During my sophomore year, I joined the Best Buddies Club at my school. Best Buddies is all about making friendships between students with and students without special needs. Every year, we have fun events, such as the Thanksgiving Potluck and Friendship Walk. This is my third year of being a member of Best Buddies, and I am now the president.

As much as I enjoyed being a part of Best Buddies my sophomore year, I did not discover my passion for special education until the start of my junior year. That is when the faculty advisor for Best Buddies and our school’s special education teacher of the Educational Life Skills Program, mentioned that students could come to her classroom during their lunch or study hall to spend time with her students. A few days later, I joined her class. It was love at first sight. Since then, I have spent one study hall period with the special needs students each day. I assist with end of the day activities and reading, writing, and math lessons. I love being with the students and learning of different ways to communicate with them. At first, I felt awkward and unsure about how to act in certain situations. Gradually, I learned through the observation of the teacher’s teaching methods. I have learned to interpret the students’ body language and thus better understand them. The students have learned to read my expressions as well. They know that I will insist they finish all their work during class, but I will be fun and silly with them during the Best Buddies events and Integrated P.E. I use the students’ responses to my actions to judge the efficacy of my approaches to each student and each situation.

Through this same special education teacher, I heard about the Special Recreation Association of Central Lake County (SRACLC). SRACLC provides year round recreation programs for individuals with special needs. Last spring, I volunteered for a few programs at SRACLC. During this past summer, I volunteered for three weeks at their summer camp and then worked for three weeks as an Inclusion Aide. I currently work part-time whenever I can. I also recently completed a beginner’s sign language class and plan to take the next level this year.

I plan to teach teenagers with moderate to severe disabilities in a high school setting. I want to get into a good college with a good special education program so I can get the best education possible and be the best teacher I can be. My time with the students sparked my interest in special education. Now, after a year and a half of spending an hour in that classroom each day, my decision to pursue a career in this field is unwavering. I know being a special education teacher will be challenging, but I am certain I am up for the challenge. I can see myself teaching students with special needs for the rest of my life.