At The Meeting House Afterschool where I work, we attempt to combat the social discomfort that children with learning disabilities face on an everyday basis. We also strive to aid in the process of helping children grasp important social abilities that they will need throughout their entire lives. TMH does this by creating a smaller, gentle environment where children can practice and learn social skills. In a traditional classroom setting, behaviors that are challenging for children with special needs are expected immediately, and there is no time given to adjust and learn and no room for mistakes.

You may know that there are a variety of lesser learning disorders, aside from ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) and Autism, that can make it very difficult for children to interact with others and succeed in social scenarios. Just as unfortunately, children diagnosed with these disorders may fall behind in school, adopt disruptive behaviors, and have trouble making friends, forcing both school and home life to become unenjoyable and arduous.

At The Meeting House, mistakes are encouraged, as it is a safe space for children to learn and grow. We offer programs for many different ages, though I happen to volunteer during the Juniors program for 4-6-year-old children. This program is centered around the fostering of social and emotional skills, such as conversational abilities and being flexible. I volunteer with four other teens, alongside a team of 7 dedicated social workers, arts teachers, and therapists that work at The Meeting House. We serve people from many different social backgrounds, and even awards scholarships to children whose parents are unable to pay the full tuition. This ensures that a socio-economically diverse mix of students is being supported at The Meeting House.

So far, I love volunteering at The Meeting House. I feel that it is doing extremely effective work and changing lives in ways that I’ve witnessed in my short time working there. For example, one student that I worked with came into the Meeting House at the beginning of the school year very shy, unable to have a steady conversation without becoming too nervous. She would rarely ever speak above a soft whisper and couldn’t look anyone in the eyes for longer than five seconds. This Tuesday, I had a full conversation with her about our winter breaks, and she hardly even looked away. It’s empowering to see a child change that much, and to know that I played some role in helping her gain strength and confidence. In my opinion, this is a very strong organization with very few weaknesses. Every week, I watch as kids’ faces light up as they are ushered into the building, filled with happiness and joy over the fact that they are at the Meeting House. To me, the most valuable work an organization of this kind can do is to make the kids happy, and to help them grow, both of which The Meeting House does successfully. This is a big part of why I have enjoyed my time volunteering there so much and why I look forward to the rest of the year and hopefully the year after that as well.

Tess Olmi is a Sophomore at Beacon High School, New York City, NY.