(no subject)
I got a treat when I went to work at the Math Tutoring center today. :)
I've been working there for a couple weeks now, and sometimes it's more frustrating than fun. As the semester goes on, the frustrated people who don't get help in time get more and more frustrated, and then when they finally come to the tutoring center for help they barely know how to divide anymore. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to handle a bunch of frustrated people today because of my fatigue and lack of sanity, but, low and behold, the gods smiled down on me. :) There were the usual people I see on this shift, but they all seemed to have confidence today. The manic-depressive person was in her manic mode, and you all know how I love those manic modes (hehehehehehe!!!!), so we got along well; the hopeless lady (who's not hopeless at all - she just thinks she is) was being optimistic; the energetic guy was as energetic as usual; and everyone else seemed to be understanding their homework just fine ;). There was someone else there though; someone who I hadn't seen before and who wasn't using any of the math texts that the classes normally use at HSU. Extremely intrigued, I aproached the stranger and asked if he had any questions. When he started referencing his book I realized that he was doing geometry out of a Princeton Review book, and so I started asking questions. I found out that he wasn't taking any math class at HSU - he was teaching himself geometry. Immediately I thought that this person was awesome - that he could have the dedication it took to learn a math course on your own in a month (which was his goal). He'd already covered a lot of ground in the book and said he studied the subject for about 8 hours a day. The only word I could think of was "amazing". Surely I also have tried to learn math courses on my own - read a calculus book in 6th grade, and partially understood it (hehe - partially :)), but at his age (early 20's) I would think that that kind of motivation and ease of knowledge absorbtion would have escaped to the atmosphere by now. I knew it hadn't though - I saw that glimmer in his eyes - he was still a child at heart ;).
I helped him out with a few of his geometry problems, and I left that tutoring center today feeling like I had tasted the sweetest candy on the face of the earth.
I've been working there for a couple weeks now, and sometimes it's more frustrating than fun. As the semester goes on, the frustrated people who don't get help in time get more and more frustrated, and then when they finally come to the tutoring center for help they barely know how to divide anymore. I wasn't sure I was going to be able to handle a bunch of frustrated people today because of my fatigue and lack of sanity, but, low and behold, the gods smiled down on me. :) There were the usual people I see on this shift, but they all seemed to have confidence today. The manic-depressive person was in her manic mode, and you all know how I love those manic modes (hehehehehehe!!!!), so we got along well; the hopeless lady (who's not hopeless at all - she just thinks she is) was being optimistic; the energetic guy was as energetic as usual; and everyone else seemed to be understanding their homework just fine ;). There was someone else there though; someone who I hadn't seen before and who wasn't using any of the math texts that the classes normally use at HSU. Extremely intrigued, I aproached the stranger and asked if he had any questions. When he started referencing his book I realized that he was doing geometry out of a Princeton Review book, and so I started asking questions. I found out that he wasn't taking any math class at HSU - he was teaching himself geometry. Immediately I thought that this person was awesome - that he could have the dedication it took to learn a math course on your own in a month (which was his goal). He'd already covered a lot of ground in the book and said he studied the subject for about 8 hours a day. The only word I could think of was "amazing". Surely I also have tried to learn math courses on my own - read a calculus book in 6th grade, and partially understood it (hehe - partially :)), but at his age (early 20's) I would think that that kind of motivation and ease of knowledge absorbtion would have escaped to the atmosphere by now. I knew it hadn't though - I saw that glimmer in his eyes - he was still a child at heart ;).
I helped him out with a few of his geometry problems, and I left that tutoring center today feeling like I had tasted the sweetest candy on the face of the earth.