Insight to the ReachOut! Staffroom

Chantelle and Lucy discuss lessons in the "maths" corner.

The Summer Project is now into it’s third week of the best year yet. This is largely thanks to a great team of staff made up of 15 full-time teachers and 28 volunteers. Students make up the majority of this, coming from a range of London intuitions. Some have been with the charity for years, others have got involved recently.

Dorian, a 3rd year medical student at Barts University of London, has been volunteering with ReachOut! for 6 years; ‘The project is a great way to spend your summer and you don’t feel like you’re wasting your time.’ Dorian is teaching Science to Y5 and Y9 boys. ‘ReachOut! is giving students a chance to do something they wouldn’t otherwise be able to do.’ The project is an opportunity to gain experience.

Rachel, 19, recently finished her 1st year of psychology at UCL and is teaching maths to Y5 boys. Working with ReachOut! for less than a year, this is far from just a summer job for Rachel; ‘it is so important that we give local kids these types of programmes so that they have every opportunity for their futures, are able to apply themselves in some way, to be positive contributions to society. What we’re doing, I think, is the antithesis to the riots.’

The ReachOut! staffroom - always a hive of activity.

For others, the experience has played a major part in shaping their own career decisions. Rosie is going into her 3rd year at Royal Holloway University and teaches drama and art on the project. ‘This experience has reaffirmed my ambition to be a teacher.’

The teaching this year has been impressive, with every lesson planned by a qualified teacher and all staff receiving ReachOut! training. Kevin, a recently qualified teacher, is working on the Summer Project as a science teacher. He sees this as more than an academic pursuit, ‘We need to reengage with the community, the children need to know that someone cares about them,’ Programmes like ReachOut!’s are providing ‘consistency and that sense of what’s right and wrong that is crucial to these kids.’

This year’s team vary in age, experience and teaching ambition but they all share the enthusiasm, drive and dedication to ReachOut!’s aims that have helped make the Summer Project such a success.
Thanks guys!

Steph Pickerill

Staff relax with some dodgeball at the end of a busy day.