reality check

Today I was assigned to tutor a 1&2 grade class at DePreist Elementary school in the far west side...
I mean, this was the far, far, west side. I got onto 290 and exited at Central Ave. Already a remarkable difference from my own west loop neighborhood. Dilapidated businesses, empty lots with filled with trash and debri, the parks filled with older kids doing questionable things. I was so nervous driving my SUV down Central Ave as local residents stared me down as they crossed the street or just hanging out on the sidewalks and medians...

When I got to the school, I was impressed with how beautiful their facilities were, but walking through a metal detector to teach at an elementary school? That's jarring...I picked up my students in the cafeteria where they all recieve a free afterschool lunch/dinner. It was so loud and the students were just out of control. My 1st and 2nd graders were intrigued with me and my long black hair and I could tell all they wanted was some love an attention. The girls sat close to me and all wanted to talk to me and tell me about what happened to them at school today. The boys were a little rough with each other but just a little touch and soft word calmed them down. For these kids, they don't get the special love and attention they need at home. No one wants to listen to them...rather, no one is at home to listen to them.

In class, I helped them finish their homework and we worked on reading and story telling skills. The kids worked hard but the hard work ends at school. When I told one student to take her project home and show it to her parents, she told me that she didn't have a dad and she lives with her grandma. Her mom only comes home once in a while. After class, her older brother who is a 5th grader came by to pick her up. He had bags under his eyes and took his sister's heavy bookbag even while he was carrying his own. I could tell that he does most of the taking care of his little sister. Too much of a weight for a 11 year old, no?

After the 5 o'clock afterschool program bell rang, the rest of my students ran out to find their older sibling or parent. There were 3 plain clothed police officers out front making sure the children were set on their way home. It was already getting dark and one officer stopped me as I headed out the door. He didn't want me to walk to my car on my own so he escorted me and told me not to take the local roads back to the West Loop, lock my doors and go directly to the highway...yikes.