Javiet is a bright-eyed, lanky 6th grader. He is a natural leader, but is just beginning to realize it. Javier is at ease with younger students and almost always has a crowd of kids following him around. Even so, he had been a less-than-ideal student in the past. He did not pay attention in class and expressed ambivalence towards teachers and authority figures. One of our Fun in the Sun Program Leaders decided to take a different approach with Javier by asking him to lead. He began by helping with younger children, then started to participate more in his own class. These small shifts made a big difference. Fun in the Sun gave Javier an opportunity to become engaged, take a leadership role, and be around people who recognize his strengths and care about his growth. Today, Javier helps in all of his classes.
*To preserve anonymity, the names in the story have been changed.