms. Abby” enter the classroom has been one of the most amazing experiences I have had this year. I am also grateful for this experience because although I absolutely love working with kindergarteners, I was able to figure out that I might want to work with an older grade when I become a teacher myself.