Miss Bethany--The Beginning

I attend an adult daycare center for a variety of reasons--the most important being that interactions greatly improve my mental health. I wasn't expecting this pleasant surprise... There are lots of people that I can teach...at a bunch of different levels. I am teaching a staff member to improve her English. She asked me to do that; I didn't just say, "By the way, this is the right way to say X." I have figured out a rhythm of speech that helps calm a nonverbal autistic person. There is another group of developmentally delayed people who are learning about taking turns. I'm teaching another about basic language concepts, reading and writing--comprehension in general. It's a joyful challenge for sure! And each day when I go in, the goal is to make the people I interact with at least smile, and hopefully laugh. And of course, since I'm a client, I do my own thing at times, but really, what I love to do is to play and learn with people who would otherwise not really interact with anyone. This blog will detail what we do together, how they respond, and my challenges as I strive to add a little joy that personally reaches clients and staff alike. Look for another post soon, where I'll introduce the "students," whose real names will not be used. You'll read about what they're learning and how I'm teaching concepts. And finally, I'll detail the current challenges of working with this diverse group of people. But for now, it's time for this tired teacher to get some rest! Good night, and God's blessings!